finish the business degree!!!

it will be invaluable as a practicing architect and will give you a leg up over others... then go to grad school to get an m.arch.

Totally agree with architphil.Also, liberal arts is both a blessing and a curse I guess..

I am afraid that non-art degree, like the business degree, won't nurture my artistic abilities adequately to get accepted to an excellent grad school. Don't I need to have a brilliant sense in design and art? How could I develop such a skill while pursuing the business degree?

"Don't I need to have a brilliant sense in design and art?"

No you don't..They will teach you design in school don't worry,they will teach LOTS of it trust me.

"How could I develop such a skill while pursuing the business degree?"

Extracurricular activities perhaps? You can network with people and get advice/feedback,read books,go to museums, learn some Adobe products by yourself and maybe volunteer somewhere architecture related but basically you don't need artistic abilities that much in architecture.

I am surprised to hear that I "don't need artistic abilities that much in architecture." In my inexperienced opinion, architecture is a beautiful combo of art and math. fantasy + practicality. Had I been fooled by my ignorance in architecture? What is architecture?

aria,
people who i know and holding positions to evaluate the 'excellent school' admission applications, are increasingly valuing brilliant non art background applicants with equal favor as brilliant design portfolio holders.
i can safely say that degrees in business and economics are well sought after backgrounds for advance architecture education admissions.
finish what you have started first. in the mean time you can start reading books about arts and architecture. especially history and criticism of such subjects.

a picture of lone talent working on fantastic drawings at late hours is rapidly becoming irrelevant for architecture.

finish the business degree.... teach yourself architecture/design in your spare time... visit some firms...go to the libraries...get a few archy friends.....

Business degree> Humanities/ General studies in liberal arts degree for M.Arch ??

Would you all say that business degree is much more valuable than Humanities (study in a broad scope of liberal arts)?

To be honest, business classes are actually useless, unlikely from how they appear. After taking them for three semesters, I found business principles are just explaining simple things in much more complicated ways with different terms.

To be perfectly honest, the days of the "brilliant sense in design and art" are simply not enough. Sure Zaha and a few others will be able to continue in the trajectory they have established but I don't think we will see that level of form-based, pricey design again anytime in the near future. Offices are quickly learning that the profession is changing- business practices, diversity of skills, software, etc. Which is all to say that having a background outside of architecture, like business, may actually serve to your advantage. Being able to demonstrate to an employer that not only do you understand the fundamentals of design and architecture but you also understand how a business is run (i.e. budget and time) will really help.

Understand that outside of school, architecture is not all high design and fantasy. A large part of the profession is very administrative- paperwork, legal stuff, phone calls, more paperwork. Although design opportunities do exist, they may not be quite on the scale you might expect.

I would recommend to stay where you are. Look for opportunities/electives that allow you to explore some creative outlets so that you have some portfolio pieces that demonstrate some artistic merit- things like photography, 2D/3D art classes, sculpture... really anything that will show some understanding/desire in space and form making processes. I would also see if maybe a local office would let you job shadow for a day. This is a really great way to see how an office works and start to understand the less publicized side of architecture. Visit a few offices (if possible) that do different work as you may find you are more interested in interiors, landscape, etc.

I'd say Art it up. Use your hands, use machines, have no use for old dichotomies. Stay up late by yourself figuring out your own questions and answers. Invest some time and thought in the humanities, get broad. Business school ain't the only answer.

funny about business school being not what you thought. a few of my uncles went to biz-school and got mba. they say it was good basic education but had little to do with reality. one said his education taught him how to find the bullshit in business plans and the rest was rubbish...

architecture school is a bit of the same really. whatever you think you are going to learn you will be actually doing something else.

anyway, to the question, no you don't need to be amazing artist to go to architecture school. that is what you will learn in school. to get in you need to show an open mind with ability to ask and pursue answers to spatial or visual questions. that can be done in all kinds of ways that have little to do with skill at drawing and painting etc. so don't fret too much. orhan has good advice.

a business background will not hurt you in school and will absolutely be useful once you start working in offices. assuming you move up the adder that is. if you remain a cad-monkey then is not so important. for that cad is enough.

follow your instincts here. b-school is trendy these days amongst architects as it is a perceived antidote to many failings within the profession, when in fact it is merely a panacea. if you feel more enthusiastic about liberal arts, pursue your interests. i am very grateful for my undergraduate liberal arts education. while buddhism, flowering plants, and charlotte bronte may apparently have nothing to do with architecture, they will give you a perspective that the b-school crowd is unlikely to ever have.

I know how you feel about busn school, it's mundane load of boring 101. Truth is though it is very useful if you plan on owning your own firm one day. If you hate it though than switch by all means, it is never too late!!