Bachelor of Science in Architecture
Prepare to make innovative contributions as an architect or designer.
Architecture addresses the impact that the built environment has on the human population and the natural world. Our BS program will prepare you to make innovative contributions as an architect or designer.
You’ll gain broad exposure to aspects of building and material science, as well as a variety of cultural, environmental, and historic perspectives through courses in studio art, art history, environmental design, landscape architecture and regional planning, engineering, and building materials. In the process, you will learn to assess and find solutions to complex problems by clarifying the issues, envisioning approaches, conducting research, and enlisting the right stakeholders.
Within the architecture major, you will choose a concentration in either architectural studies or design studies. The architectural studies subplan is a pre-professional program intended for students who plan to pursue a professional graduate degree, such as the UMass master in architecture (MArch), in order to become a licensed architect. Design studies is a more general program intended for students with a broader interest in the design fields, including interior design.
Benefits list
Practical Experience
Spend a semester in the Yestermorrow-UMass Semester in Sustainable Design/Build program—located in Waitsfield, Vermont—and explore interdisciplinary, whole-systems thinking while developing fundamental technical skills in architecture and construction.
Pre-College Architecture Program
Our Summer Design Academy gives high school students interested in architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, or interior design the opportunity to experience the profession and see firsthand the kinds of activities that take place in a university design program.
Featured faculty
Stephen Schreiber
Professor
Stephen Schreiber, FAIA, is a professor and the chair of the Department of Architecture.
Ann Marshall
Summer Design Academy Director
Lecturer
Ann Marshall is a registered architect in Massachusetts with extensive experience in both architecture and exhibition design.
Architecture
UMass offers an interdisciplinary architecture and design program that embraces socially progressive, environmentally responsive, and sustainable design.