Yes.

Nah man. Grades are just numbers and a ancient symbol of oppression from "the man". Just tell the Harvard wankers you're tight with BIG, slip them a $20, and all the doors will open. No hard work or quality education required.

you could barely handle undergrad

ivy grad should be no prob 

Thnx at least now i know i shouldnt waste money applying to those places. I spent too much time winning awards at competitions than getting a higher number by doing good on writing essays. I should of hired writers to do them like everbody else... Sigh

Knowing how to write is a pretty damn good skill to have.

Be honest with yourself.  Were you really occupied with other things and didn't put in the required time for school?  Or did you actually struggle during your undergrad and barely made it? I'm going to think the latter by this comment,  'I should of hired writers to do them like everbody else..."   

Its crazy if students actually do that. :D  I've heard of students hiring help for model building etc.

Truth is, if you can write well, you can speak and think well. 

You don't have to have a masters to be an Architect.  So, the thread title is misleading.  You're asking if you have to have a good GPA to get into grad school.  Now, if you chose a 4+2 option, and then screwed around with your grades, it's your fault.  You might not get to be an Architect. 

Correct Senjohn, but from what I gather, the OP is Canadian so there is only the 4+2 option available. It's very hard to find your way to a license without a M.arch.

I decided to try in only necessary courses. Therefore in random sociology electives and random courses i got c/d and in detailing, project management, and studios i get As. The reason i ask if gpa matters is because i know I apply my knowledge better than most 3.6+ students and they often ask me for help. I was just wondering if its too late to apply to u.s because i have a 3.6ish final year only gpa (i decided to try in all courses even though i think is useless). I didnt know if my cv and awards were enough. I believe the gpa system is flaws as it builds you up to be a typical student doing typical work. My extra time was spent researching about projects which interest me and I use what Ive learned at school for competitions, rather than writing essays. Also getting up to a certain gpa isnt even about knowledge but how hard you suck up to your professor... and im not that kind of person.

if you want to apply to a couple ivy league schools then do it, don't waste time justifying it to nameless people on archinect.

You might get lucky, or not, it'll only cost you a little bit of time and money

Thats how I feel but I wanted to know if there was precedent of people getting in before without a cum 3.4+ gpa because I have to take a bunch of tests and fees to apply

"I decided to try in only necessary courses"

"I believe the gpa system is flaws as it builds you up to be a typical student doing typical work."

"Also getting up to a certain gpa isnt even about knowledge but how hard you suck up to your professor.."

Stop justifying poor grades with nonsense like this. It won't get you anywhere.

You might want to consider applying elsewhere... just a thought.

 

Oh and vote Senator John Blutarsky.  

There certainly is precedent for getting into highly ranked M.Arch programs without a 3.4 GPA.  But sub-3.4 is a far way from 2.xx. 

If your GPA is 3.2 but you have great recommendations and an interesting portfolio then no problem - people with those stats aren't unusual even in the Ivies and GPA isn't usually a major factor in awarding of grants.  But if your GPA is 2.8 you'll have a much harder time just getting through the initial gate-keeper rounds - i.e. your portfolio literally may not ever make it to the admissions committee's table, because it got screened out by clerical staff as seriously sub-par.  What you'd need in that situation is both someone to champion you (someone with a strong connection to the program to which you're applying, or a big name in current academia) AND a concise cover letter/statement of interest that stresses your strengths and your improvement in your later semesters or in your major, or whatever.  Also, while GRE scores are usually a pretty small factor for M.Arch decisions, if you have stellar scores they can help balance a low-ish GPA.

Thank you Threesleeve, this is exactly the kind of information I was looking for. Really appreciate your insight. I will be starting to work at a second starchitecture firm this coming month and hopefully I make some good connections then. If my application fails, ill just do my March in canada.

Oh and Non sequitur, which firm do you work in toronto? I would like to know so I don't ever apply there... Seems too miserable

Miserable? How so? I've got 4 projects in construction and loads more in various design phases. I work on all scales of projects up to half-billion$ office complexes and large-scale urban planning too. No misery there. It's probably just that you've mistaken snide remarks to your lazy questions as misery.

I guess you're also the one who PM me earlier today.

Sorry, I don't respond to unsolicited emails but my office is located in Ottawa and we have projects all along the 401, Toronto included.

As a serious aside, the name of the grad school (or even the starchitect you intern at) matters little up here. Focus on getting that M.arch and complete IDP instead of dreaming up about fancy ivy school names.

Probably the same kind of people who brag about money and the big house and cars they got... All these projects and you have so much time to check forums 24/7...

I don't care about any of that pretentious crap. Multi million dollar projects.. Lol so basically every crappy condo that exists. Yuck. My goal is to build architecture which improves communities. Hence, I have no interest in subjects which do not inform me of my goals.

Social skills much?

I don't do residential projects and these forums, when not plagues by lazy prospective students confusing them with yahoo answers, are a worthwhile distraction when dealing with real clients on real projects with real problems needing real solutions. 

"My goal is to build architecture which improves communities. Hence, I have no interest in subjects which do not inform me of my goals."

Good luck with that. That's totally not a unique POV. I've never heard anyone else think of themselves like that. Literally the first coming of Christ but as a naive undergrad architecture student right there. Bravo.

Ten minutes after my post, I've decided that's not enough.

Your attitude sucks.  I may have done the same thing you did.  I focused on studio, and put little effort into my other classes.  That said, I still came away .5 points from graduating with honors. But, I did all this knowing the path I had chosen wouldn't be a problem if I didn't focus so much on the other classes. 

You'll be lucky to ever touch a project that has a great effect on the community scale.  To assume you will get to do only that is unrealistic. When we are presented with those opportunities, it is a great privilege.  But any project we get to do that makes something better than the average developer drivel is a privilege. 

If your real life personality is anything like what you've demonstrated here, employment will be a struggle.  You'll have to cross that bridge before you worry about getting those world changing projects. 

Never scoff at the work another Architect chooses to take on. It's a business.  We all need projects to get by.  Most of the time we take crappy ones to keep everyone paid.  Critiquing design is fine, but don't be a dick about what people do to get by. 

Just curious... What topologies are you interested in? I have little interest in housing, but I think it influences the community more than just about anything else. In nons defense I find that I'm most active here when I'm super busy at work

I had a 4.2 GPA in undergrad while working.  

Stop making excuses.  

If course my attitude isnt like this regularly lol, cant be burning bridges in real life. Maybe im cranky on 4 hours sleep last night. O well.

Shuellmi, I am definitely most interested in housing. 10 years from now, I am looking to work in my hometown, a small suburban city. Residential projects are the dominant topology here and therefore it led me to my interest in architecture. And I know whatsup with non, me and him have had arguments in previous threads so I didn't expect any constructive info from him.

4hrs? I'm still living that too that nearly a decade past studio. Blame the pregnant wife and my house renovation schedule at the moment I guess.

My replies were full of constructive criticism.... I've heard something about seeings trees in forest or something like it before. Perhaps it applies here.

Yea sorry about what I said. I just had a team meeting and they told me I was really cranky today. I think I was just in a really bad mood. You definitely know what you are talking about and gave me insight on this and previous threads. My going to rethink my outlook and perspective when I get home. Back to work for me -.-

If you speak english as a second language, making writing errors such as "My going to rethink my outlook" is somewhat excusable; for a native english speaker...I don't know what to say.  If you can't write better than the average third grader, then you probably won't get into graduate school

Many schools will let you use your major GPA instead of your overall GPA. I don't know which Ivy League schools allow it, but I'm pretty sure VT does.