If priority is architecture above all other considerations like campus life, sports, etc, I suggest that you look at tiny Cooper Union in New York City. Its location alone makes it a great place to study urban design and it also features a focus on sustainability in its architecture program.
Cooper Union has fewer than 1000 students, divided among 3 schools of Art, Architecture, and Engineering with the School of Architecture having only 126 students. But it is also one of the best schools of architecture in the country and has been for more than 160 years since its founding in 1859. Its small size is not unique among top colleges. Cal Tech, indisputably one of the top engineering colleges in the country also has fewer than a thousand students. Olin College of Engineering and Harvey Mudd, 2 other top engineering schools, each has fewer than 1000 students! Juilliard, arguably the top music college in the country, also has fewer than 1000 students. Suze and excellence are not the same.
One of the things that makes it special is that every student automatically receives a half tuition scholarship, making the tuition only $22,275. But Cooper Union is projecting that it will be tuition free by 2028-29, which would be your junior year. So, your junior and senior years would be entirely tuition free. For next year, tuition, fees, room & board cost about $44,000 according to their website. Before any additional financial aid.
College housing is only provided for freshmen, so all others have to find their own housing for the next 3 years. But by the end of freshman year, students have new friends who join together in neighborhood apartments. Another nearby option is dorm style living but in a dorm which is provided by a private company and not by the college. The private dorm houses students from multiple colleges, not just Cooper Union. Living off campus is not uncommon at many colleges and universities.
A college with such a small enrollment could be isolating, but in this case it’s not. Cooper Union’s East Village location puts it only a few city blocks away from massive NYU and also from New School University. The 3 colleges together have a combined undergraduate enrollment of about 36,000 students. With many students from the other colleges also living in off campus housing, the students from the 3 schools tend to find each other. In fact, some find themselves living with some roommates from colleges other than the one they attend. It’s a real college neighborhood!
To make this work, a student has to want the urban lifestyle and has to want to be in New York City specifically. If that’s what you want, there couldn’t be a better part of New York City to be in than Greenwich Village if you’re looking to find things to do.
Take a look. See what you think.