<p>I'm going to be a junior next year, and I was wondering how hard is it to get into WashU's architecture program? I'm thinking I will end high school with around a 3.3 GPA but I have a very rigorous course load (So far I've taken 9 honors and 1 AP and next year I will be taking 3 honors and 2 APs, my senior year will most likely be similar to my junior year with maybe one more AP class). Do you think my course load, and a great SAT score, will make up for my GPA? </p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>I’m not as familiar with the admission trends of the school of architecture as I am with A&S, but a 3.3 GPA is still low. There are many other applicants with 3.8 or greater GPA’s with equally strenuous schedules. It won’t hurt to apply, but it looks doubtful you’ll get in.</p>
<p>Ugh, why is it so hard for a B student to get into a nice college?</p>
<p>But anyway, thanks! :)</p>
<p>There are 3000+ colleges in the US. You’ll find your fit. Don’t be stressed out. On another hand, you still have time. a stronger showing in junior grade would help, especially if you could couple that with decent standardized test scores.</p>
<p>As jvt said, you have another 3 semesters To show colleges; keep working at it. </p>
<p>And fwiw, 6 ap’s isn’t really considered an extraordinary course load.</p>
<p>Firstly, colleges determine rigor based on the courses available at a given school. AP classes aren’t the end-all, be-all in rigor. Six APs plus lots of honors classes sounds fine and colleges don’t insist that you take every AP available. And don’t be afraid to take a quirky class or two that appeals to your interests. It’s important to enjoy high school and colleges like individuality. As long as they sense you’re challenged in the quirky class, they’re fine if you chose that over a fourth AP class. I do sense that Wash U cares about stats, so if your SAT score is good, but not great, then take the ACT to see if you can get a proportionally higher score. As for your gpa, if your junior and senior grades are better than your freshman and sophmore grades, colleges will take that into account. What I know is that Wash U really looks for a right fit, and the best way to convey that to Wash U is not only demonstrating interest, but demonstrating that you get the vibe of the school. They’re really into interdisplinary studies, so if your passion is architecture, it would help to demonstrate that you have an interest in another area, like political science, ecology, music, etc… Wash U likes to see that kids are making connections and showing interest in a range of things (i.e.; loves acting and computer science). As for demonstrating interest, you don’t have to have an on-campus interview if it’s too expensive for you to travel to the school, but definitely meet with Wash U reps at local college fairs and contact the admissions office late in your junior year or very early in your senior year to let them know that you’d like more information about their school. Fyi, my son will be a freshman at Wash U this fall and this was the take-way from our experience with the admissions process. Finally, if finances aren’t an issue with your family, then apply ED, because colleges dip a little lower in gpa and test scores to lock in students at full or near full price. That’s the point of ED. But only go that route if you don’t need to compare financial aid packages.</p>
<p>Thank you all for your advice and encouragement! I am definitely still going to apply to WashU (don’t want to say what if) but, I am currently looking into Tulane’s architecture program as well. I hear it isn’t as competitive and hopefully I’ll have a shot. :)</p>
<p>Hey! I will be a freshman in WashU’s school of architecture next year. I was accepted into the school of architecture and college of arts & sciences for a dual degree (architecture and political science). The portfolio is an important piece that can potentially make up for a lack in GPA, test scores, etc.</p>
<p>If you have any questions about WashU, the arch school, or scholarships (I’m going with a full ride), feel free to ask!</p>
<p>Wampum, can you tell us how you got Wash U to consider you for Architecture <em>and</em> A&S? We are hearing you have to apply to one or the other. My son loves Wash U and wants to apply ED in Architecture, but he is not an art student and has no portfolio to submit. Trying to decide if he’s better off applying to A&S.</p>
<p>Probably not, because this thread is four months old.</p>
<p>It is my understanding that the portfolio is a mandatory part of the application to be accepted into the architecture school. Why would he want to go go to a 4 year architecture school anyway? Rather than a 5 year program that offers a Bachelor of Architecture?</p>
<p>
After being confused by this statement, I looked into how architecture works and learned that WashU doesn’t actually offer a standard BArch. Heh. Shows how little I know about the architecture school…</p>
<p>That being said, if your end goal is a M-Arch WashU allows you to do a 4-2 BS-Arch/M-Arch, which is the same amount of time a 5-1 B-Arch/M-Arch would take elsewhere.</p>
<p>I guess the other thing for WashU engineers is that a lot of them dual degree outside of Sam Fox in a variety of disciplines, which usually isn’t possible at other schools.</p>
<p>Even if your end goal is to have a professional degree in Architecture which would be the MArch at Wash U vs. a BArch it will take you 6 years, any other institution will allow you to come into their program with a 4 year degree from any background (liberal arts et al) and obtain a MArch in 2 years. In addition you can double major anywhere there is nothing specific to Wash U’s program that allows that. Not that Wash U is not an excellent school, just not quite sure why anyone would go there for architecture if they intend to practice architecture. Upon completion of your professional degree (BArch or MArch) you still need to apprentice 3 years prior to sitting for your licensure exam to become a registered architect.
In Addition schools that do offer a 5 year degree also have plus 1 for MArch allowing you the choice once you have completed your BArch, the advantage to the MArch is that it allows you to teach in a higher institution.</p>
<p>Not sure if anyone is still referencing this thread, but a number of schools - Kansas State University and University of Kansas are two I know of - offer a 5 year masters degree in architecture. K-State also offers a five year masters in landscape arechitecture as well as interior architecture/product design. I graduated from K-State with a Bachelor of Interior Architecture quite awhile ago. K-State and KU changed their programs to be able to offer a masters degree in the five year program. Worth looking into, IMO.</p>
<p>…didn’t mean to post other architecture schools as possibilities on the WUSTL thread, but since another poster mentioned a five year masters I wanted to confirm it’s possible.</p>