University of California, Berkeley
Department of Architecture
The Department of Architecture at UC Berkeley has a strong tradition of fostering independent design thinking and research. Our award-winning faculty offer vigorous undergraduate and graduate educational programs, carry out leading research in constructed and virtual environments, architectural technologies and architectural humanities. The multidisciplinary interests of our faculty and graduate students form the basis of exciting new research collaborations with a variety of other disciplines including anthropology, international studies, engineering, material science, new media and urban studies.
http://ced.berkeley.edu/academics/architecture/
Setting
The University of California, Berkeley has a long history as one of America's most lively, culturally diverse, and politically adventurous academic institutions. Located across the bay from San Francisco, the Berkeley campus is divided into 14 colleges and schools with departments offering over 300 degree programs to 30,000 students, two-thirds of whom are undergraduates. A large and vital institution, Berkeley offers students a vast range of scholarly endeavor and a wide arena for personal growth.
School Philosophy
Undergraduate Philosophy: Undergraduate study in the College of Environmental Design provides a liberal education among an active community of students, scholars, creative designers, and technologists concerned with the built environment, within the larger environment of a great university. Graduate Philosophy: The graduate programs in architecture aim to educate architects and scholars who contribute to the practice and discipline of architecture and to the development of a technologically sophisticated and humane built environment. The professional program is intended to develop students' abilities to conceive and accurately describe appropriate built spaces at several scales, to help them learn the processes used to bring buildings into place, and provide a basis for understanding the consequences that complexes of buildings and open spaces have for inhabitants, society, and the environment.
Programs
Undergraduate Program - The undergraduate program in architecture combines required courses in environmental design and architecture with opportunities for varied individual programs. Through its core courses, the program offers a broad introduction to the field of architecture, and through studies in the various areas it provides opportunities to prepare for specialization in the field in the areas of architectural design and representation, architectural technologies and building performance, architectural history, culture and society. In addition to offering a sound and well-rounded education, undergraduate studies can also provide pre-professional competency for entry-level employment in architecture, the option for graduate work in architecture, or further studies in a related environmental design field. At the lower division level, students take an introductory course in environmental design, a two-course studio sequence in drawing and design,prerequisite courses in calculus and physics, and breadth area courses in natural sciences, social and behavioral sciences, historical studies, international studies, philosophy and values, and arts and literature.At the upper division level, students take a two-course architecture studio sequence, a two-course architecture history sequence, three architecture "area studies" courses and three electives within the College. Additional design and technology course are recommended for students preparing for M.Arch. programs. Most students are able to take one-quarter of their program as electives. Graduate Program - The Architecture graduate program at Berkeley offers the degrees Master of Architecture, Master of Science, and Ph.D. The Master of Architecture program is designed to provide students seeking the first professional degree with a comprehensive and challenging education leading to the practice of architecture.Graduate students have the flexibility to choose a variety of paths within a rigorous program. A required studio each semester introduces design issues through the study of a variety of building types, styles and sites. The curriculum in technology and building performance, history, society and culture, and professional practice provide the breadth and background for the individual's professional education and career goals. Students who have completed equivalent courses at other institutions may have the requirements waived to allow for more elective units. The Master of Science is an academic degree which allows students to do specialized research in the fields related to the architectural profession. The Ph.D. is an advanced degree preparing students for research and teaching in architecture and environmental design. It is a research-oriented program, in which the student chooses specific fields of specialization,prepares sufficiently in the literature and research of those fields to pass written and oral examinations and completes original research culminating in the written dissertation.
of Focus
1. Art & Design
2. Building Technologies
3. Digital Fabrication & Technology
4. Digital Design & Visualization
5. History | Theory | Criticism
6. Materials and Construction
7. Urbanism
Opportunities
Summer Program
Study Abroad
Facilities
24 Hour Workshop
Large-format Printer
Laser Cutter
Woodshop
3D Printing
Metalshop
CNC Milling
Fabrication Lab
Policies
Transfer Policies
You are a transfer student if you have completed coursework during a regular session at a college or university after high school. (The summer session immediately following high school graduation does not count.) While UC gives California community college students first priority over other transfer applicants, we also accept those from four-year institutions. Read more here: (https://admissions.berkeley.edu/transfer-requirements)
