University of Texas at Austin
School of Architecture
Our vision is to be one of the most influential School of Architecture in the world. Our programs are highly regarded because we combine intellectual curiosity and ambition with professional prowess. To maintain and broaden our significance, we must continue to refine this approach to teaching and research, that is, the simultaneous advancement of both theory and practice. Expanding our influence rests on four interconnected factors: Like the University of Texas, the School of Architecture must be strongly grounded in the Austin region and the State of Texas. Although rooted in a particular place, the school must have a national and international reach and consequence. We must be committed to interdisciplinary teaching and research both within the school & across the university. We need to address important societal issues facing the built environment, specifically sustainability, including the aspects of urbanization, energy and resource consumption, and greenhouse gas production.
http://soa.utexas.edu/
Setting
One of the smallest of the 16 schools and colleges of U.T. Austin that enrolls 50,170 students, the school benefits from its small-school atmosphere in the center of the vast resources of a major University. The school's restricted enrollment mandates that 90% of the undergraduate enrollment be Texas residents, although 50% of the graduate students in architecture are from out-of-state. The school employs up to 51 graduate students per semester as teaching assistants. The faculty is a diverse group of backgrounds emphasizing a pluralistic approach to the discipline of architecture. Austin, the state capital, enjoys the Central Texas location along the beautiful Highland lakes on the Colorado River as it descends from the Texas Hill Country to meet the grassy expanses of the Gulf Plains. Austin's abundant undulant vegetation, its parks and trails along the many waterways and its temperate subtropical climate support a population of about 1.6 million people. Within a 200-mile range are San Antonio, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Galveston, and Mexico.
School Philosophy
The School of Architecture offers a broad range of degree options in architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, and community and regional planning to address the individual aspirations and needs of each candidate who comes here to study. Each degree option has a relatively small number of participants and has a strong identity of its own. Together, they produce a whole that benefits significantly from the diversity of its parts.
Programs
Our undergraduate programs allow students to discover architecture in the context of a broad liberal arts education and encourage a view of architecture as a diverse discipline with many different career paths. The school offers a traditional five-year Bachelor of Architecture program requiring ten sequential design studios, other professional courses, and the Basic Education Requirements. Students follow a highly structured curriculum for the first three years and, after a satisfactory qualifying review, enter the fourth year. In fourth- and fifth-year design, students select studios focusing on various aspects of architecture including interdisciplinary studios with interior design, landscape architecture, historic preservation, and urban design or programs such as the Professional Residency Program and study-abroad programs. Intensive dual degree programs combine the Bachelor of Architecture with the Bachelor of Science in Architectural Engineering, requiring six years of study, or with the Liberal Arts Honors Program (B.A. Plan II), requiring five years of study including summers. The school also offers a four-year Bachelor of Science Interior Design program requiring eight sequential design studios, other professional courses, and the Basic Education Requirements. Students follow a highly structured curriculum for the first three years and, after a satisfactory qualifying review, enter the fourth year. A four-year program leading to the Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies, including a possible Architecture History Track, is offered for students who elect a nonprofessional or pre-professional undergraduate degree. The first professional degree program leading to the Master of Architecture may be completed in three and a half years of concentrated study by students entering with degrees in disciplines unrelated to architecture. For students entering with pre-professional degrees in architectural studies, the required hours of professional coursework are prescribed on the basis of the student's previous work. Students complete a rigorous four-semester curriculum in design and other professional subjects and, after a satisfactory qualifying review, enter advanced design studios, which are taken with advanced undergraduates. Students may earn a Certificate of Specialization in Historic Preservation, Urban Design, or Sustainable Design by completing the relevant sequence of courses. For students holding professional degrees in architecture, the Master of Architecture is a post-professional degree offering several opportunities for advanced study including Design and Theory, Historic Preservation, Sustainable Design, and Urban Design. The Master of Science in Architectural Studies degree program consists of advanced academic work in areas allied with architectural design, historic preservation,design with climate, architectural history, urban design, theory, and interdisciplinary studies. This degree program is tailored to applicants who wish to pursue research and advanced academic study in these fields for a nonprofessional degree. It is available to students with or without a professional degree in architecture. The Master of Interior Design degree further sets us apart as far as advanced interior design and interior architecture is concerned.
of Focus
1. Art & Design
Opportunities
Study Abroad
Facilities
Large-format Printer
Laser Cutter
Woodshop
3D Printing
CNC Milling
Policies
Transfer Policies
Applications to The University of Texas at Austin for external transfer admission are available online: (https://www.applytexas.org/adappc/gen/c_start.WBX). The University of Texas at Austin admissions process is administered centrally by the Texas Admissions office. Please note that applicants may apply for fall semester only. External transfer applications and portfolios are accepted only from students of architecture and interior design programs at other universities whose minimum transfer GPA is 3.25. The required portfolio will be evaluated with emphasis given to excellence in design, academic preparation, essays, and other achievements. Course credit and placement in studio sequence is determined upon acceptance. External transfer admission is offered to a few qualified applicants each year, based on available space.
For more information on external transfer admission, please read the External Transfer Student FAQ: (https://soa.utexas.edu/apply/undergraduate-admissions/external-transfer-faq)
Internal Transfer Admission
To request a major change, enrolled University of Texas at Austin students applying for internal transfer: (https://soa.utexas.edu/apply/undergraduate-admissions/internal-transfer) must have a minimum of 24 in-resident UT Austin credit hours (completed by the end of a spring semester) and a minimum UT Austin GPA of 3.25. Emphasis is given to strong performance in university courses, especially courses relevant to the degree program to which the applicant is applying. Meeting these requirements does not guarantee admission.
For more information on internal transfer admission, please read the Internal Transfer Student FAQ: (https://soa.utexas.edu/apply/undergraduate-admissions/internal-transfer/internal-transfer-faq)
