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UBC or Carleton for M.Arch?
Hello, I know that similar questions have been asked before, but I would still like to know more details regarding the two schools. I have gotten accepted into both UBC and Carleton for M.Arch, and I am trying to decide which one to choose. My first choice is currently UBC since it includes professional practice as part of their curriculum in the third year and if I'm not mistaken, the school also has a bigger sustainability agenda compared to other architecture schools in Canada (sustainable architecture is something that I am very interested in). Vancouver is also a big city which might help me make connections easier, and lastly, I just prefer the climate in Vancouver over the climate in Ottawa.
However, the reason why I am still hesitating is that Carleton offered me a scholarship, and overall my education may be cheaper (factoring in things like rent and daily costs) than UBC. I also know that it has smaller studio classes, which I like, since then I'll be able to get more focus from the professor (I am actually unsure how big the studio class sizes are in UBC, but I am assuming that it's not too big either??). It seems like there is a 10-day school-paid trip to Barcelona in the first year, which just sounds super exciting to me, and it also makes me wonder whether Carleton has bigger funding towards their architecture program which is a pro since it also means that I'll be able to access more resources (possibly) if I go there. I just generally don't know much about the M.Arch program at Carleton and I'm not sure how it compares to the one at UBC.
If anyone has advice or recommendations, please let me know! I know that I currently have my heart set on UBC, but I think since I don't know enough about Carleton I shouldn't dismiss it completely. I heard that Carleton has a pretty good undergraduate program, but I'm not sure what people think of the graduate program. Thank you in advance for anyone's advice!
Hey, I can fill in a few gaps for you. First things first, every M.arch in canada has professional practice courses. It is literally the main reason to take the M.arch and it is what gets a course accredited. With that out of the way, you need to look at the faculty and their area of research as you'll likely need to pair up with someone early on based on your thesis direction. UBC has always had the upper edge in terms of hippy greenness, but Carleton has a arch-related undergrad (which was once very well regarded in terms of design/creative thinking) therefore there is a greater % of the graduate student pool with related backgrounds and more in-house resources. Carleton also has it's CIMS lab if you're into that. (important note, I do not think the DSA to Barcelona is free... from what I remember, it is up to the students to cover their own travel and expenses)
So in terms of city, Vancouver > Ottawa.
UBC is a giant institution while Carleton is small so that impacts enrollment (class size) and student-teacher ratios.
But in the end, there really are 3 groups of M.arch in Canada.
So the difference is what you will make of your M.arch, not really the name on the degree.
Non Sequitur you’re getting old...it’s time to let go of this personal vendetta you have against uoft. You’ve been posting the same thing for years. Uoft has an amazing m.arch program, and like you said, grad school all depends on how you guide yourself. So if you’re a prospective student reading this forum, don’t let comments sway your decision.
I'll gladly change my pov on UofT when they do something about their piss-poor undergrad feeder program. I have not been impressed by their graduates.
I agree that the undergrad leaves its students skill-less, but they seem to consistently funnel into top programs in the world... every year... I think mostly because of the connected faculty because some of their portfolios that get into Harvard, yale, mit, etc., aren't even very good. The M.Arch, however, I think is getting a facelift, and has been for the past 2-3 years. The school's new building seems to have brought more funding and attention to the school as well. And I'm honestly just responding because you cant treat uoft as it was in 2015, and say that Calgary, godforsaken Winnipeg, and Ryerson are better programs. They are not, as uoft will indefinitely set you up better, both in Canada and abroad. But i do agree with Waterloo and mcgill being the best 2. But id put uoft and ubc as 3-4, THEN the rest.
Nast, I'm willing to adapt and I honestly know nothing of Calgary or Winnipeg (who does?), but the average RYU student will most certainly be better prepared to work in the real world than the average UofT one.
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