<p>My son has a full-tuition scholarship to Pitt and was nominated for the Chancellor's Scholarship but we haven't heard anything yet on that. He was also accepted to Notre Dame. He thinks he wants to study architecture, but there is a possibility he could change majors (engineering would be likely then). Pitt doesn't seem to have a very strong architecture program so I'd be especially interested to hear about Pitt architecture. Notre Dame has a strong architecture program, but costs lots of $$$$ and will be a big financial burden for us. Also, the two universities are distinctly different. There is already a thread about Pitt v. ND on the ND forum, but I wanted to hear what Pitt people might say. Any thoughts about this decision?</p>
<p>My understanding is that Pitt only has a pre-professional undergraduate architecture program so your son would need to go for a masters elsewhere (another 2-3 years of school) to practice as an architect. (The cost of the masters should be factored in.) That is a common track to architecture but if your son might want to commit early to architecture, he may prefer a B. Arch or a 5-year M. Arch program that lets him practice sooner. Pitt would not offer that. The tradeoff is B. Arch or a 5-year M. Arch programs are very architecture intensive and leave little room for other interests (other classes and non-academic pursuits).</p>
<p>Seriously? Notre Dame</p>
<p>Quakerstate, you’re right. Pitt only offers a pre-professional program. He would have to go on for a masters somewhere else and that would be expensive, but ND would still be more expensive even factoring that in. However, Notre Dame offers a 5-year professional degree program and they are consistently ranked in the top 10 schools for architecture.</p>
<p>Wow, what a conundrum! As you say, ND and Pitt are very different. My younger daughter is also applying at schools for architecture. She did not apply to Pitt for their architecture program because she was not convinced it was a very strong program. I should mention that she loves the Pitt campus and the Oakland area and her older sister goes there. However, she chose to apply to Penn State, Cincinnati and Va Tech for their architecture programs. Although Va Tech is her #1 choice she is leaning towards PSU, since, as she said, if she finds out that arch is really not for her, she has many alternatives to change to. She has been accepted at PSU and Cincinnati (so far), and we are also doing the cost-benefit analysis.</p>
<p>A couple of questions to ask/think about, though:
- If your son changes from architecture, does either school offer an acceptable alternative? (You mentioned engineering, which both schools have, but which field? Do both schools have what he is thinking of as an alternate?)
- Call up Pitt and ask them how many of their arch graduates go on grad school for an M.Arch. Also, ask them what grad schools they got into.
- I’m sure that you’ve done the math, but Pitt with a full tuition scholarship will be about $10,000 a year for room & board. Add to that the three+ years of grad school. Compare that to five years at ND and see where that comes out.</p>
<p>Cost may be the dispositive factor though you do have to plan for Masters tuition 4 years down the road if Pitt is the choice. Your son might decide to be a working engineer by then :-). Notre Dame is a great school though if it is a close call on cost.</p>
<p>I’m sure you know all this but… The choice between a pre-professional and professional program is a big one. The professional programs require a serious commitment to architecture early on. There is very little room for electives, extracurricular activities and sleep. You can start practicing earlier.</p>
<p>A pre-professional program gives you a head start towards the professional degree as you get a lot of background and some credits might be applied towards the masters (depending on the schools), so that’s an advantage over a completely unrelated undergraduate degree. However, it’s not as intense as the professional degree and there is room to get a broader education.</p>
<p>Some schools offer both the pre-professional and professional degrees for undergrads and those would have the strongest pre-professional programs.</p>
<p>QuietType - thanks for the help and ideas.</p>
<ol>
<li> Yes, we looked for major universities with many options for majors - both Pitt and ND have that.</li>
<li> Great idea to call Pitt and see how many of their pre-architecture students go to grad school and where.</li>
<li> Yes, we’ve crunched the numbers.</li>
</ol>
<p>quakerstate - I appreciate the comments regarding the differences between the pre-professional and the professional degree. I didn’t totally appreciate those differences.</p>
<p>Do you know what you can do with a pre-professional architecture degree if you DON’T go on to grad school?</p>
<p>I think most people who graduate with that major would intend to go to graduate school in architecture or in a related field (historic preservation, urban planning, etc.). They can also decide to pursue other studies - such as law or business. </p>
<p>It is a good background for employment in real estate or construction related businesses or government. However, I think again, most would probably go to graduate architecture school.</p>
<p>I think it is a good idea to ask Pitt about its graduates’ experiences. There is a link on the Pitt website listing where some recent alumni from the arch prorgam are now. [Alumni</a> | Architectural Studies Program | University of Pittsburgh](<a href=“http://www.arch.pitt.edu/people/alumni.php]Alumni”>http://www.arch.pitt.edu/people/alumni.php) Some 2008 alumni seem to be going or have been accepted to top programs like Penn, Cornell, USC, UVA, VaTech but not all list what they are doing.</p>
<p>quakerstake - thanks for the info. The link was especially helpful.</p>
<p>Neonzeus - do you mean how can we seriously consider between the two - definitely go to Notre Dame or do you mean are we seriously considering Notre Dame? I’m not sure how to read your post.</p>
<p>Not on the internet yesterday (lots of chaos involved with kids packing to go back to school), so I responded by private post. I do vote for Notre Dame for both reasons. </p>
<p>Quaker and Quiet posted good info. Pitt does offer a lot of alternative majors if your student changes his mind about architecture, which is a plus. Pittsburgh is also (in my prejudiced opinion) a very good city for a kid who prefers a smaller urban environment.</p>