Miami Architecture

[Gtvecuador]

<p>Het guys! I am an international student from Ecuador and i want to study architecture in the US. I have been admitted into Miami University fro their Bachelor of art in Architecture. and i received a 10k per year scholarship. However I am not sure about their programme and their seems there is not a lot of info about it. Can anyone please tell me if this program is known? Is there any advantage to the 4+2 option?
I have also been admitted into 5 year programmes at Tulane, Wentworth, Scad, Phila U and RPI.
thanks in advance fot he help!</p>

[StitchInTime]

<p>Gtvecuador:</p>

<p>Congratulations on being accepted to Miami and specifically the BA in Architecture program. How did learn about Miami in Ecuador? </p>

<p>I can give you a lot of information about Miami’s program. All three of my children as studying architecture, two of them are at Miami. As you already know, you have to go through an additional application process; which makes it very selective. I seem to remember that the acceptance rate was between 10% to 15% of applicants to the program…though I can’t find a web link to support that…this may have been shared during an onsite information session.</p>

<p>Miami’s program is very solid and has been gaining recognition of late…see: [Miami’s</a> Architecture Department: a School that Excels in Distinctive Specialties](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/miami-university-ohio/969273-fyi-miamis-architecture-department-school-excels-distinctive-specialties.html]Miami’s”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/miami-university-ohio/969273-fyi-miamis-architecture-department-school-excels-distinctive-specialties.html). The Interior Design program has also been recognized by [Design</a> Inteligence](<a href=“College of Creative Arts | Miami University”>College of Creative Arts | Miami University).</p>

<p>One of the benefits of the BA in Architecture degree at Miami is that it is hosted in a facility that also has the accredited graduate degree in architecture. So students have access to excellent facilities including the studios and the dedicated library at [Alumni</a> Hall](<a href=“College of Creative Arts | Miami University”>http://arts.muohio.edu/architecture-interior-design/facilities). The program is very rigorous, so don’t expect any easy A’s. You will have to work very hard and smart. Part of the program’s philosophy is to collaborate with your colleagues; a skill that will make you successful in the long run. If you haven’t done so already, take a look at the department’s [online</a> videos](<a href=“College of Creative Arts | Miami University”>College of Creative Arts | Miami University). The article entitled [‘A</a> new guide to inform (and demystify) the process of choosing an architecture school’](<a href=“http://www.architectmagazine.com/education/arch-ed-2009.aspx]'A”>http://www.architectmagazine.com/education/arch-ed-2009.aspx) may also be of help to you. </p>

<p>As to 4+2 vs 5 year programs, check out the [ACSA[/url</a>] site and the CC’s [url=&lt;a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/architecture-major/]Architecture”&gt;Architecture Major - College Confidential Forums]Architecture</a> Major](<a href=“https://www.acsa-arch.org/students/programs.aspx]ACSA[/url”>https://www.acsa-arch.org/students/programs.aspx) forum for good discussions on the pros/cons.</p>

[Gtvecuador]

<p>Thank you very much for the info StitchInTime! I didn’t know the rate of acceptance was so low! Tht makes me very excited about the program at Miami University and it’s definitley now on my top options</p>

[StitchInTime]

<p>Update on the selectivty number [noted</a> above](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12063985-post2.html]noted”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/12063985-post2.html).</p>

<p>Here’s the article I remember reading in the Miami Student: [‘College</a> guide commends music, architecture’](<a href=“http://www.miamistudent.net/news/campus/college-guide-commends-music-architecture-1.1576503][i]'College”>http://www.miamistudent.net/news/campus/college-guide-commends-music-architecture-1.1576503):</p>

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Miami University’s music and architecture programs have recently been recognized in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2011 for being among the top programs in their fields.</p>

<p>In the guide, Miami is listed as one of 20 “Public Universities Strong in Architecture” and one of 25 “Major Universities Strong in Music.” Miami was also ranked one of 36 “Public Universities Strong in Business.”</p>

<p>John Weigand, chair and professor of architecture and interior design, said Miami is one of only four National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) accredited universities in Ohio. The other three are The Ohio State University, Kent State University and University of Cincinnati.</p>

<p>As opposed to a five-year bachelor of architecture program, Miami offers a four-year bachelor of art in architecture pre-professional program as well as a master of architecture graduate program. Weigand said this is one of the strengths of the undergraduate program.</p>

<p>“One of the things we talk about as being unique is our emphasis in broad-based education,” Weigand said.</p>

<p>Weigand said the liberal arts undergraduate education Miami offers is important in his field because architecture is very interdisciplinary. He said students need a broad base of understanding in art, science, human behavior and business to succeed in architecture.</p>

<p>Weigand said off-campus study, from Over-the-Rhine to Ghana, Africa, is another unique aspect of the program. He said more than half of the department’s students participate in off-campus study before graduation.</p>

<p>The department also partners with other university departments, Weigand said. Collaboration with the business, education and engineering schools, as well as other programs, give students interdisciplinary experience.</p>

<p>The program is also competitive. According to Weigand, of the 400 to 500 undergraduate applicants the department receives, only 75 are accepted. The high caliber of students and the small class size allows for successful collaboration even in the students’ first-year studio classes, Weigand said…

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<p>That would be a range of 15% to 19% admissions rate to the program…that’s on top of going through the general university admissions process. Bottom-line, a candidate has to be both smart and artistically talented.</p>

<p>This [‘Proposal</a> from the Department of Architecture and Interior Design’](<a href=“Page Not Found on the Users, Units, or Orgs Server | Miami University”>Page Not Found on the Users, Units, or Orgs Server | Miami University) contains an excellent write-up on the profile of the department and its background/philosophy: </p>

<p>

…The Department of Architecture at Miami University was founded in 1930 and has existed as a unit in the School of Fine Arts throughout its history. Originally offering a professional undergraduate degree called Bachelor of Architecture (a five-year degree program) and an advanced degree called Master of City Design, **the department converted its curricula in the early 1970s when it began offering a four-year pre-professional degree now called Bachelor of Arts in Architecture[\b] and a professional graduate degree called Master of Architecture…</p>

<p>…This high quality is in part based on a selective admissions process that requires the submission of a portfolio by every applicant. No other program of architecture in Ohio uses portfolio assessment for admission. Schools that do use this means of selection include Cornell, Syracuse, Pratt Institute, Rhode Island School of Design, and a small number of other institutions mainly from the ivy league. Since the portfolio admission process has been used, the applicant pool for admission has doubled and the quality of students entering the first-year classes has risen dramatically while attrition has plummeted…

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