Once around the refrigerator after the 1 am pizza delivery?

Yes i'm sorry I meany Physical Education

If I would be going to school for Architecture which relates to design theory and science, why would they force Physical Education requirments onto me. It doesn't relate to architecture at all. I undertand that in a liberal arts education they want you to have a broad understanding of the world but why physical education.

It doesn't say it on the Cornell College of Architecture, Art, & Planning website that they have physical education requirements. It does however say it on the College of Arts & Sciences, which is the regular college. Do you think they would still have Physical Education requirements in the seperate Architecture College?

yes, PE is required for all students at cornell. i think the swimming test is more a safety measure since the campus is surrounded by rivers and waterfalls...

cornell offers some awesome PE courses like ice climbing, archery, dancing, snowboarding...to name a few. why wouldn't you want to meet other people outside of studio, get some much needed healthy physical exercise, and learn something new?

PE is a good thing, Sooner or latter bad habits of not exercising will catch up to you, and you will have to do some good old activities to keep fit.  All in all it will help you become more active and healthy, and hopefully have a more balanced life.

Its not that I don't want to be healthy its just that I have Asthma, have no athletic ability, and get tired very easily. Do you think it would be a problem if I attempted the swim test and didn't completely meet the goal but still attempt it and do my best at it? Do you think that I could take a simple and easy exercise class to fufull the requirement?

You will really want to do something active as you get older and be more of an architect.  You should look at your health as a reflection of your practice and your profession.  I personally think everyone should be healthy and active.  I even would go as far as to say that you should do some push ups, sit ups, and swim everyday.  

And it's kind of interesting that you picked Cornell in the first place.  They have issues all around.  I think Cal Poly would be a much better choice. 

A healthy body is a healthy mind.  Good architecture isn't made by sluggish minds.

Don't worry about it.  Not everyone is on the same level at different athletic activities.  Those college level PE classes are all about showing up, participating, and improving, not about who can run the fastest mile or whatever.

Thank you! That least comment made me feel better about this situation. And in response to the post before the most recent one. What sort of "issues" are you referring to about Cornell? You had mentioned Cal Poly, Cal Poly is a great school but I was raised in the Northeast and really love the Northeast. Cornell has a beautiful campus and is a very good school. It is also probably the easiest ivy league school to get into.

The school can care less if someone is one twinkie away from having a heart attack or if one can run a mile under 3 minutes. they do care if you fall into a creek and hope you don’t sue them for $$$$$$. So I imagine it’s a liability thing that they administer to prove to their insurance company that you can pull yourself out of the water like a champ. They’re not looking for any Michael Phelps but they’re just trying to cover there a$$es on all ends. Of course the safety of students is a concern and nobody wants to go to a campus where they’re known to have fat people mopping around on scooters just to go 20 feet away.    

Any of the architecture studios that I took always tested to make sure that we met the minimum 40-yard dash time and could hit the minimum number of bench press reps at 225 lbs. Pull-ups were always the deciding factor for most.

Maybe that's just a state school thing, though.

Cornell, MIT, Harvard - sounds like you're a pretty smart kid with great goals! If you are looking for an architecture school in the northeast, you may also want to look into RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute). It's a 5-yr accredited undergrad program, so you'll be graduating with a professional B.Arch degree. No PE requirements, although the fitness center and pool are open and free for all students.

And yeah, I just graduated from RPI. The School of Architecture is currently making a switch to greater emphasis on 3D computer modeling, parametrics, and scripting.

The physical education portion, particularly the stamina and speed exercises, are very useful during budget discussions with aggressive clients. You may also need good upper body strength to apply proactive pressure to various contractors. 

Thank you for all of your help. At this point  guess I will just deal with the Physical Education requirements and use it as a different learning exsperience. Based on your responses it doesn't seen like the universities really care about how you perform athletically, they just seem to care that you show up. Again, thank you.

just take bowling for two semesters like most of the other cornell arch students. the bowling lanes are closest to studios (and north campus dorms)...and the prof is chill. just go, throw a few balls and by defult you will improve. also, you can nap a bit and not get too sweaty before a swift return to your desk at rand. swim test is super easy...no one likes to do it, but its part of being on a campus with a lake and gorges that drunk frat boys like to slip into at night...

Taking PE for an architecture degree is as worthless as taking calculus.  It will have no bearing on your job function.  That said, wouldn't you want to be physically fit and know a little something about math?

Don't forget that monday will be your turn to bring in the doughnuts.

all part of a well balanced education : calc is also a req for structures at cornell...yay!