Bachelor of Architectural History
Our aim is to equip students with a broad knowledge of histories of architecture and cultural landscapes, to hone time-honored and cutting edge approaches to documenting, understanding, and interpreting the built environment, to open future possibilities by encouraging our students to ask challenging questions, to shed new light on both familiar and overlooked voices and spaces, and to discover the rich tapestry of experiences that have shaped cities, buildings, and landscapes close to home and across the world.
122 CREDITS
The Bachelor of Science Architecture is a 4-year undergraduate degree with a minimum of 122 credits.
Undergraduate students entering the School of Architecture share a Common First Year Curriculum. Students take core courses in three School of Architecture departments: Architecture, Urban + Environmental Planning, and Architectural History to provide a framework for the study of contemporary culture through observation, analysis, and design. Students must pass each core course with a grade of C- or higher. During the spring semester of the first year, students choose an intended major: Bachelor of Architectural History, Bachelor of Science Architecture, or Bachelor of Urban and Environmental Planning.
By the end of the first semester of their second year, each student decides whether they prefer the Architectural History concentration or the Historic Preservation Concentration.
The Architectural History concentration provides a broad introduction to histories of architecture, cities, and cultural landscapes. To support this breadth of understanding, we ask students to take one course examining material from distinct cultural and geographical areas (the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Mediterranean). Appropriate historic preservation, landscape architecture, and art history courses may be used to fulfill architectural requirements with the approval of the Director of the Undergraduate Program.
Students have the ability to select additional architectural history electives to support their interests and the development of a thesis. The thesis provides the opportunity to pursue original research on a subject chosen and developed by the student in close dialogue with a faculty advisor.
The Historic Preservation Concentration allows students to gain knowledge and expertise in the multi-disciplinary areas of historic preservation, critical heritage, and public history. In addition to core requirements focused on core professional competencies, students are encouraged to take additional electives of their choice in historic preservation and architectural history, as well as approved courses in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Urban and Environmental Planning. Relevant courses from the College of Arts & Sciences and the School of Engineering may also be applied towards the concentration with the Historic Preservation Program Director’s approval.
An internship in preservation/public history is a recommended part of the curriculum. All students in the Historic Preservation Concentration also have the opportunity to pursue original research on a subject chosen and developed by the student in close dialogue with a faculty advisor.
A minor in Architectural History requires 15 ARH credits, including ARH 1010 and ARH 1020, and 9 credits of ARH electives with a minimum grade of C-.
No thesis is required.
The Architectural History Department offers a direct path to receiving a Master of Architectural History (MArH) for its qualified undergraduate majors. Students must meet a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.3 to be eligible.
Current students who are interested in the Fifth-Year MArH should meet with the Architectural History Undergraduate Director when planning their courses for their third year. We encourage you to complete your undergraduate thesis during the fall semester of your fourth year (before the MArH application deadline in early January).
Admitted students should meet with the Architectural History Graduate Director to develop a plan for submitting a draft graduate thesis proposal in the spring semester of your fourth year. Those students interested in also obtaining the Historic Preservation Certificate should consult with the director of that program.
A minimum of 30 credit hours of graduate-level courses is required in order to complete the Fifth-Year MArH degree. Students graduating with credits beyond the 120 required for the Bachelor of Architectural History may be able to transfer in some graduate courses for graduate-level (5000-level) courses already taken.