Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc)
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To Pratt or Not to Pratt
Hello, my name is Cory. I have a little bit of a dilemma and am seeking some advise. I am currently at a 4-year program, in my second year. The school is in New York, and is also unaccredited. I have just been accepted to Pratt's Undergrad program for Fall 2017. I have been informed that I would be starting as a first year in their program. I have a 4.0 and have had four studios, as well as building construction courses, and fundamental architectural drafting classes. I believe myself to be proficient in Rhino, Revit, AutoCAD, and Adobe products. I only mention the last few because going over their curriculum it seems that I should be placed in their second year. Additionally, I am an Army Veteran, so I am receiving some financial aid through my military benefits, but only for the next two years. So I suppose the scenario is that I am planning on trying to set up a meeting to discuss my placement, and to try to convince them to place me in second year. If this fails, is it worth me starting over for the full 5-years, or should I just stick it out where I am for two more years, and go to an accredited M. Arch program elsewhere.
Any and all advise is welcome.
Pratt and most design schools emphasize their first year foundation program. It sounds like they want you to take their first year design course but then they might be amendable to you skipping the second year design studio. I assume that your credits transferred over. Meaning that you can graduate on time (5 years total) by taking couple design courses during the summer.
Thanks. I was thinking of it in a "all or nothing" mentality. Didn't consider the fact that credits might be applicable to another year.
I went to Pratt and tranfserred after one year of drafting school and got some credits. I loved it but remember you can get licensed in NY with a 4 year non accredited degree and a longer internship period. Check out the NYS board website for details. If you're planning on staying in NY this might be a better route without the immense cost of Pratt.
You will not be there for 5 years. At most you'll be there 4 years but maybe 3 depending on all your other credits. I know people at Pratt who were in similar situations as you. Everyone has to take the first year studios but transfer students are able to skip some 2nd or 4th year studios if they have applicable transfer credits. You can also take summer studios to get out quicker. Also, you will get credit for the building construction courses (usually taken in 2nd year), construction document classes (usually taken 3rd year), and maybe some representation classes. You can even fight it and show them that the courses are equivalent by showing those course syllabi and your work in the class. Pratt is defiantly the best undergraduate school in NY and getting the B.Arch from there will be much better than the 4 year BS from other NY schools.
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