PhD in Habitat and Sustainability
On-campus program. Duration: four years. Semester-based.
Doctorado en Hábitat y Sustentabilidad
Develop solutions to achieve a sustainable habitat through applied research
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Program director
Emma Regina Morales García de Alba, Ph.D
PhD in Urban Studies and Planning (University of Sheffield, England), Master in City Studies and Management (Ibero Puebla) and Bachelor of Architecture (University of the Americas-Puebla).
She is a member of the American Planning Association (APA), an associate member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI), a founding member of Forópolis, a full member of the National Academy of Architecture, Puebla chapter, and a member of the National Council for Territorial Planning and Urban Development of the Ministry of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development (Sedatu).
In addition to her academic work, she has participated as a consultant in urban plans, programs and projects in different Mexican regions.
Reasons to study
this PhD
You enter an inter-institutional program whose academic body is made up of professionals from ITESO and the Ibero Puebla and León, belonging to the Jesuit University System in Mexico.
You produce applied knowledge from practice at different territorial scales, with emphasis on environments with greater inequalities, and you implement its dissemination and diffusion in specialized forums and media.
You develop a multidisciplinary approach to address complex problems with innovative and creative solutions that respond to the priority needs of society, especially disadvantaged groups.
A program built for professionals like you
Admission profile
The program is aimed at professionals with a master's degree in the areas of Architecture, Civil Engineering, Design, Urban Planning, Environmental Sciences, Social Sciences or related fields with experience in issues related to habitat and sustainability who:
- Have fundamental theoretical knowledge regarding a field of knowledge directly related to habitat.
- They have acquired basic knowledge about planning processes and evaluation tools for strategies, plans and projects.
- They should have analytical and critical skills to formulate alternatives to current approaches to addressing environmental problems, human spaces, and sustainability at different scales.
Graduate profile
Upon completion of this doctorate:
- You will understand the complexity of various habitat phenomena based on the relationships between the problems that arise from them and their environmental, economic, political, social, historical, cultural, and technological dimensions.
- You will be able to efficiently communicate to different social subjects the state of a situation or problem related to the habitat based on its descriptive identification and a diagnosis that synthesizes the variables that determine it.
- You will design and apply new methodological processes of collaborative construction to generate multisectoral and interdisciplinary proposals that provide solutions to problems related to habitat.
- You will be able to track the development of proposed solutions by implementing comprehensive strategies, to continuously assess the suitability and scope of processes and products.
A Rich Graduate Experience
ITESO’s graduate programs are supported by a renowned academic faculty comprising leading experts in their fields, who are actively engaged in real-world projects that offer concrete solutions. The university boasts over 100 researchers, 79 of whom are affiliated with Mexico’s National System of Researchers (SNII). Some are also members of the Mexican Academy of Sciences.
Research at ITESO generates new, rigorous, and relevant knowledge focused on some of the region’s and country’s most pressing challenges. Areas of impact include human rights, access to justice, renewable energy, sustainable resource management, food security, mental health and well-being, quality education, data science, and public communication, among others. These programs aim to offer development alternatives, influence public policy, foster technological innovation, and promote socially impactful projects.
One of the key advantages of ITESO’s graduate programs is the opportunity for international academic exchange through alliances with the International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU), a global network of over 320 institutions. Additionally, programs supported by Conacyt offer research stays in Mexico and abroad for fieldwork, study, or the completion of research projects.
Sustainability is an institutional priority that drives research, education, and community engagement projects at ITESO. These initiatives aim to develop comprehensive, long-term strategies for ecosystem stewardship that are in harmony with local communities. ITESO’s campus is one of the most sustainable in the country, and among the few in the world with a protected forest on its grounds.
ITESO offers access to more than 100 specialized laboratories in areas such as nanotechnology, data science, food engineering, mechatronics, biotechnology, chemistry, systems, communication, multimedia, languages, nutrition, neuromarketing, arts, building technologies, and more. Facilities also include simulated courtrooms, exhibition spaces, mediation rooms, and audiovisual projection labs.
ITESO’s lectures foster dialogue, critical thinking, and the exchange of ideas across sectors. They provide spaces for collaboration between academia, industry, and civil society, aimed at generating knowledge with high social impact. These initiatives also strengthen academic networks and support faculty and student mobility.
With more than 80 active academic journals and a robust catalogue of books, ITESO leads private universities in the region in scholarly publishing. Publications cover diverse disciplines, promote interdisciplinary collaboration, and are widely accessible—many available for free download online.
ITESO holds the most significant number of industry collaboration agreements among private universities in western Mexico. The university also offers dual-degree programs with institutions such as the University of Koblenz (Germany), Boston College, and Central Michigan University (USA).
ITESO’s library houses more than 640,000 physical volumes and 200,000 digital resources, including books, journals, blueprints, films, and a collection of rare and antique books. Open to the public, the library features reading rooms, exhibition spaces, a cinema, an agora, a material library, and collaborative workspaces.
ITESO offers expert consulting and support for businesses at all stages of development through the Center for Innovation and Technology Management, the High-Impact Social Innovation Center, and the University-Business Center. Graduate students engage in projects focused on entrepreneurship, innovation, business acceleration, solidarity economies, and fair trade alternatives.
Distinguished faculty
Research programs
Academic mobility
Sustainability
Computer systems
Lectures
Publications
Partnerships
Library
Business & Entrepreneurship
ITESO’s graduate programs are supported by a renowned academic faculty comprising leading experts in their fields, who are actively engaged in real-world projects that offer concrete solutions. The university boasts over 100 researchers, 79 of whom are affiliated with Mexico’s National System of Researchers (SNII). Some are also members of the Mexican Academy of Sciences.
Research at ITESO generates new, rigorous, and relevant knowledge focused on some of the region’s and country’s most pressing challenges. Areas of impact include human rights, access to justice, renewable energy, sustainable resource management, food security, mental health and well-being, quality education, data science, and public communication, among others. These programs aim to offer development alternatives, influence public policy, foster technological innovation, and promote socially impactful projects.
One of the key advantages of ITESO’s graduate programs is the opportunity for international academic exchange through alliances with the International Association of Jesuit Universities (IAJU), a global network of over 320 institutions. Additionally, programs supported by Conacyt offer research stays in Mexico and abroad for fieldwork, study, or the completion of research projects.
Sustainability is an institutional priority that drives research, education, and community engagement projects at ITESO. These initiatives aim to develop comprehensive, long-term strategies for ecosystem stewardship that are in harmony with local communities. ITESO’s campus is one of the most sustainable in the country, and among the few in the world with a protected forest on its grounds.
ITESO offers access to more than 100 specialized laboratories in areas such as nanotechnology, data science, food engineering, mechatronics, biotechnology, chemistry, systems, communication, multimedia, languages, nutrition, neuromarketing, arts, building technologies, and more. Facilities also include simulated courtrooms, exhibition spaces, mediation rooms, and audiovisual projection labs.
ITESO’s lectures foster dialogue, critical thinking, and the exchange of ideas across sectors. They provide spaces for collaboration between academia, industry, and civil society, aimed at generating knowledge with high social impact. These initiatives also strengthen academic networks and support faculty and student mobility.
With more than 80 active academic journals and a robust catalogue of books, ITESO leads private universities in the region in scholarly publishing. Publications cover diverse disciplines, promote interdisciplinary collaboration, and are widely accessible—many available for free download online.
ITESO holds the most significant number of industry collaboration agreements among private universities in western Mexico. The university also offers dual-degree programs with institutions such as the University of Koblenz (Germany), Boston College, and Central Michigan University (USA).
ITESO’s library houses more than 640,000 physical volumes and 200,000 digital resources, including books, journals, blueprints, films, and a collection of rare and antique books. Open to the public, the library features reading rooms, exhibition spaces, a cinema, an agora, a material library, and collaborative workspaces.
ITESO offers expert consulting and support for businesses at all stages of development through the Center for Innovation and Technology Management, the High-Impact Social Innovation Center, and the University-Business Center. Graduate students engage in projects focused on entrepreneurship, innovation, business acceleration, solidarity economies, and fair trade alternatives.
Research at ITESO
“Universities are called to be places of possibilities — to open horizons through research and engagement”.
Arturo Sosa, SJ
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