General Information
Accreditation
The School of Architecture is a member of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning. The Bachelor of Architecture and Master of Architecture are accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board and satisfy the registration requirements of the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners. The Bachelor of Science in Interior Design satisfies the interior design registration requirements of the Texas Board of Architectural Examiners; it is accredited by the Council for Interior Design Accreditation and the National Association of Schools of Art and Design. The Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning is accredited by the American Planning Association.
Mission
The School of Architecture seeks to assist those who wish to develop knowledge, sensitivity, and skill in design, planning, and construction, so that as architects, interior designers, and planners they may improve the human environment. The curriculum offers opportunities for a broad education in professional subjects and in the arts and the humanities. Through avenues that stress solving actual and theoretical problems, the school seeks to enhance the knowledge and skill necessary to link understanding to experience, theory to practice, and art to science in ways that respond to human needs, aspirations, and sensibilities. Through its consortium of architects, interior designers, planners, and educators and scholars in these fields, the school provides a service to society and to the architecture, interior design, and planning professions by advancing the state of the art in design and technology.
History
The University began offering professional degrees in architecture in 1910 within the Department of Engineering. The School of Architecture was established in 1948 as a division of the College of Engineering and became an autonomous school of the University in September 1951. Graduate study in architecture began at the University in 1912. More than five thousand undergraduate and graduate degrees in architecture and planning have been conferred.
Education in community and regional planning was first offered as an undergraduate study option in the School of Architecture from 1948 to 1957. The Master of Science in Community and Regional Planning was formally approved in October 1959; the Doctor of Philosophy, in April 1995.
Education in interior design was first offered in 1939 within the degree of Bachelor of Science in Home Economics. In 1992 the College of Natural Sciences created the Bachelor of Science in Interior Design degree program; in the fall of 1998 this program was transferred to the School of Architecture. The first interior design degrees were conferred by the school in May 2001.
Facilities
The School of Architecture is centrally located on campus in four adjacent buildings: the historically significant Battle Hall (1911); Sutton Hall (1918, renovated in 1982), designed by distinguished American architect Cass Gilbert; Goldsmith Hall (1933, expanded and renovated in 1988), designed by noted architect Paul Philippe Cret, one of the primary planners of the forty-acre campus; and the West Mall Office Building (1961).
The Architecture and Planning Library, a branch of the University Libraries, provides reference and instructional services through expert staff to researchers who have access to nearly 100,000 volumes, 300 periodicals, and a wealth of online resources.
The Alexander Architectural Archive is a research center of national importance. Over a quarter of a million drawings, 1,800 linear feet of papers, photographs, and other formats are preserved and made available for scholarship.
The Visual Resources Collection (VRC) is a collection of over 100,000 digital images and about 240,000 slides of significant works of architecture, art, interior design, furniture design, and landscape architecture. A fully equipped black-and-white darkroom is available to School of Architecture students for a nominal fee.
The University Co-op Materials Resource Center offers an inspirational environment of material systems and technologies. The more than 25,000 material samples include traditional as well as smart, innovative, emerging, and sustainable design materials.
Digital Fabrication includes both digital input and output tools such as 3-D scanners, 3-D printers, CNC routers, and laser cutters, enabling students to utilize modern technology in architecture and design.
IO Central and Computer Lab is the technological environment for individual, group, and classroom work. The laboratory has computer work stations formatted with the most up-to-date software as well as large-format color scanners, laser-jet printers, and high-resolution plotters.
The Thermal Lab is the testing facility of the Center for Sustainable Development that simulates a full-scale room with a south-facing façade, allowing for the thermal experiments which include innovative applications in the fields of light-control, ventilation, and the direct and indirect use of solar energy.
The Wood Shop plays an integral role in the creation of design, ranging from models to full-scale applications, by providing equipment and training, primarily in wood, but also in metal, plastic, and glass.
The Center for American Architecture and Design regularly stages symposia; publishes CENTER, Centerline, and the O'Neil Ford Monograph and Duograph book series; and supports independent research and scholarship in architecture and design. In addition, the center hosts the bi-weekly Friday Lunch Forum Series.
The Center for Sustainable Development supports the study and practice of sustainable development in Texas, the nation, and the world through complementary programs of research, education, and community outreach. Associated faculty and students strive to better understand the connections between the environment, economic prosperity and social justice.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center exists to introduce people to the beauty and diversity of wildflowers and other native plants. The mission of the center is to increase the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants, and landscapes.
The Harry Ransom Center, one of the world’s foremost institutions for literary and cultural research, houses a large collection of rare architecture books, including the classics of architectural literature.
The Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies and the Benson Latin American Collection provide exceptional opportunities for the study of Latin American architecture.
Financial Assistance Available through the School
Scholarship funds established by individuals, foundations, and the University are available to current undergraduates in the School of Architecture. These include the ARCHITEXAS Endowed Scholarship; the Marvin E. and Anne Price Beck Endowed Scholarship; the Carl O. Bergquist Endowed Scholarship; the Myron Geer Blalock Endowed Presidential Scholarship; the Hal Box Endowed Scholarship in Architecture; the C. William Brubaker/Perkins+Will Endowed Presidential Scholarship; the John Buck Company and First Chicago Investment Advisors for Fund F Endowed Scholarship in Architecture; the John S. Chase Endowed Presidential Scholarship; the Fred W. and Laura Weir Clarke Endowed Presidential Scholarships in Architecture Honoring Carl Bergquist and Alan Y. Taniguchi; the Fred Winfield Day, Jr. Endowed Scholarship in Architecture; the Jorge Luis Divino Centennial Scholarship in Architecture; the Amy Dryden Endowed Scholarship; the William H. Emis III Traveling Scholarship in Architecture; the Ford, Powell & Carson Endowed Scholarship; the Ted Freedman Endowed Scholarship; the Suzie Friedkin Endowed Scholarship in Interior Design; the Lily Rush Walker and Coulter Hoppess Scholarship in Architecture; the HDR Architecture Endowed Scholarship; the Wolf E. Jessen Endowed Fund; the Henrietta Chamberlain King Endowed Scholarship; the Lake/Flato Endowed Scholarship; the Lynne Brundrett Maddox Scholarship in Interior Design; the Mike and Maxine Mebane Endowed Traveling Scholarship in Architecture; the Jack H. Morgan Scholarship; the Charles M. Nettles Endowed Presidential Scholarship; the Oglesby Prize Endowment; the Overland Partners Endowed Scholarship; the Barbara and Donald Pender Endowed Scholarship; the Edward J. Perrault Endowed Presidential Scholarship in Interior Design; the Alma Piner Scholarship in Architecture; the Brandon Shaw Memorial Endowed Scholarship; the Debbie Ann Rock Scholarship in Interior Design; the School of Architecture Scholarship and Fellowship Award Endowment; the Louis F. Southerland Endowed Scholarship; the Lance Tatum Endowed Scholarship; the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture’s Advisory Council Women’s Endowed Scholarship; the Wilmont “Vic” Vickrey Endowed Scholarship; the Robert Leon White Memorial Fund—Architecture; the Roxanne Williamson Endowed Scholarship; and several scholarships provided by the American Institute of Architects, the American Architectural Foundation, the Texas Society of Architects, the Texas American Planning Association, and the Texas Architectural Foundation. Additional information is available in the Office of the Dean.
Incoming students may wish to contact local chapters of the American Institute of Architects, the American Society of Interior Designers, the International Interior Design Association, and the University’s Texas Exes, as well as other civic organizations, for information about locally sponsored scholarships. Students are also encouraged to contact the University’s Office of Student Financial Services for information about other merit- and need-based scholarships.
Student Services
Academic Advising
In the School of Architecture, the undergraduate dean’s office, located in Goldsmith Hall 2.116, and the academic adviser’s office, located in Goldsmith Hall 2.118, are responsible for providing information and advice to undergraduate students. An important aspect of the advising system is the third-year portfolio requirement described in the section Third-year Portfolio Review Requirement later in Admission and Registration. The student should also consult Degree Audit in the Graduation section.
Career Services
The Career Services Center, located in Sutton Hall 2.126, serves the students and alumni of the School of Architecture by offering career development and job search resources, connecting them to employers, mentors, and key professionals.
Student Organizations
The Undergraduate Architecture Student Council (UASC) represents all School of Architecture undergraduate students through the promotion and development of an awareness of the built environment and serves as a nucleus for student activities. The UASC acts as a liaison between students and faculty members as well as administrators.
American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) is a professional organization whose mission is to promote excellence, appreciation, and advancement of architecture, and to enrich communities in a spirit of collboration. AIAS strives to provide a sense of community and a forum for sharing different views.
Alpha Rho Chi (APX) is a professional/social co-ed fraternity for architecture and the allied arts that promotes the artistic, scientific, and practical proficiency of its members and the profession. The Dinocrates Chapter at The University of Texas at Austin unites students from various years and studies through philanthropic and professional activities.
Ampersand is a student organization that combines the student chapters of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) and the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID), provides students with networking opportunities, and promotes involvement within the interior design community.
The National Organization of Minority Architecture Students (NOMAS) is the University of Texas at Austin Student Chapter of the National Organization of Minority Architects. The organization strives to enhance education and professional networking as well as engage solutions to ensure a healthy living and working environment for the community at large.
Study Abroad and Internship Opportunities
The School of Architecture encourages first-hand experiences of diverse peoples, places and cultures, nationally and internationally, so that we might better engage the world in which we live. Educational travel experiences can be integrated into degree plans in several ways, including, but not limited to, the following:
Study in Italy is a semester at the Santa Chiara Study Center in Tuscany, approximately an hour's drive from Florence. The program allows for an intensive study of design, history, and visual communication, while the center’s historic structure provides a congenial campus environment and a base for travel throughout Italy.
The Europe Program is a semester of study that emphasizes a broad and integrated experience covering the buildings and landscapes as well as the urban fabric across Europe. With a unique itinerary every fall, the program gives students special study opportunities with regard to design, history, and visual communication in each city visited.
Studio Mexico is an advanced studio for architecture and landscape architecture students that explores the rich cultural and built environment of Mexico. During a nine-day trip to Mexico, students visit a project site and other significant places, and enjoy rich interaction with Mexican students working on the same project. Students participating in the studio are required to take the Mexican architecture class taught by Professor Juan Miro, either concurrently with the studio or in the previous year.
The professional residency program provides upper-level architecture students with a unique opportunity to expand their education through work experience in the architectural profession. The program has provided work experience to honors students in the school since 1974, and over the past twenty years our students have been linked with 260 firms in twenty-nine countries.