same here! i am actually still contemplating a ubc offer as well, but leaning towards TO... any advice would be appreciated!

ps. does anyone know anything about dealing with waving courses? I didnt get any advanced placement offer from TO (although having done almost a year of similar stuff in my undergrads). But ive been told from school that i can try and get some stuff waved and take other courses instead... does anyone know how that works?

So you have a bachelor in architecture? I wonder how it's going to work. These M.Arch programs are accepting students with and without arch backgrounds. So some students will have a major head start. I have a BFA and I feel like I'll have to work twice as hard.

yeah that's the weird thing about toronto... i dont have a bachelor of architecture actually , but ive done some of the courses offered in the masters program already... but they didnt give me any credit for those... and from what ive heard, even people from the bachelor of architecture at toronto dont get an advanced standing from their masters program...

but im 100 percent sure that courses are tailored to people with no arch background, so dont worry about it... plus, if anything, they would "expect" more from someone with a background in architecture... so i wouldnt say that you will have to work twice as hard... we are all in this together :)

heY so i just handed in my deposit todayyy. so it looks like i'm going to toronto.. but i'll still hav some time to change my mind. It looks pretty set so far though.
I dont have a backgroudn in architecture... but a BES. in chemical engineering (not related at ALL) .

Hope to see you guys there

So i went for the visit. it was a little disappointing because they were under renovation and she didn't really expect to be giving me a tour (which was kinda werid) but i guess that means there new thigns to look forward too. i'm guessing it's not from the 14 millino cuz that will takea while i presume.

Has any one else visited that palce??/ let me know how it was cuz i dunoo if i got the best of anything

ooooo and i'm also going to GSAPP suummer program at columbia university in july to prepare a little and get my creative juices going?? any one else heading to NYC?

congrats, nariman! That's great news.

As for the school, I can only say what I know - that it's in a great area of town. I didn't like living in Toronto at all, but that's probably more to do with me than the city. Or not.

The campus is centrally-located. TONS of stuff to do within a 10-minute walk in either direction. If you're like me, that's about all you'll have time to explore, anyway! hahaha

If you're into a broader idea of design (not just architecture) you should inquire about taking an elective at OCAD. It's just a couple of blocks away, and their furniture courses are going to far superior to anything that U of T offers.

Good luck!

Thanks slantix,

I can't wait to start. I didn't even think about taking electives at OCAD but now I will look into it.

On Toronto:

I used to spend a lot of time on a thread and a fellow archinect user, mrbren, said the following:


toronto update -

met with the coordinator this morning and had a walking tour of the al&d building. lots of bleary-eyed students who didnt know quite how to respond to my guides chipper greetings. the first year arch studios are pure chaos. trash/materials/paper everywhere. looks like fun. the landscape studios are, by contrast, serene. neat little piles of work, potted plants, lots of light.

i sat in on a number of end-of-term reviews, mostly for the first year design studios. i was pleasantly surprised by the average level of work. better than what i had seen at UVA, for example. i also sat in on a 3rd year studio review with the current occupant of the gehry chair - a fellow named mayer. the project i saw was so-so, but was dealt with really well by the critics and clearly showed a developed set of skills in design and presentation. though the session began with heady theory, i was pleased that some critics kept us grounded by considering problems of budget, policy and the limits of physics and HVAC.

so far i am pretty impressed all around. the atmosphere is friendly and open. everyone complains about a lack of funds, but it seems to me that people have everything they need to complete their work and then some. tomorrow is another day of reviews, this time with second year students.

details i picked up today:

total students in al&d - about 300
new 1st year students 08/09 - about 70
anticipated 1st years 09/10 - slightly fewer. 65-70

most are non-arch/design backgrounds.

i have also been to a couple of 1st year and second year reviews at toronto last year... i would say it definitely impressed me more than the work ive seen at ubc recently... or at least they were better presented... I really liked the school building... its right in the middle of a lot of urban activity, which is a nice chance for me. Also, I love the fact that all landscape, architecture, and urban design students are housed under one roof. There is always so much to see if you just walk around the building...
The first year studio definitely looked wayy too over crowded to me, but that would not be the case for our year. (last year they accepted about 90 people, this year 60-70) ...
the entire school is also getting new desks and chairs! now that is something im really looking forward to! the old ones were in a pretty bad shape... so yeay!

thanks that takes away a bit o negativity!...yah OCAD is great i did'nt know that some electives were fromt there. is it only the Furniture design?? Alot of friends from the highschool that i went to went there since it was art school. it is amazing.

tilly,

i don't think that the intro to furniture course is actually held at ocad. that course is a U of T course. taking electives at OCAD is probably something that will require much paper work and signatures.

my first time quoted on archinect!

ill be with you guys this fall. living in richmond, VA right now. what am i doing? not much. bartending and saving up enough money to move to canada.

ive spent a few total months in toronto. i really like it. theres always something going on, and al&d is about as central as it gets to anything id want to be near. not the edgiest city, but thats certainly part of its particular appeal.

im going to be looking for a place to live rather near al&d. i should be up in 3-4 weeks looking around. PM if you are also on the hunt. i dont need much space. cheap is mostly what i care about.

oh, and two other things.

1. i havent really heard anything from UoT since my acceptance and deposit payment. doesn anyone know about registration/anything else that one might normally do a couple months before classes start?

2. any info on perm residency for int'l students would be helpful. im in the process right now, but it would be nice to chat with someone whos done it.

hi mrbren... i havent heard back from the school since i got admitted either... but i have heard from friends there that u of t's registration is pretty late. I was actually going to email yvonne tomorrow.

ps. no al&d anymore :D :D ... i reallly liked that name :(

http://www.ald.utoronto.ca/news_events/2008/05/2650

ya i saw that while going through the site today. i had read about the gift on google (!) one day, but not about the name change. i, too, liked the way it almost wanted to sort of roll off the tongue. im sure ill get used to it.

"1. i havent really heard anything from UoT since my acceptance and deposit payment."

i contacted Yvonne and she said

"No need to worry. We will be emailing you some information later in the summer."

school starts on sept 8. this is great because now i am pretty comfortable with renting a place starting sept 1. one week should be enough to get my shiv together before school.

so whos going to the workshop?

calling g-16

i'm going. they say "highly recommended" and it's being taught by 3rd years so it should be cool.

this reading list is exciting. i really wish they sent it to us months ago.

im probably skipping the workshop, since i have a design background... but i have attended workshops like this in the past, and i think it is definitely a must- they usually give you a solid introduction to the software requirements of the program, which comes in handy down the road.

and about the reading list- WORD!! i totally wish i had this earlier on... im super excited about the movie list too! im a cinephile, so i think any architecture program that includes a movie list in their reading requirements rocks! woohoo!


ps. did any of you guys figured out the residence thing?

as far as living in residence?

im going to be in chinatown unless i find a much much better deal someplace else. its close, cheap and hopefully ill get to practice my mandarin. still looking for roommates.

I hate sounding like a salesman, but if you guys are looking for a place to stay I can rent out a 2br 2bth loft near Islington subway but it won't be ready until the winter 2009 semester.

before i knew about the workshop week i decided to do the summer intro to archi program in NYC. It'sa month and a half.....so i'm thinking idont need to go to U of T's work shop. what do you guys think?

just got the materials list for the design studio...
there's a lot of draftsman's tools here. actually they all are. if they want us to buy this stuff, then i guess we'll be using them a lot too. i wonder what the computer/paper ration will be.

*ratio

Only Vis Com 1 is hand drafting. Even most people use the computers for Studio 1. However, this depends on the instructor. Some instructors do not allow computer drawings. I would advise you not to get all the materials at once.

It's a great idea to go to the workshop. First, you get to know people in your year (and they will become your buddies as you will be seeing them almost every single day, day and night, from September till April). Also, the workshop should give you a good head start on first year MArch at U of T.

this thread died too quickly!

are there any other international students lurking around here?

not enough toronto people on archinect i guess...

I finally found a place to live, a bachelor near bloor and spadina, @#$#%@ living downtown toronto is more expensive than i thought. moving in sept 01 so i have to figure something out for the duration of the workshop.

what are you guys doing?

nariman, how much roughly was rent if you don't mind me asking?

there are some cheap places a little closer than that to campus which are houses generally used by new immigrants. daily, weekly and monthly rates that are all pretty cheap. ill try to find a link.

actually found two of them. they are basically hostels, but geared toward immigrants. rates are supposedly negotiable depending on your rapport with desk staff. perhaps worth a look for anyone needing a place during the workshop. definitely walking distance.

1. toronto house has rooms for around 30-40 per night or a few hundred a week. i think its cheaper if you share a room with someone.

2. another one from craigslist, same neighborhood.

$1125

$1125 is pretty good for rent downtown, I've got a friend who rents a nice 1 bdrm are Sherbourne and College for about the same amount or a bit more.
The wife and I used to rent in south Etobicoke for $750, 1 bdrm, near the lake.

i got a room in tartu college (residence) on bloor and spadina for $510 a month.. shared with 4 other people i believe.

Anyone know of any furniture stores in Toronto? I want to pay IKEA prices for super simple near industrial objects. =)

I can get you a 70s metal filing cabinet for cheap, it's still got that that ugly 70s snot green color.
You should also check out waste office supply stores, or factory auctions.

Hello everyone!

I went to U of T for my arch undergrad (graduated in '07) and alot of my friends are going to or are in the M.Arch program.

With regards to arch experience, don't worry! I'd say last year's class was majority non-arch. And for all you arch-background ppl, the first semester will feel a bit like a repeat.

Regarding Toronto: It's a fun city to live in, with lively nightlife. But you may find it a little cold in terms of both stranger interaction and climate. I found university life a little cliquey there, but the advantage is that the arch ppl tend to group together, commiserate, and bond.

Good luck you guys, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

I googled the building I am moving into. It was built by Uno Prii. He was practicing in Toronto since the late 50s. Here's a Globe and Mail article on him.

Globe and Mail

From the article:

"As we talk about just a few of the approximately 250 apartment buildings Mr. Prii designed in his lifetime, I wonder aloud why his story and body of work aren't being taught to first-year architecture students; why they are presented only in library basements by enthusiasts such as Alfred Holden. Uno Prii, in large part, shaped modern Toronto, as did contemporaries John C. Parkin, Macklin Hancock, Peter Dickinson (a sculptor of buildings himself) and dozens of others."



By the way, for you international students, here's my take on the local papers:

Toronto Star: Too trashy
Toronto Sun: Too normal
National Post: Too Conservative
Globe and Mail: As good as it gets

I think it's a good idea to familiarize ourselves with the local history.

you've got the Sun and Star reversed, but otherwise you're right.

where is that building, anyway?

"you've got the Sun and Star reversed, but otherwise you're right."

haha. total shot in the dark. i thought since it had a star in it's name it must be trashy.

the building is on Prince Arthur, I feel so lucky because I had no idea where I was moving into, put the damage deposit before i saw anything.

Nice! That's a good spot if you like living right downtown.

indeed - not a bad location, and a handsome house.

i was actually offered a room perhaps .5km from there, on st george just north of bloor. im considering it, since i know one of the other tenants. i had hoped for something a touch closer, but hey.

Have you guys figured out where you're staying for the workshop? Although it's a good idea to do this workshop, it should really be integrated into the 3.5 yr program and not some daft ad-on plan. Why the hell should I pay $300 on top of tuition and pay for a weeks stay at a hostel or hotel. al;djsadmsf.a,dc

ill be over on yonge until at least sept 1. im reserving judgment on the program until at least the first week is over and done with.

ive been going over some of my old class notes recently, and thought some of you might be interested in some urban econ research that i did. its posted under today on my tumblr. i think youll find the zoning part under the crummy hand-written chart most interesting.

mrbren, thanks for sharing this info...
that tumblr theme is super minimal - cool
what did you do for your undergrad?

economics / asia studies

anyone do a tuition deferral? i know it sounds silly, but i cant get a straight answer about where im supposed to send this. sometimes its SGS, sometimes student accounts. i was thinking of just faxing it everywhere...

o, bureaucracy!

what is a tuition deferral?

does anyone know when is the first day of registration, or how can we check that?

yvonne sent out an e-mail about that - the pages should be posted on or after august 8th.

if you are waiting on govt loans, whether OSAP or other, you need to request a deferral. its so that you can register for classes and collect your money before paying fees.

mrbren are you using this form?

It says: Submit your Tuition Fee Deferral request to your graduate Administrative Assistant at your home department.

I think this is Yvonne.

But I have a feeling that this is not the form to use. The conditions are:

that you receive a funding package which can be made up from a variety of sources including major awards, teaching assistantships, research stipends and other U of T funding and that the amount of this funding covers at least the minimum first payment indicated on your Fees Invoice.