Three Graduate Architecture Students Earn Top Honors in Student Design Competition

Three master’s students in the Department of Architecture recently received top honors in the 2023 Metal Building Manufacturers Association (MBMA) Student Design Competition.

Jamie Jang was named overall winner in the competition, taking home the top prize of $5,000. In the graduate division, Mohamed Ashik Mubarak Ali earned second place with a prize of $2,500 and Xiaoyan Lang earned an honorable mention.

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All three students were advised by Stephen Schreiber, professor and chair of the Department of Architecture. The contest challenged each participant to create an innovative metal building design for a new nature center and environmental research facility.

“It was an honor to work with these talented students on this important project,” Schreiber said.

The MBMA competition took place during the 2023 fall semester, with the awards announced in early 2024. This marked the second consecutive year that UMass Amherst architecture graduate students received top awards in the competition.

“Congratulations to Jamie Jang and his advisor Stephen Schreiber on earning the top prize in the 2023 MBMA Student Design Competition,” said MBMA General Manager Tony Bouquot. “This year’s competition had 33 entries from six schools across North America, with a total of 46 students and eight faculty sponsors participating. Faculty sponsors play a large role in the competition, and we thank them for their work.”

Founded in 1956, MBMA serves manufacturers and suppliers as it works to promote the metal building systems industry. MBMA also provides graduate and undergraduate educational resources at MBMAeducation.org.