I graduated from the BFA Architecture for UMass in '08.

If you have in-state tuition and you are on a budget, then I think it would be hard to beat the value compared to what you could get out of the program. For the most part the professors are extremely accessible, come from the best schools and the classes are small. The design community is close knit and most of the interesting work in the area is completed by practicing faculty.

Depending on what you are into, the connection to the five colleges can be a great avenue to explore. Though there are no graduate programs at any of the other schools (Amherst, Hampshire, Smith and Mount Holyoke) there are great alternative classes (Hampshire in particular) and programs that have great potential to expand.

It is a small town, with a small town atmosphere though UMass is like a city unto itself, with various problems that come with that density, that said, the undergraduate population can really be a downer.

Several of my colleagues continued onto the M.Arch, I speak to one regularly and he informs me that the coursework is very interesting and that they are learning Rhino with prof. Skender Luarasi (very interesting new hire from Albania). You can check out the work of Sigrid Miller Pollin at www.millerpollin.com , she is a great architect and wonderful person to know and work for. Ray Kinoshita Mann has a vast reserve of knowledge to tap and Joseph Krupczynski has a meticulous design sense and can be very motivating if a student shows potential.

On the Architectural History side Max Page and Timothy Rohan are probably the most intriguing lecture professors I have ever had the pleasure of meeting (and I have attended four different universities). E-mail any of these people (their e-mails are on the UM A+D website) with questions and you will surely receive a response.

All in all, writing this has brought back many good memories and I think that IF YOU ARE SELF DIRECTED then you can make a MArch at UMass the best decision you have ever made. They are supposed to have a major renovation of the Fine Arts Center (now the architecture building) since they received accreditation in 08. For the time being they lack the state of the art facilities that you find at a Tier I school. In my case, the faculty helped me find a job and gave me a TA position and when I left Amherst in September I had several great offers. I'm looking forward to going back for my M. Arch and though I'm not looking at UMass, it's most definately not because of the faculty.

I hope this helps, let me know if I can provide any more specific information for you or point you in the direction of some current students.

You might check out the MassArt MArch. program as well. The Colleges of the Fenway is a cross-registration deal with Simmons, Emanuel, the BAC, MFA School, Wentworth, MIT, etc. It's right in Boston, the tuition is cheap and the facilities are great. You can also dabble in Glass, Sculpture, Photography, Printmaking, Painting, etc. The faculty is fantastic (MIT trained) and super helpful all in a supportive environment.

MBergin--

Thanks so much for your thoughts on the program. They're very helpful!

i also graduated from umass in '05 with a bfa in arch. design. they definitely needed that additional professor to teach digital design tools. mbergin is correct about the faculty. they are very accessible and highly competent people who put together engaging studios. Tim Rohan and Max Page are both Yale educated and will never fail to surprise you with their depth of knowledge. they are both true intellectuals. the least positive aspects of umass are the facilities and the renovations mbergin speaks of are desperately needed. they also don't have a very good woodshop either or other related fabrication workshops. however if they are finally NAAB accredited I would take their offer seriously.

hey ruralarchitect, thanks for the feedback. umass received accreditation in 2007, so they're good to go on that front.

so the renovations that you both speak of: any sense of when they'll be proceeding? is this a wishlist item for them or something they're going to need to proceed with to keep their accreditation?

mbergin, you mentioned that the program is self-directed, but is there an evident/coherent interest among the faculty in anything in particular? are the faculty strong in any particular area? it's hard for me to get a sense of this from anything other than looking through the facultys' work on their own websites.

i'd love some feedback if you have any, as they require march students to take a concentration and i wonder if this would be entirely student directed or influenced by the faculty's interests and resources.

Hi Bennie,

I would say that one of Joseph Krupczynski's recent interests has been in the capacity that art and design can be used towards goals of social justice. One example of this is in collaborating with local non profit groups, artists, and of course other designers in creating presentations, exhibits, construction projects, art installations, and other five college faculty to advance local community driven goals.

I'm in the UMass M.Arch program. First, I would say the M.Arch program is growing & gaining resources quickly since it began, and this year the application process grew still more competitive. They obviously don't yet know how big the incoming class is going to be (as for current students I think we have something like 34 masters students in the studio, and 16 of them were new in Fall '08). They are also making positive changes to the Building Materials/Wood Technology program, which benefits architecture students a lot for all the building physics related coursework, but also heavily supplements anything you want to do with sustainable practices/green building. There is a heavy green building focus at UMass in general, although the core of the studios is more theory-heavy, modern design pedagogy which I think is similar to most american schools.
Also, yes S. Luarasi is teaching analysis and representaion, with coursework focused on Rhino and scripting. The degree to which you integrate this into studio projects is flexible, but in any case the course is excellent and it's a good sort of counterpoint to the more conventional studios we do.

I recommend the program- the atmosphere is very laid back and positive, but also rigorous enough. The faculty is outstanding and very accessible for individual instruction/support, and the five colleges have amazing resources and events, especially for something out in the country. As of this year at least, you will be lacking a few things that you would get at some schools- e.g. we don't have CNC modelling, and as for the studios, I could see that some people would say they need renovation (I have not idea of the status of this project) although I like them all in all- the building is still avante garde today and we have freedom to set up the way we want. They are not as glossy as something like Gund at the GSD, but I would say they are more impressive and friendly to work in than the studios at Parsons, or Yale before the Rudolph building was renovated.

Finall, yes the tution is a deal and if you TA you can have most of it waived, plus get a stipend. I was able to do this after being in school one semester- it's great.

Hope that helps-

PS: In response to a question above, they built a new woodshop. It's nice. They also got us a new plotter this year for our studio & the use of it is free.

massarch1, Thanks so much for your feedback. It's actually quite reassuring to get some insight from someone who is in the program. I'm driving down for a visit tomorrow to check it out.

I'm also one of the folks who was considering UMASS last year and is there now - and I'd also recommend the program.

massarch1 said it well. We don't have all the resources of big budget private schools like the GSD (CNC routers, laser cutters), but we do have interesting and engaged professors that are very accessible and willing to plug in on your projects and a friendly culture that lets you explore the directions that interest you. Small studios, accessible professors, and a peer culture that is collaborative and supportive rather than competitive are real strong points here, and I think are something that makes UMASS stand out.

The connection with the Building Materials / Wood Technology department is something I think few other programs can even come close to offering, we get a really strong education in building technique, materials, and technology. Architecture faculty are engaging and offer a good counterpoint on the design side.

We are fond of complaining about our Kevin Roche studio building, but all in all it is not a bad place - mostly it just needs a new HVAC system and a fresh coat of paint. I know renovations are being planned and capital is being raised, and expect at least some improvement over the summer. And, even as it is, it's not a bad place - we have a lot of space to spread out and good light.

Hope that helps - I'd encourage anyone considering the program to come and visit, ideally to stick around for a few days, attend studios, etc, and ask a lot of questions. Really, it's the only way to know if the program is for you. Feel free to hit me up if you are coming and want to chat while you are here.

I have one more question for you all about the tuition waver: Are most students in the program able to take advantage of it? If so, is the economy affecting the number positions available at local firms?

Just trying to get a sense of what the likelihood would be of my being able to take advantage of it--seems like a great deal.

I don't have any real numbers, but just anecdotally, it seems like most of the people I've talked to who have pursued positions, have gotten them. I'm sure there are not enough positions for 100% of the m.archs, but they need a lot of us to do it every semester in various departments, and not all of us are interested or can do it. The last I heard there was also an externship deal where you work in a firm during the semester in addition to some coursework, and I think that also includes a tuition deal. But yes I would ask the office, like or email Jean Crossman (at the main contact info on the website) and if she doesn't have the info she'll refer you.
I don't know if they are cutting TA positions as result of budget issues- I haven't heard of it yet.

According to Ray Mann TA positions have been cut for incoming students.

Hello; I stumbled upon this conversation and found it interesting as I, also, have recently decided to enter UMASS's M.Arch program. I will admit that I do not know too much about the program, just what I learned here, from their website, and from a few other blogs. I am from the area and rec'd my undergraduate degree from UMASS. I even had 1 class in FAC and it sorely needed interior renovation and updating back then. It is a spectacluar building on the outside if you look at it just right and I think a great home for an Architecture program, especially if they get most of the 4th floor as Fine Art moves to their new building. It is dismal on the inside. I think they put a lot into the exterior of the building over the last 10 years and are just now tackling the inside, the Music department was renovated last summer, this year it's Theaters' turn, so I am guessing Architecture will be next summer.

The M.Arch thing always played in the back of my mind and I had thought of moving to Boston to make it possible when I learned of UMass's new accred. program.

I have met several of the faculty and was thoroughly impressed. Many have Harvard & Yale backgrounds. They do seem friendly and interested, not aloof, and they seemed very knowledgable.

For those of you in the program, any comments on the studio culture ? The day I visited, I saw a lot of work on tables and pinned up, but not too many students ? How much is it computer dirven as compared to hand drawing/sketching ? The building seems a bit cold and empty so I am hoping as the program grows there will be more activity and interaction. Do they set you up with your own studio space ? Can you leave everything there as you work ? How about computers, I saw mostly laptops, not my favorite way of drawing ? I noticed that the primary studio classes are divided into 2 days of studio and 1 of seminar, what goes on in the seminar ? Is this just review of the week's work ?

How is the atmosphere for non-traditional (yes, I mean older) students ?

Any input will be appreciated, I am excited to start this Fall, hope to meet some of you there .

I notice most of the postings are from '09. Anyone attending the M.Arch at UMASS in fall 2010? I am planning to...also got accepted at RISD, but I just can't afford that kind of tuition. I visited UMASS, and found the faculty and students to be very friendly, forthcoming and positive about the direction of the program. Hope I am making a good choice.

ruthanne, I'm not new but I'll be returning in the fall for my final year in the m.arch program and if you need any info you can definitely get ahold of me (think you can email me through archinect id? I don't use this site very much but anyway I think so...). Anyway I would say you are making a good choice. ... seems like it has quickly grown into a solid option in spite of being new, and yeah I think it's a deal for the money.