Become a Terrapin

ml3745

There is a whole lot to be said for the debt free finish you get with a full ride, especially in this profession, in this economy. It is what many people will urge you to do. Therefore, make sure if you choose something else it has something that will be well worth it to you. There are so many factors in a program  that  have value. Look closely at what the other programs provide in terms of skills that land jobs as well as experience in an area of study that you love. Doing what you love has great value so be sure to factor that in as well. What is the end goal/career for this and which program will provide that most readily. Make a list of the features (and problems ) of each program and decide what it's worth to you assign it a value. Then look at which one brings you the most value. It might be the free ride, or it might not. 

The thing is, you dont want to be kicking yourself ever after, under a mountain of debt, saying what if, or why didn't I. For that reason you really need to look at all the programs and see what has value to YOU and why. Then at least you wont have the questions with the debt. You will know why you did it. 

@Flagbrattyxsunny @ml3745

you guys should def. go to their open houses

In at GSAPP (M.Arch 1), but no scholarship. 

in gsapp as well... yale, upenn, columbia, berkely, michigan so far...

which one should i take? I know yale is great, but i dont think i can fit there... i am a digital guy and always try experimental stuff, and yale is too old school. 

anyway suggestions? 

PS. i guess money is not a big issue since my dad will support me and he is doing very well.. 

ml3745

Go to UMD. It is always wise to take full-ride. And try to get dual Master of Architecture and Master of Community Planning (ARCP). I think it is also good to be around D.C and Baltimore area for future job hunting. The name of UMD may not be oozing like Penn or Gsapp. But I'm sure that you're love your future without mountain of student loan.

@gsd110,

Based on "digitial and experimental" alone, I'd say either Penn or GSAPP.

has one ever get fin.aid/scholarship when they were not offered to GSAPP to begin with? 

@ ml3745

Go to UMD... its a good school I went there for undergrad!  

@gsd110

continuing byen01's thought process, based on "digital and experimental" you'll probably be choosing between Penn and or Gsapp.

between the two...based on my preference and "money is not a big issue"  I'd probably be choosing GSAPP and NYC.....!

IN: UC Berkeley (no word on funding yet), UPENN (+5K), GSAPP (no word on funding yet)

OUT: GSD

STILL WAITING: UCLA, PRATT, CCNY

ironically, i'm still waiting on my so-called safety schools--sounds like acceptances were already sent out though. this whole process seems like a crap shoot!

was anyone able to log into the GSAPP financial aid site? I couldn't do it, but they told me over the phone that they would issue me a student ID soon so I could check. i've heard that gsapp is notoriously stingy with funding, so i don't want to get my hopes up.

^ Jason_SF

uggghhhhhh...waiting on UCB. if i get in, might choose that over GSAPP if no funding is provided. but i will talk and negotiate with them  in these coming days

^

GSAPP was my top choice, so I may be making some of the wait-listed people at Berkeley happy. I am having a difficult time justifying the cost though. Hoping they actually come through with some $$$.

^ agreed. you going to open house ?

@ ml3745

Yeah, UMD is a hidden gem in the world of architecture schools. I did undergrad there too.

Its hard for me to speak specifics since its been a few years, but when I was there they were in a transition period from the Colin Rowe-ian old guard, as an excellent group of professors were moving on/ retiring. There was a lot of new blood coming in, building on the solid academic precedent of sound theory, urbanism and pragmatism, but pushing a little more at the edges of experimentation. If you wanna get wild with the form n space, its certainly possible to do at UMD, but you gotta make it work too.

Also, its a smaller school, so its very close-knit...and its got a fairly decent location. DC and Baltimore are two very different, diverse, but close-by cities.

Good news for those still waiting to hear back from Berkeley. I just spoke with the grad admissions office, and one of the assistants there told me that the majority of the m.arch decisions have not gone out yet. She said all decisions will be out by the end of the month, so hang in there!

I've been reading this forum for a few months but I haven't been participating - until now!

What are people's opinions regarding the M.Arch programs at Univ. Oregon and Virginia Tech?

Did anybody apply for the Studio One program at Berkeley? I've been officially/unofficially accepted (received an email from the program coordinator telling me they were offering me admission), and I wanted to see if anybody else might be looking at that program for this fall.

Has anyone been accepted to Parsons M.Arch? Thoughts on the program as a whole? 

@astew,

I actually kind of fell in love with Parson's M.Arch program back when I was still into architecture; David Leven (not sure if he's still the director of the program) created a great culture there of detailed, pragmatic design. Great design/build workshop, students kind of mashed in with the lighting students in int. desgin students. Brian McGrath is hilarious. The facilities leave something to be desired - shop equipment is dinky. Can't remember if they even have a laser cutter, etc.

@ batman

haven't got my ticket yet, but was planning on being at the gsapp open house.

i work as a consultant at a small firm. i told them about grad school today, that i'd like a few days off to visit open houses, and that i may need to cut my contract a few weeks short at the end of the summer. they told me to just go home today while they reevaluate whether they want to try to keep me on or not. i think i just got fired. good news is that i have the day off now. not sure whether to be happy about the gsapp result or freaking out about the potential lost job. either way, i'll be drinking tonight. cheers!

@astew

You'll hear it from others, and I am going to echo it, but the culture at Parsons is fantastic.  I was accepted last year and attended their open house, and it was unlike any other open house I had been to.  They had accepted maybe 20 students between all their programs, and we spent the whole day just hanging, talking, and having a few drinks with the dean and instructors to get a feel for their approach.  They take a practical approach to architecture emphasizing designing at full-scale with their design-build studios and focusing on the social, ethical, and environmental responsibility of the Architect.  They were also very big on hand drawing and model making as opposed to computer renderings.  Ultimately I had to turn them down because they didn't offer a scholarship, and they did not focus on digital technology as much as I wanted.  There were other students I talked to that were turning down the big name ivys because they loved Parson's friendly atmosphere and philosophy so much.

Quick Edit: One thing that was unique is that they closed down the studios at 2 am (or was it midnight?) to keep their students from pulling all-nighters.  Everything just seemed so much more relaxed than the other NYC schools.

@byen01

David Leven was the director as of last year at least, and their facilities I thought were nice.  They had recently redesigned their studio spaces (which had been a student project) and had plenty of laser cutters that all the students were trained to use.  The only problem is that if you wanted to 3D print or use a CNC machine, you would have to go through the industrial design program, which didn't sound like the easiest thing to do.

Final tally.

In: GSAPP (10k), WUSTL (waiting financial aid package), USC (8k), UCLA (waiting aid)

Out: GSD, Yale

All of the above in M.Arch I with the exception of GSAPP with dual degree in M.Arch/MSHP.

@jason_sf, no worries. I'll shoot you a message and see if we can hang out.

@LUcive, sorry I did not see your post sooner. I really did love my experience at Berkeley. Is it because I'm from the Bay Area and I'm biased? Maybe. I can tell you this though, despite the current financial situation in California, and the occasional craziness (tree sitters, occupiers) on campus, the culture, people, and education are hard to beat.

I think the main strengths of Berkeley are the diversity and open-mindedness of the faculty, students and curriculum. It's a great way to tackle problems from different perspectives. Maybe your discussions with that bio major or anthro :) major will help you solve your design project. The architecture program has made great strides, and there are definitely many areas you can focus on - parametric/ digital design is a growing focus.

The food at Berkeley is excellent, and if you want more variety, you need only to hop on the BART (metro) to San Francisco. Public transportation in the bay area is #1 in the country, so there's no need for a car at all.

Overall, a great and fun experience. If you have any more questions or want to hang out during the open house, just email me at smwong@me.com

@Astew - I am currently in Parsons undergraduate architecture program who got into Parsons MARCH program and Syracuse. Parsons really has a diverse program and it seriously does let students experiment to a great degree . Along with a diverse group of big name professors which are practicing its a great choice if you want a urban setting to study architecture.

Yes it is gearing towards digital modelling but the beginning stages are very into hand drawing. Since you have to be well rounded in the digital and traditional world. 

P.S we have 4 laser cutters and 3d print shop so yeah along with studios which is known as designbuildworkshop where students draw it and then build it on a existing site in manhattan. 

IN: GSAPP (no funding)

OUT: MIT

Still Waiting: UC Berkely, UCLA

I was pleasantly surprised this morning when I received the email with my notification from GSAPP. I did not think that I had a chance of getting in. I have a quick question though. Does anyone know if you can study abroad while doing the 3-year m. arch program there? I tried looking for it on the website and I could only find the NY/Paris program. Thanks!

Best of luck to all those who are still waiting!

GSDers,

Here's he group created by Karimi for anyone who wants to get in https://www.facebook.com/groups/262823457136785/

I didn't get a GSAPP email... so i guess the final tally is:

IN: GSD, Yale, UC Berk, UCLA, RISD, Rice, Syracuse, UT
OUT: GSAPP

In @ GSAPP with 0$k... "we hope you can attend Columbia on loans..."

Meanwhile, MIT is like "...make it possible to for all our students to graduate with a debt no larger than they can reasonably expect to pay while working in their profession."

I'm excited about GSD, MIT, and even UVa. Both MIT and GSD are offering generous fin aid and UVa is a 2 year... so it evens out in the end. Huh. Decisions!

Flying to Boston soon.

Has anyone received packets from Cornell or UW? Got acceptance emails saying that letters/packets are 'in the mail' but its been 4-5 days.. ugh. If you got one, did they have financial info and/or student work books? I'm thinking Cornell is going to be out unless I get some extra need-based aid, because the $12k scholarship just doesn't cut it when tuition is 43K! Thats on par with the GSAPP costs! Hoping they will reimburse travel info, so pricey to get to Ithaca.. Congrats everyone who has happy final tallies! Feels good.

^ it would be large letdown if GSAPP doesn't have a study abraod program or any studio options to travel abroad.

@ Co-op 

I got the UW packet yesterday (in Pennsylvania). Its basically a program prospectus and student work book. No mention of financials in any of the material, so I assume that will be mailed out separately.

So am I to assume that those who didn't get a GSAPP letter today are all rejects? I haven't seen one rejection yet on here. Did anyone get a rejection letter?

Pls don't do the "ass out of U and Me" thing

well, the bright side of things is that acceptance is only like 1/4th the big picture... 3/4ths the battle is getting funding

Pretty safe to assume I'd say.

haha omar

Congrats to everyone whos gotten accepted!!!!

@ want it bad.

I hope not, that would be shitty ... I'm still waiting too ... I'm in at MIT & UPenn, Columbia is what will decide if I make the trip cross the Atlantic or not to attend the open houses 

congrats to everyone who got into the GSAPP!!!

In at GSAPP MSAAD with $13,500 scholarship.

@batman

The last studio everyone takes before graduating spends a week abroad on the GSAPP dime.  I think there might be other ways to go abroad, but that is the main one.

@want it bad & heat3

From what I remember seeing in this thread is that last year GSAPP sent out acceptances first, then wait-lists and rejections a few days later.  Don't take my word for fact though.

@m3tropolis

We both applied and were accepted to a lot of the same schools: GSD,  Berkeley, UCLA, Rice, UT. I did however get into GSAPP. 

I was wondering which ones you were leaning toward. I myself am struggling between GSD (20k) and Rice (full+ 8k.)  I'm hopeful to get more from the GSD. If not  I will get some help from the parents. Any advice? 

For that matter does anybody have any advice to share?! Thanks.

I really want to focus on urbanism , parametrics, digital (fab) etc. etc. Need to be schooled in morphology too :)

Applied to all M.Arch I programs and here are the results:

GSD: 10000$

Yale: Out

Princeton: Out

MIT: Out

Cornell 10000$

UPenn 15000$

Columbia AD with no money (from which you may guess that I am an international applicant)

UCB: Pending Still and I have no idea why it it taking so long

While I am leaning towards GSD, anyone has constructive thoughts?

harvard has the biggest name internationally which would probably serve you well. 

in at pratt with 17K scholarship

i just wanted to say, i never thought i'd get acceptance from all new york area schools that i applied (columbia, pratt & ccny). thank God, it's just very encouraging and humbling at the same time :)

Has anyone gotten the "official" acceptance to UCLA?  I have the "...we are recommending to the Graduate Division that you be accepted," letter, but I haven't seen anything about confirming my decision.

@Random

When a school says "recommending to the Graduate Division that you be accepted" it is generally because there is a department of architecture and not a college of architecture. This means that you would be accepted by the graduate school instead of a school of architecture. So this is the department of architecture saying that you are recommended for acceptance since that department doesn't directly admit students. I believe it is safe to say that it is just a fancy way of saying you are officially accepted to the program. Hope this makes sense.

@chresper I've decided on the GSD. I was waiting to see if Yale would offer more money, but it was slightly less. I wish I could get more from the GSD... I'm on my own paying for school. I have two friends at Rice and they love it. I went to the open house with them last year and it made me want to apply, but they only offered half tuition.

Damn iPhone, had more to say* I only saw aid packages from GSD, Yale, RISD, and RIce... Still waiting on the others. Who is going to GSD NYC reception?