MassArt has a BFA in Architecture, the professors seem to be really great I was thinking about going for the M.arch.  they do a good amount of actual building and seems to have a strong emphasis on technology and sustainability.

I got a BFA after undergrad then went on to do an MArch in grad school.  Pretty good background to have.

If you are almost done with undergrad just get your degree then wait for grad school.  Try to get out with as little debt as possible.

Do your homework, there is a night/day difference between Wentworth and RISD (having attended both for a short time).

I transferred into Pratt from a school in Boston to get into a better place for an architecture degree and it was absolutely worth it for me. Pratt is a professional BArch and an amazing program. I've made lots of NYC connections, been consistently employeed since I graduate 2009. And if an MArchII is something youre interested in it's a great school to come from. I'm heading to the GSD in the fall. Best luck!

shimmyshaw- were did you get your undergrad? thanks for the tip

med-im still a senior in high school, just weighing al my options ahead of time. i would love to stay at massart im only paying 9,000 per year compared to 50,000 at pratt and risd.

trace- how were your experiences at these two schools?

LHeak- Do you think the debt is worth getting into. I've heard alot of great things about Pratt and i think the setting in NYC would be a great asset to the school. I plan on applying to the gsd and think an undergrad at pratt or risd would set me apart from others applying. Congratulations by the way!

Okay i think i have to put a word in for Wentworth (being a senior there now and being accepted into their M.Arch program).  Probably a biased opinion, but they have a really good program, and from what I've heard its entirely different from the program they had 5-6 years ago.   Most (read:  pretty much all) the studio professors are Harvard/MIT grads with masters degrees and I can tell you its no walk in the park since they curve studio grades bade on the performance of those around you (MassArt is pass/fail, I think).  What's night and day is the difference between architecture and other majors, because the Arch students are definitely held to a higher standard.  If you go to the website its crap and makes the school look like crap, but I can tell you that I really feel like I'm getting a good education.

If you go to MassArt (I'm assuming you're from MA since you mentioned Wentworth and BAC), they cost less especially since their a state school.  You probably want to stay in the program, as you can't transfer to WIT without taking everything over.

Although I heard MassArt is close to getting an accredited M.Arch... might be worth looking into.  WIT has a one-year accredited M.Arch for internal candidates though, which is really hard to resist since you can't get licensed with a BSArch or BFA.

Oh, and MassArt is building this as we speak:

http://www.archboston.org/community/showthread.php?t=3147

My take on debt:  If you can get a decent education without it, get it without it.

We're in the Solar Decathlon!!!

http://www.solardecathlon.gov/team_massachusetts.html

I'm a senior at MassArt. The program is great if you do your freshman year somewhere else and transfer into sophomore year.

MassArt's undergrad program is very Bauhaus. Freshman year is called the foundation program where you're exposed to other arts. It's Pass/Fail and I know someone who didn't come to class and do any work at all and still pass it.

It's very loose and lack of competition. You'll only start getting into architecture in Sophomore year, but there's some architecture electives open for freshman to take. The lack of competition change during junior year since they mixed Design 2 and 3 Studio with M.Arch I student (those who don't have any architecture background).

The professors likes craft, in a way similar to University of Washington. ALL of them has a degree from MIT. The program was first started by MIT graduates, so no surprise there. They also expect you to be able to hand draw since it's an art school, but my year made some changes about that. Some of us cross-register at BAC and show them how the design process would be better if we add in some digital.

Oh yeah, you can cross-register at the other 6 fenway colleges, ProArts colleges(BAC), and MIT!!! For Free!!!

MassArt is really progressive right now. We get lectures from some MIT professors and other practising architects in the Boston Area. One time we got Behnisch from Germany. I think they're going to built a new media center too.

The attitude of the professors is, if the students want to learn, we'll give them more than they can chew. So, the students are used to asking for more here and so far, they're pretty responsive. (My year asked for a revit class and we got it) The program is very small, so you'll know everyone and they'll know you. 

MassArt also offer an additional 1 year M.Arch for their BFA grads.

Upon graduation, I think for the amount I pay, the education that I get is really worth it. I don't know whether this all would sound like an ad to you, but that's pretty much what I had at MassArt.

Cheers~

I graduated from MassArt in Architecture last year and loved the program, spent my freshman year at Wentworth, which I didn't love so much, and now am in the M.Arch program at the University of Oregon. PM me and I'll give you, what I think, would be several very objective opinions on both of the programs.

@qwerty_123 - who are you? I think I knowwww youuuuu...

johnlem87 -My email address is barkermj@comcast.net. I would be glad to hear your opinion on both schools. And what you think about RISD Pratt and the BAC as well.

Don't go to the BAC, the sheer fact that you are interested in Art should drive you completely away from the BAC. The BAC offers perhaps the least progressive architecture education on this planet. The sole focus is conformity, it is give or take on your instructors and there is no studio atmosphere, as studio is once a week for only 3 hours. The building has very limited hours. You simply do not learn much at school. I went to the BAC for 4 years and transferred out to SCIARC, which was a very late transfer but I realized that it was not the education I wanted, it was setting me up to be little more then a good employee and few students from the BAC make it into meaningful grad programs. It is a practical education, that is for some people, but not if your passion is design, maybe if it was construction documents and construction administration. There are some very bright students at the BAC and they would be 1 million times better at a traditional program that is focused on studio atmosphere. 

MASSART seems like it has a very good program, and I think in a few years it will really be on people's radar, I believe the new president of the school was the head of the architecture program at RISD. That shows they are very committed in seeing their new architecture program succeed. I have a number of friends from the BAC looking to transfer into MASSART, they have only told me positive things they have seen at the program.

Median-

Awesome, yeah me and my grandfather were discussing how RISDS Dean of Architecture and Design would hopefully bring more attention to massarts architectural program.

Thank you for the advice, on the BAC I will deffinitely take it into consideration. How is Sci-Arc? And what are your plans post graduation?