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current senior applying for undergrad barch

jodiechon

hi! i am currently a senior in high school and am applying to architecture schools. my top choice is cooper union so i am EDing there, as well as EAing to MIT. i'm also applying pratt, parsons, vtech, illinois tech, barnard, cal poly slo/pomona, cal, ucla, northeastern, cmu.

for risd architecture, i'm on the fence for applying. is it a studio/technical based program focused on architecture? i really want to get into studio classes asap and don't want to spend a lot of time doing pre req art classes during my time in undergrad. any advice?

also, for cooper union, anyone have any input for hometest? i'm pretty nervous and don't know what to expect. i'm not the strongest artist, so let me know anything you think might help! 

thank you :)

 
Sep 17, 24 10:52 pm
OddArchitect

A few things:

1.  Where you go to school really won't matter.  As long as the school is accredited that's all you need. See NCARB's website for a list of accredited programs.  

2.  Look at the accreditation scores of the programs you're interested in. This will give you a base of understanding about what the program is teaching.   

3.  Go with the options that is the most economical for you.   The national average starting pay for a fresh grad with a masters degree from an accredited school is $45k.  This is regardless of where you went to school.  

4.  Studio classes are where you take all the other knowledge you've learned and attempt to implement them into a design.  Most programs won't have you 'designing' buildings in studio until your second year.  

5.  Architecture is not art in the typical sense.  It is creative however it also has a lot of other factors that will inform your creativity.  Codes, zoning, structure, MEP systems, climate, site, context, ect.  Don't worry about not being 'artistic'.  You will be able to learn / refine your creative process and develop your 'drawing' skills while at school.  That's what school is for.  

Good luck!  

Sep 18, 24 10:11 am  · 
2  · 
Non Sequitur

To add to OddA above, everyone and their neighbour applies to the same schools as you list so competition for spots, and most important, bursaries, is tight.  Do not get swindled thinking that architecture school is an investment worth 100k+ debt.  It is not regardless of the name on the paper.  

Sep 18, 24 10:20 am  · 
3  · 
eeayeeayo

The title of your post says you want to get a B.Arch, but several of the schools on your list don’t offer that, and only have a non-professional undergrad program leading to a BA, BS, BFA, or AB degree.  Before you apply to any of them you should educate yourself on architecture licensing requirements: most states require an NAAB-accredited professional degree (B.Arch or M.Arch) for licensing. There are some that allow licensing without a professional degree but with some extra years of experience (4 to 9 years, depending on the state and your undergrad degree, as opposed to the typical 3 years for someone with a professional degree.) not having a professional degree will limit which states you can practice in.  


Make sure to understand all of this now, before you apply.  There are so many posts here over the years from people who didn’t understand these differences until they were halfway through a degree, or even already graduated.  I’m not saying you shouldn’t choose a non-professional bachelor program, just that you should know you’ll then most likely need to get an M.Arch after it.

Sep 18, 24 9:24 pm  · 
1  · 
OddArchitect

To follow up on eeayeeayo's post: 

 There are steps to becoming an architect. 

 1. Education. 

 2. AXP hours - aka internship. 3,740 hours with accredited degree 

 3. Testing - ARE 5.0 

If you have an accredited degree you can become licensed in all 50 states without taking additional exams. Basically you pass your ARE and by simply applying and paying for the license you can be licensed in other state.  In CA and FL you will have to take one additional exam for earthquakes and hurricane design requirements. 

Without an accredited degree you can still become an architect in 30ish states however there is no reciprocity. That means you need to repeat steps 2-3 in each state that will allow you to become an architect.  In addition, without an accredited degree the amount of AXP hours increases from 3,740 hours.  These alternate paths to licensure can take up to 10 years depending on your level and type of education. 

https://www.ncarb.org/gain-axp...

Sep 19, 24 10:17 am  · 
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