The university has one of the few planned campus on the island as it was thought that the new concepts on which the school was founded should be matched by the school's facilities, thus creating the proper educational setting.
早期的「拓荒者」還以為，東海的創辦既代表嶄新教育理想的實現，自然也應有新穎獨特的建築形式與之配合，因此，在當年經費充裕的情況下，聯董會特別聘請旅美名建築師貝聿銘負責設計，而有了台灣唯一經過整體規畫的美麗校區。