Hello All,
I thought I’d start a thread for those applying for Bachelors or Masters in Architecture.
My daughter is currently a Senior at WashU (BS in Architecture).
She will be applying for the 2 year track for Masters in Architecture:
Berkeley
Rice University
U of Michigan
U of Texas at Austin
U of Washington
She’s almost done with her extensive portfolio and a WashU professor who is considered the king of portfolios blessed it. Yay!!
Good luck everyone!
She thinks she’s done :). Most schools have some silly number of pages or size limit that makes for some rather tedious PDF gymnastics. Not to mention specific program focus that may bring in or highlight specific projects. Then there were TWO schools that required paper portfolios (what is this, the 1970’s :)). And then there’s that awful portfolio upload site…
DD1 did this 3 years ago and now she’s starting the PhD application process… even more fun. Add a few more schools to the list if you’re seeking funding, it never hurts. There’s a lot of good schools out there.
Also, before you graduate, go thru your class notes for every arch class you took and pull out the PDF (preferably) or paper copy of the syllabus that has a detailed list of topics for equivalency determination. NAAB or no NAAB, if you’re applying to different schools they will likely need the syllabus for ‘advanced placement’ (not just the course names off the transcript or the 1-paragraph course description off the school’s web page).
@turbo93 thank you so much. Great advice. Wow PhD that’s quite an achievement. Good luck to her! Does she want to be a professor?
My D has crossed off quite a few schools due to various reasons. Ivy’s usually don’t give scholarships and they require 3.5 years (which is crazy). The town is important to her and she doesn’t like being in competitive cutthroat culture.
She chose WashU UG because it’s highly collaborative and friendly and she loved the town.
She crossed off Harvard, Yale, MIT, Tulane, Northeastern, UCLA (too many requirements up front), etc.
You are right there’s quite a few to pick from and a lot of good schools out there. Trying to find the right fit is key.
She also picked these based on where she’d like to live and where the cost of living is lower (except for Berkeley which is an outlier).
If you have any other colleges to suggest, please let us know. Thanks.
A good school choice at this time would be something that has (a) good reputation among practicing architects in the place she wants to end up (regional hiring seems to be the norm) (b) good NCARB licensing pass rates © good opportunities for co-op / internships, and (d) most important IMHO, a school that complements her undergrad education. Not MATCHES, which defeats the purpose, but COMPLEMENTS.
For example, if she was in a history and theory or conceptual heavy undergrad, she could try for a more ‘technical’ school to complement her knowledge of things practical. Or vice versa. The M.Arch coursework DD has done has been about half and half required courses (more courses in building construction systems, etc), more studios dealing with real life projects, environmental systems (more of those) and a pretty good allotment of electives / seminars. But that’s because she has a solid history & theory and conceptual background.
I would say a few more schools like NCSU, Clemson, Georgia Tech, UIUC, IIT, both Kansas schools, Oregon, USC… Don’t know if SLO has a separate M.Arch. Two more really awesome schools don’t have an M.Arch (haven’t checked lately) like Auburn and Arkansas. U Miami is also interesting. U Cinci also a good choice. Pretty much apply early and often. And, don’t be surprised if the pesky 3 or 3.5 year requirement is real; not a few schools DD was admitted to pretty much mandate a 3 year M.Arch even with a preprofessional degree.
Clemson and NCSU were the two schools that required paper portfolios 3 years ago :). Both great choices, too.
Hey guys, I applied to UT Austin for BArch and I’m a little skeptical about my chances of getting into UTSOA. I didn’t get a great score in the new SAT (1220), but I did get a great score in my junior (96%, i.e. 4.0 GPA) and my expected is 98%. My essays are well written too. I just need to know if there is any of me getting into UTSOA. I’m a international student btw.
UT Austin is difficult to get into. They don’t have many spots but All you can do is try and be sure to apply to other schools to increase your chances. Where else did you apply and Good luck!
@sreeja, Are you seeking financial aid? That’s a major factor in international admissions in general.
@newjersey17 Aww thank you. :’) That was the only university in which I was interested :3 so yeahh
@momrath I will be seeking financial aid in the future, but I don’t remember any question regarding this during the application process.
So, is seeking financial aid a good thing or a bad thing? As in, will my chances increase if I don’t opt for financial aid?
Also, if I send one of my miscellaneous documents after the deadline, will they consider it?
You can submit miscellaneous documents after the deadline. It may be helpful. It’s up to them if they want to include it or not.
I’ve heard that UTA has one voucher per class to get instate rates.
Usually state schools don’t have great FA.
@sreeja, I’m not familiar with UT Austin’s policies on financial aid for international students, so please be aware that these are general comments only.
Except for a handful of colleges, most schools are need aware for internationals. That means that they will consider your financial needs when they decide whether or not to admit you. Since financial aid to internationals is limited, your chance of admission is most likely better if you do not apply for aid.
HOWEVER (and this is important) the policy at most schools is that if international students don’t apply for financial aid for their first year, they are not allowed to apply in subsequent years. So if you project that you will need aid later, you must apply with your initial application.
Again, I don’t have insider information about UT Austin’s aid policies toward internationals. My suggestion would be to search their website or shoot them an email for clarification.
@newjersey17 oh, thank you!
Yeah, I know.
“UTA” is UT-Arlington. “UT” is UT Austin. 
@momrath Now that I remember, in ApplyTexas, there’s a box that you’ve to check to confirm whether you’ll be seeking financial aid or no. And I did check the box.
Although my overall SAT score is less, I scored well in my math section. Do they see the breakdown of the scores?
Can I add my intra school achievements in my resume?
Is Illinois Institute of technology good for architecture?
IIT is on one of the Design Intelligence top Arch list.