Where to apply for B.S in Architecture?

College Majors Architecture Major
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Hello, I’m currently a senior in high school and I was planning on majoring in architecture in college. However, because this plan is not set in stone and I’m not entirely sure if architecture is what I want to do, I was going to go the B.S or B.A in architecture and then the possible MArch route.

Although it’s very late in the season to begin looking for colleges, here I am. I do have a few in mind though. I have applied to Ball State (mainly because it’s in-state) and I was looking at University of Tennessee and University of Minnesota.

My stats however are meager. I have a 3.7 gpa and a 1270 SAT score, which is the low side for both college and this website. I am retaking the SAT in October and have been studying for it every chance I get. For extra-curriculars, I have held no leadership positions, but have been a member of several clubs for 4 years now. I also play varsity tennis for my school and am a 12 year member of Girl Scouts who is currently working on her Gold Award. GPA and transcript wise, my school is pretty small and does not offer any AP classes and only a few dual-enrollment classes. By the end of this year, I will have taken all of the dual-enrollment classes (roughly 7).

If you have any thoughts, please let me know. I am open to anything you have to say.
:slight_smile:

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@tcArch, The first thing to consider is how you are going to finance your architecture program, first the BA/BS, then the MArch. Do you need (or want) financial aid? If yes, does your family qualify for need based aid or are you looking for merit aid? The answer to these questions will shape your college list even more than your grades and scores.

Your GPA is very good! Do you know your class rank? Your SATI could be better, but it’s not disastrous. If you can afford it, take a prep course. You should also consider the ACT.

Do you fall into any diversity categories that might give you a boost: ethnicity, religion, economic status, first generation to go to college? Being female is still a bonus for architecture.

Your ECs are fine. The Girl Scout Gold Award is well recognized by admissions committees. Playing a varsity sport is a plus.

Will you be able to submit an art supplement with your application? Even if a portfolio is not required, involvement in art can be a strong EC in itself. Note that your portfolio need not be architecture focused. The objective is to show creativity and mastery of media, especially drawing.

As always your list should comprise safeties/matches/reaches. Remember also, that you don’t need to major in architecture to get into a good MArch program. So keep an open mind on your choices.

Some schools that I’d recommend for BA/BS in architecture, architectural studies or environmental design. There are many others.
UVA, Cincinnati, Tulane, UMich, Northeastern, Colorado/Boulder, Clemson, UFlorida, Drexel, USC

Ball State has a respected architecture program. I don’t know much about Tennessee or Minnesota, but if you like the schools and can afford out of state tuition, then I’m sure you’d get a good foundation.

Clarify your financial situation first!

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@momrath Yes, I will be in need of financial aid. I’m pretty sure my family qualifies for need-based merit. In addition, my brother will be graduating and attending college next year alongside me.
As for diversity, I was adopted from Central Asia (so I’m Asian) and I am Catholic.
Yes, I am working on a portfolio for my application.

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@tcArch, Need-based aid is different from merit aid. Need-based aid is awarded relative to your family’s income and assets. You can get a good idea of how much need-based aid you might be eligible for by using the colleges’ net price calculators (NPCs) which are found on their websites. Many private universities are generous with need-based aid. If they admit you (assuming you are a U.S. citizen), they will figure out a way to make it financially possible for you to attend.

Merit aid is awarded based on your achievements. It can also be influenced by your demographic. It’s difficult to predict merit aid, so at this point you should concentrate on need-based aid.

Please ask your parents to use a few NPCs for some of the colleges that you are interested in. Public colleges often offer limited need-based aid to out of state students. You might be surprised to learn that the public universities on your like (e.g. the University of Minnesota and the University of Tennessee) turn out to less affordable than some of the privates. Run a few of the NPCs and find out!

I don’t know that your demographic would be considered an unrepresented minority (it might) but you might have a compelling life story that you could expand on in your essays and recommendations.

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@tcArch I don’t think you sound meager at all. Also I wanted to encourage you to finish that Gold Award. Many people don’t know about the Gold Award but the right people do know about it (Admissions committee)

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@tcArch @momrath offered you great insight! Check out Cooper Union in NYC too. Good luck!

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3.7 weighted or unweighted

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WashU has an exceptional BS in Arch program. Good luck!!

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@philbegas weighted, unfortunately

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https://www.archdaily.com/880189/designintelligence-announces-top-architecture-schools-for-2017-nil-2018

@tcArch
What’s your unweighted GPA? Different colleges might weight GPAs differently, so it’s a better gauge for us.

However, based on limited info, I would check out Syracuse, Pratt Institute, Virginia Tech based on the DI rankings. My gf really liked Pratt for graduate school, but ultimately she decided on landscape architecture instead of regular architecture, and went to UPenn.

What’s your family’s budget per year? You’re in Indiana right?

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You can try to do a search on here, it’s a midwestern tuition exchange program, it might help you get a few names to add to your list

http://msep.mhec.org/

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@philbegas My unweighted is around a 3.58, I’m not certain though because my school only calculates weighted GPAs. And yes, I am from Indiana. My family’s budget per year is around $10,000 per year according to the FAFSA, it’s not much.

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@tcArch, my D’s profile isn’t far off from yours, can I ask where you decide to apply and if which ones did you get acceptances? We are Asia also and haha it doesn’t help …