Much needed advice Please

College Majors Architecture Major
1

<p>Hi everyone,
I have always wanted to go to Architecture school but unfortunately when I left high school I did not have the prerequisites, mainly a portfolio, to apply to B.Arch programs. Instead I enrolled at a selective LAC and took many architecture studies courses.
The final semester of my junior year at college was a tough one because of personal issues I was experiencing and I ended up failing an important course. My gpa suffered and is now at a 3.0. As I enter my senior year, I am hoping to salvage this situation. I do not have a portfolio even now and I am wondering if taking art courses should be my next step or should I forget about this entirely :( Is my wish to attend a good architecture school still a realistic possibility? If so what are any suggestions that might help? Thank you.</p>

<p>P.S I know the posts on this thread are mainly concerned with architecture at the undergraduate level but I really have no one to turn to for advise regarding this matter. Also I am finding it very hard to find information about admissions to Architecture schools so I would be very thankful for any recommended resources.</p>

2

<p>If you want to attend graduate school at Yale or Columbia without an architecture undergraduate degree then you are going to need a serious GPA and GRE scores, but there are many good graduate architecture programs that are not nearly as selective. The world is full of very successful architects with graduate degrees from places like UT Austin, UVA, KU, Wash U, Florida , etc. It is only a starting place, but the Design Inteligence school rankings will give you some ideas of where to look. The web has made this research so much easier.</p>

<p>At the graduate level most of these schools want a portfolio with evidence of creative work, but there may be a few that don’t. I would recommend taking as many art courses as possible, not only will it help you with a portfolio, but the art studio culture is not far removed from the architecture studio culture. Since you only have a semester before applying I would look into a summer art course at a community college, sketching courses in particular. Good luck.</p>

<p>Rick</p>

3

<p>Kozmic, “good” is a relative term when it comes to M.Arch programs. The top rated programs are insanely selective, but there are many other good choices.</p>

<p>Undergraduate grades are important of course, but so are other elements, especially your portfolio, life experience and demographic. Sometimes those last three factors can compensate for an academic weakness somewhere else.</p>

<p>By life experience I mean your undergraduate college and any work, travel experience you’ve had. Demographic includes the gender, race/ethnicity, economic background, age.</p>

<p>There’s no reason that you have to apply to graduate school right after undergraduate. Take some time to get experience working in architecture (if you haven’t already), work on your portfolio, travel and look at buildings.</p>

<p>Many M.Arch schools have information programs, often in the fall, in which they explain what they’re looking for in applicants, about their creative philosophy. Look at their websites for dates.</p>

<p>I’d also recommend you attend an architecture career exploration session. Somee are available at night for people who have jobs. I know about programs at Columbia and Harvard; there are probably others.</p>

<p>Each M.Arch program has its own entrance requirements. You seem to be covered in art history. Make sure you’ve taken some physics and calculus as well. </p>

<p>Don’t even think about applying to a M.Arch program without the best possible portfolio. This should be your #1 focus.</p>

<p>Think about how you’re going to finance this. M.Arch programs do give grants but loans are more common. The total cost can be horrific.</p>

<p>And lastly as Rick says, have a balanced list of targeted schools. There are many fine M.Arch programs that are not terribly selective. In addition to the ones he recommended look at Oregon, Northeastern, Michigan and Cincinnati.</p>

4

<p>Thank you very much for the feedback.</p>