<p>I'm a senior this year getting ready to apply to colleges and I intend to major in architecture, however, I don't know if the 4year pre-professional degree or 5year BArch would be better for me. The 5year BArch seems to be the best route to get right into the field, however I still want to have the "typical" college experience. I know architecture students spend a lot of time working, but are they able to still meet new people (other than their fellow architects) and become involved in campus activities, or are they too busy? If so, would a 4year program be better for me as far as giving me a chance to take other classes or commit to campus activities? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!</p>
<p>kmak, Architecture students aren't any more obsessive than students in general -- some spend excessive amounts of time working, some manage to find a balance among academics, extracurriculars and social activities. </p>
<p>I think that your real question should be do you want to study architecture exclusively as an undergraduate or do you want to get a true liberal arts degree which means a balance of coursework? There is no "right" answer as there are famous and successful architects who have taken both routes. </p>
<p>I would say, however, that if you're not 100% sure that architecture is your life's work, then don't rush into a 5 year program. In the years between highschool and college graduation -- and for many for some time afterwards -- kids change their majors and interests again and again. Once you get to college, doors to fields of study can open that were never even imagined before. That's the beauty of a liberal arts education.</p>
<p>I know that it's appealing to have a specific name to what you want to be when you grow up :) (doctor, lawyer, architect) but in fact the world of work is wide and multifaceted and you don't need to commit yourself just yet.</p>
<p>It's not that architecture students are more obsessive- it's that they're simply given more time-consuming work.</p>
<p>Sure architecture students leave the studio...to go to other classes when they remember, and occasionally to shower. ;) If you are looking for a "typical" college experience like what is stereotypically portrayed in movies and whatnot, you will not find it in a 5-year architecture program. That's not to say that you won't still have plenty of fun in architecture and make plenty of friends, just that you will be in a sort of architecture bubble and your experience will be greatly different from the rest of the school. </p>
<p>Honestly during the first and second years, most of the architecture student's friends were other architecture students, not really because there were no opportunities for them to meet other people, but because we had class with each other 12 hours a week, and when we weren't in class we were in the studio working with each other anyway, and all the hardship creates a sort of bonding experience that you don't really get with, say, the people down the hall from you in the dorms.</p>
<p>If you want a more leisurely time, or you might not be 100% into architecture and you want to deeply explore other options, you might be better off doing the 2+4 thing. You'll obviously be able to take classes and have electives and whatnot in the 5 year program as well, but it'll be something like 3 electives per year versus 6 with the non-professional degree. You also don't actually have to major in architecture during undergrad to go on to grad school in architecture if you don't really want to, although this would probably add an extra year onto the whole thing.</p>
<p>Clarification on the 4+2 programs. Many post that this is the way to go if you're not 100% sure about architecture. Please note that many 4+2 programs are just as intensive, if they focus on design studio. You just add an extra year, a few more electives, and end with a masters degree. Yes, you do get the space for several additional electives, but the time spent in studio is no less intense. Also, the studio courses are often scheduled approx. 12 hours per week for only 3-4 credits. (for example, MWF 1-5pm). That may eliminate much flexibility in your schedule as well. (You spend additional time on your own, but 12 hours for one course, blocks out a large number of other courses on your schedule). </p>
<p>I have seen some architecture students who do NOT spend the crazy hours in studio. They are a minority. They also typically treat their work as a "job", and actually do most of it at home (or dorm), and are very time-effecient. Studio time (in and outside of the classroom periods) often becomes social time (at least at the beginning of a course before the deadlines approach), so it is not all spent actually working.</p>