This professional, accredited Architecture program (Paths A and B) offers within its design curriculum a forum for synthesizing parallel studies in history, theory, technology, and representation. In the design of buildings, landscapes and urban infrastructure, the curriculum supports a stimulating and sustainable setting for diverse cultural expression. Our mission is to develop the next generation of civic and professional leaders through:

M.ARCH. PATH A 

This program allows students without pre-professional undergraduate degrees (e.g., B.S. in Architecture) to obtain a first professional degree in a minimum of three years plus an initial summer session. Applicants must hold a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.

After the first year, each student’s studio work is evaluated to determine progress and ability to continue in the program. In the spring of their second year, students initiate a comprehensive design project that explores detailed design development of a small institutional or commercial building. Issues of programming, building structure, materials and assembly, detailing and life safety are explored in conjunction with ARCH 848 and ARCH 823.

Path A COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Summer Design Institute

• ALAR 5010 Introduction to Design (1)
• ALAR 5020 Introduction to Graphics (1)
• ALAR 5030 Introduction to Theory & Analysis (1)
• ^{Total Credits: 3}

6000 YEAR

Fall Semester

• ALAR 6710 Studio Workshop (2)
• ARCH 6010 Foundation Studio I (6)
• ARCH 6120 Architectural Theory & Analysis (3)
• ARCH 6231 Building Integration Workshop 1 (4)
• SARC 6000 The Common Course (1)
• ^{Total Credits: 16}

7000 YEAR

Fall Semester

 Spring Semester

8000 YEAR

Fall Semester

Spring Semester

Degree Total: 100

^{Notes:
1.Elective Courses must include two in Architectural History [AR H Designation], one in Architectural Theory, one in Architectural Technology, and three Open Electives. See List of Electives attached each semester to Advising Notes.
2.Students planning to pursue Independent Design Research in lieu of ALAR 8020 must take ALAR 8100 Design Research Seminar. Apply for entrance into ALAR 8100 Design Research Seminar in the spring of the 700–year. Taking the seminar does not obligate you to take ALAR 8995 Independent Design Research Studio nor does it confirm that you will be accepted into that studio.
3.ARCH 6231 is required for first year Path A architecture students and open to all other grad students in the school as 6232.}

M.ARCH. PATH B 

Students admitted to this program have pursued a rigorous pre-professional program at the undergraduate level. The curriculum follows the prescribed core of foundation studies — history, land, and building. Students are encouraged to develop a planned sequence of electives either independently or through one of the certificate programs. Independent scholarship is encouraged through the thesis option. In the spring of their first year, students initiate a comprehensive design project that explores detailed design development of a small institutional or commercial building. Issues of programming, building structure, materials and assembly, detailing and life safety are explored in conjunction with ARCH 848 and ARCH 823.

Path B COURSE REQUIREMENTS

7000 YEAR

Fall Semester

• ARCH 7010 Foundation Studio III (6)
• ARCH 7210 Structural Design - Dynamic Loads (4)
• SARC 6000 The Common Course (1)
• Elective¹ (3)
• Elective¹ (3)
• ^{Total Credits: 17}

Spring Semester

• ALAR 7020 Design Research Studio (6)
• ARCH 7230 Design Development (4)
• ARCH 7250 Environmental Systems & Lighting (4)
• ARCH 6140 Architectural Analysis: Key Buildings (3)
• ^{Total Credits: 17}

8000 YEAR

Fall Semester

• ARCH 8010 Comprehensive Studio (6)
• ARCH 8230 Building Synthesis (3)
• Elective^1,2 (3)
  
• Elective¹ (3)
• ^{Total Credits: 15}

Spring Semester

• ALAR 8020 Design Research Studio (6) OR
• ALAR 8995 Advanced Design Research Studio (6)
• ARCH 8480 Professional Ethics & Communication (3)
• Elective¹ (3)
• Elective¹ (3)
• ^{Total Credits: 15}

Degree Total: 64

<sup>Notes:
1. Elective Courses must include two in Architectural History [AR H Designation], one in Architectural Theory, one in Architectural Technology, and two Open Electives. See List of Electives attached each semester to Advising Notes.
2. Students planning to pursue Independent Design Research in lieu of ALAR 8020 must take ALAR 8100 Design Research Seminar. Apply for entrance into ALAR 8100 Design Research Seminar in the spring of the 700–year. Taking the seminar does not obligate you to take ALAR 8995 Independent Design Research Studio nor does it confirm that you will be accepted into that studio.
3. ARCH 6231 is required for first year Path A architecture students and open to all other grad students in the school as 6232.</sup>

ACCREDITATION

In the United States, most state registration boards require a degree from an accredited professional degree program as a prerequisite for licensure. The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which is the sole agency authorized to accredit US professional degree programs in architecture, recognizes two types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture and the Master of Architecture. A program may be granted a five-year, three-year, or two-year term of accreditation, depending on its degree of conformance with established educational standards.

Masters degree programs may consist of a pre-professional undergraduate degree and a professional graduate degree, which, when earned sequentially, comprise an accredited professional education. Please note that the pre-professional undergraduate degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree.

The University of Virginia’s Path A (for students without pre-professional degrees) and Path B (for students with rigorous pre-professional degrees) Master of Architecture programs received six-year terms of accreditation in 2003. These programs will be reviewed again in 2009. The Bachelor of Science in Architecture, by itself, is not an accredited degree.

ADMISSION 

The Master of Architecture Program attracts a diverse range of students with undergraduate degrees in liberal arts as well as architecture. After an introductory summer session, students with liberal arts degrees typically complete their courses in six semesters, while those with pre-professional degrees frequently gain advanced standing. Students who wish to obtain the Master of Architecture degree should have at least a 3.0 cumulative grade point average with a 3.5 average in design studios. Admission to the Master of Architecture programs is extremely competitive.

A two-semester Master of Architecture Post-Professional Degree Program, directly tailored to the interests of each student, is available for those with an undergraduate professional degree in architecture.

The director of the Graduate Architecture Program is John Quale.

REQUIREMENTS PRIOR TO ENROLLING

Students enrolling in the program must have completed Calculus I and Physics I before beginning the program. It is recommended that students complete the classes prior to applying, however it is not required. Any 3-4 credit physics course will fulfill the requirement, but it would be beneficial to the student if the course covered the areas of statics and mechanics.

INTERDISCIPLINARY PROGRAMS

Certificate Programs in Historic Preservation and American Urbanism are open to graduate students enrolled in Paths A, B, and C. Admission is subject to the approval of the chair of the Department of Architecture and Landscape Architecture and the director of the program. Students must also meet all requirements for admission to, and completion of, the Master of Architecture Program. Students are expected to meet the program requirements within the normal curricula of each path with the exception of Path C, which takes an extra semester. Please see Historic Preservation and American Urbanism for more information.