i don't believe phd requires an accredited degree.  my own prof did.  he believed a good phd was not possible without a few years working in an office somewhere so...

i have no idea how prevalent that attitude is.  i have heard similar from a few others but that is a small sample.

not sure if it is interesting for you but i am working in this program at keio university.  The goal of the program is to become expert in dealing with climate change adaptation and within that there is an architectural component, which is accredited in Japan (ie, you can get your architectural license after graduating from the course and pass the exam etc)

I am not sure if it will be recognised outside Japan but more importantly the school is intended to teach students to take on issues through fieldwork not just coursework.

right now sejima is teaching here as is fumihiko maki, if that means anything to you.  more meaningful for you perhaps is this is the place where shigeru ban based his disaster work.  current professors are working to build community centers in miyanmar, a school in the congo, and working on relief efforts in tohoku after the tsunami.  the architecture profs work with IT specialists, economists, social scientists and climate scientists and the curriculum is pretty open.  which means you can deal with the global south if that is what i interesting for you and still stay involved in the archtiecture side of things. 

there must be other programs like this out there, although i have not heard of any myself.  if the traditional education path doesn't fit your image this kid of thing may be a way to get where you want to go.

hi there, thanks for your post. It reaffirms my interest and hesitation towards pursuing M.Arch (despite being accepted last year into ivies). Eventhough I'm not sure about doing the deg in japan, the University definitely has conference etc links that I'd be really interested to attend or participate in. I actually would like to get more field experience in disaster management, community development or design/build projects before going into Phd.. UCL, Bartlett's UDP courses also have multiple choices tho all MSc degrees or Mphil/Phd so I think my interest is in those places.. UK just seems to have more choices in that field than N.America.. 

thanks again.

 I actually would like to get more field experience in disaster management, community development or design/build projects

barefoot, I'd encourage you to do this.  It sounds like you've been in school without a lot fo work experience, am I right?  I think some time working in the field will be the absolute best way to determine what additional education might be appropriate for you - if disaster management and under-served communities is your interest, spending two years designing blobby buildings isn't going to help.

Hi Donna.. Thanks for the note. I have worked in the field through my own initiatives hence my strong interest to pursue international development work but haven't had the opportunity  to work in a professional organization like AFH/ CHF etc. I suppose I should start looking into that. Also that's what I realized about M.Arch degree is that they focus on N.American problems and contexts. 

you can make an m.arch into whatever you want.  wasn't it enrique norton who taught the studio dealing with issues of poverty and immigration in usa and in latin america?  there is also the rural studio which deals with issues of design and poverty in the usa.  what you need is support from professors more than anything, and i am guessing almost any program has one or two good people you can talk to.  bartlett was not my first thought, but perhaps you are right.

i agree with donna though.  a bit of experience in the field may make a decision easier for you.  if you are in the usa there is always the peace corps, even if recent news has tarnished its image quite a bit (with the gang rapes and the misogyny )

very cool that you are interested in this kind of path though.  it is not so common in architecture.

I actually would like to get more field experience in disaster management, community development or design/build projects

You may actually find more of this sort of thing with a planning degree. Look at planning degrees (that are perhaps "accredited") that are within a public administration or sociology department and not within an architecture department (I think ASU is pretty near the top of the game with this).

The reason for picking a planning school outside of architecture is simply that planning schools within architecture tend to focus more on urban design rather than on public policy. And all of those things, including design/build, are policy issues rather than design issues.

hmm. interesting.. I have been looking at the DPU program at UCL http://www.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/ (not the typical Bartlett program) which I didn't realize is in the planning faculty similarly Berkeley's MA program led by Nezar Alsayyad is also in the international planning field. 

Sadly Peace Corps is not something I'm eligible for, being Canadian, but my partner is one of the key people trying to revive PC. Sad that the recent news has tarnished this incredible program.. 

Thanks for the notes! Really appreciate it!