Bachelor of Science in Architecture
February 1
March 1*
About
The Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Architecture degree program offers innovative, modular curriculum leveraging the intellectual diversity of our faculty and giving you greater independence and flexibility to explore your interests.
Grounded in our tradition as one of the country’s first architecture programs and paired with our embrace of experimentation, our constantly evolving approach to architecture education will prepare you for a career built at Michigan and made for anywhere and everywhere you want to go.
A Gateway Degree to Many Fields of Study
The Bachelor of Science in Architecture degree prepares students for future work in a myriad of areas. After graduating, some students choose to pursue graduate studies in a professional Master of Architecture program in order to prepare for architectural licensure. Some pursue graduate study in related fields, including landscape architecture, engineering, art, construction, urban planning, urban design, or historic preservation, while others pursue graduate degrees in business or law, applying their design knowledge to these fields. Others find opportunities with architecture firms or in other related design occupations or use their degree as a springboard for creative work in unrelated fields.
Unique Features of Taubman College
Taubman College is one of the 19 schools and colleges within the University of Michigan. Our unique features include:
- a state-of-the-art digital fabrication laboratory
- a design studio measuring over 32,000 square feet
- extensive travel abroad opportunities
- a committed, energetic, award-winning faculty with a wide range of research and design interests
- a robust series of guest lectures and conferences
- a globally diverse student body
- a 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio (studios)
/ Curriculum
Pre-Architecture Sequence
The pre-architecture sequence will transition into a set of nine project-based modules. Each module will be taught over seven weeks (half semester). Students are required to take any six modules in any sequence during the first two years. Widely spanning in content from the digital to analog, and from 2D to 3D, each module will deliver an introductory exercise. Capacities will be built through aggregation, not sequential accumulation. Modules will assemble students with varying levels of experience, encouraging peer-to-peer learning, dialogue, and mentorship.
Fourth Year Dual Path
In the fourth year, acknowledging a growing diversity in the student body, the new curriculum offers two paths to the B.S. degree – one emphasizing a professional direction which will likely abbreviate the duration of one’s Master of Architecture education and one emphasizing research or interdisciplinary thinking. These two tracks are not mutually exclusive, as students may opt to take some combination of the two.
/ First-Year Students
Important Dates
Early Action Deadline (For Dual Degree Applicants): November 1
Regular Decision Application Deadline: February 1
Portfolio Deadline: February 1
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Application Deadline: December – April 30
Enrollment Deposit Deadline: May 1
High school seniors are able to apply to the Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning via multiple pathways: dual degree admission, first-year admission (regular decision) or preferred admission.
Dual Degree Application
- College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA)
- College of Engineering
- Stamps School of Art & Design
Dual degree applicants should apply by the Early Action deadline (November 1). This option gives students two opportunities to be admitted to the University of Michigan, as well as the chance to be offered Preferred Admission Status should they not be offered First-Year Admission.
First-Year Admission
High school seniors have multiple options when they are ready to apply to Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning. To learn more about First-Year Admission and to apply, please visit our First-Year apply page.
Preferred Admission
Students admitted to the Taubman College Preferred Admission program are guaranteed a place in the Bachelor of Science in Architecture program as a junior once they have completed the necessary requirements in another University of Michigan School/College: the College of LS&A, the Stamps School of Art & Design, or the College of Engineering.
All high school seniors are encouraged to apply to the Preferred Admission program, whether or not they apply for First-Year Admission. The Preferred Admission program opens up another pathway for students to eventually enter the Bachelor of Science in Architecture curriculum.
To learn more about Preferred Admission and to apply, please visit our Preferred Admission apply page.
/ Cross Campus Transfers
Important Dates
Application Deadline: February 1
Portfolio Deadline: March 1
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Application Deadline: December – April 30
Enrollment Deposit Deadline: May 1
Cross-campus transfer students do not pay an enrollment deposit.
Students applying to transfer from a different U-M Ann Arbor school/college should complete a minimum of 55 credit hours and a maximum of 70 credit hours during their first two years on campus, including all of the prerequisite coursework outlined below.
If accepted to the Bachelor of Science in Architecture program, students will begin their Taubman coursework in the fall semester of their junior year.
Advising Appointments
Prospective cross-campus transfers are highly encouraged to meet with a Taubman College Admissions Counselor as they prepare to transfer. Students may schedule an appointment at Taubman College by emailing TaubmanCollegeAdmissions@umich.edu.
During the academic year, a Taubman College Admissions Counselor is available once per week at the LSA Newnan Advising Center; to schedule an appointment at the Newnan Advising Center, please contact your LSA Advisor.
/ External Transfers
Important Dates
Application Deadline: February 1
Portfolio Deadline: March 1
Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) Application Deadline*: April 30
Enrollment Deposit Deadline: May 1
Summer Intensive Transfer Studio begins (Arch 302): Late June
Note: New transfer students only
* Transfer students who seek financial aid (grants, loans, work-study) during the summer term are required to fill out the previous year’s FAFSA since that term is the end of that aid year. Then, for their first fall/winter semesters, the current FAFSA is required so transfer students need to complete two FAFSAs.
Transfer Admission: Summer Term Only Start
Students applying to transfer from an accredited community college, college, or university other than U-M are required to complete a minimum of 49 transferrable credit hours, up to a maximum of 70 transferrable credit hours of prerequisite courses at their college/university, including the required prerequisites outlined below.
Summer Term Intensive Studio
Meet with Us
Required Prerequisite Courses
| Course | Credits |
| 1 First Year Writing Requirement equivalent | 3-4 |
| 1 Calculus course | 4 |
| 2 Physics courses with labs | 8 |
| 2 introductory studio drawing/art courses | 6-8 |
| 2 Humanities Courses | 6 |
| 1 Natural Science Course | 3 |
| 2 Social Science Courses | 6 |
| Transferable Electives | 9-24 |
| TOTAL TRANSFERABLE CREDITS | 49-70 |
Technical Credits
Transfer Guides
If you are considering a transfer to Taubman College, we highly encourage you to contact a Taubman College Admissions Officer to have an estimate of transfer credit completed.
Please see the transfer guides below. If the school that you are attending is not listed, please contact a Taubman College Admissions Officer and a guide can be created. Please note that it may take some time for a guide to be created, depending on the time of year the request is made.
- Adrian College
- Albion College
- Alma College
- Alpena Community College
- Andrews University
- Aquinas College
- Ball State University
- Bay College
- Beloit College
- Bowling Green State University
- Calvin College
- Central Michigan University
- City Colleges Chicago
- Davenport University
- Delta College
- Eastern Michigan University
- Ferris State University
- Glen Oaks Community College
- Gogebic Community College
- Grand Rapids Community College
- Grand Valley State University
- Harold Washington Community College
- Henry Ford College
- Hope College
- Jackson College
- Johnson County Community College, Kansas
- Kalamazoo Valley Community College
- Kellogg Community College
- Kirtland Community College
- Lake Michigan Community College
- Lansing Community College
- Lawrence Technological University
- Macomb Community College
- Madison Area Technical College
- Miami-Dade Community College
- Michigan State University
- Michigan Tech University
- Mid-Michigan College
- Minneapolis Community College
- Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
- Monroe County Community College
- Montcalm Community College
- Montgomery College, MD
- Mott Community College
- Muskegon Community College
- North Central Community College
- Northern Michigan University
- Northwestern Community College
- Oakland Community College
- Oakland University
- Ohio State University
- Owens Community College
- Schoolcraft College
- Southwestern Community College
- Spartanburg Community College
- Spring Arbor College
- St. Clair County Community College
- University of Michigan – Dearborn
- University of Michigan – Flint
- University of Wisconsin – Green Bay
- University of Wisconsin – Madison
- University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee
- Washtenaw Community College
- Wayne County Community College
- Wayne State University
- West Shore Community College
- Western Michigan University
- Whitman College
/ Degree Requirements
Students who entered the college earlier should refer to the college bulletin from the year they entered.
During the last two years, students focus on architecture core courses such as design, representation, construction, structures, environmental sciences, and architectural history and theory. Taubman College students understand the complexity of the design process, have knowledge of the techniques and technology of building, and possess the intellectual and aesthetic skills necessary for a creative synthesis of that information into meaningful and expressive design solutions.
Requirements to qualify for the Bachelor of Science degree:
Complete all required courses and recommended courses as listed under “Sample Schedule”.
Earn a passing grade (D or better) in each required architecture course, in each required pre-professional course (art, English, mathematics, and physics), and in each course used to fulfill liberal arts distribution requirements (humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences) taken at the University of Michigan. Students transferring from other schools must earn a C or better in all coursework in order for the credit to transfer.
Earn a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C) for all required architecture courses.
Earn a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 (C) for all courses taken while enrolled in Taubman College.
Faculty advisors and administrators can assist students in planning their course schedules, but the student is ultimately responsible for meeting all program and degree requirements. If degree requirements are not completed for the commencement period to which the student has applied on Wolverine Access, a student must apply again on Wolverine Access to be considered for graduation at a subsequent commencement date.
/ Sample Schedule
Taubman College launched a new curriculum for incoming Bachelor of Science in Architecture students. The key changes center on several areas of study and will provide our students with an education that seeks to couple current learning styles with an inventive faculty who bring broad design interests. The changes will tie into our long-standing liberal arts tradition (years 1 and 2) and more focused architectural curriculum (years 3 and 4).
Sample First Year
ARCH 251-259Foundational Studio Modules
(6 of 9 required over Year 1 and 2)2-4
| Fall Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 208* | Design Foundations *Not required for transfer students |
3 |
| First Year Writing Requirement | 4 | |
| Humanities Elective | 3-4 | |
| Total | 12-15 | |
| Winter Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 251-259 | Foundational Studio Modules (6 of 9 required over Year 1 and 2) |
2-4 |
| MATH 115 | Calculus I | 4 |
| Humanities Elective | 3-4 | |
| Social Science Elective | 3-4 | |
| Total | 12-16 | |
Sample Second Year
| Fall Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 251-259 | Foundational Studio Modules (6 of 9 required over Year 1 and 2) |
2-4 |
| ARCH 313 | History of Architecture I | 3 |
| Natural Science Elective | 3-4 | |
| Social Science Elective | 3-4 | |
| Open Elective | 3 | |
| Total | 14-18 | |
| Winter Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 251-259 | Foundational Studio Modules (6 of 9 required over Year 1 and 2) |
2-4 |
| ARCH 323 | History of Architecture II | 3 |
| PHYSICS 121 | Physics for Architects | 5 |
| Open Elective | 6 | |
| Total | 16-18 | |
**Electives must include courses in architectural history (ARCH 313 and ARCH 323), humanities, natural science, and social sciences if these courses were not completed in the first and sophomore years. The number of electives required will vary based on the number of credits from Years 1 and 2.
Sample Third Year
| Fall Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 312 | UG1 Studio | 6 |
| ARCH 316 | Design Fundamentals I | 3 |
| ARCH 317 | Construction I | 3 |
| **Open Elective | 3-4 | |
| Total | 15-16 | |
| Winter Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 322 | Architectural Design | 6 |
| ARCH 326 | Design Fundamentals II | 3 |
| ARCH 425 | Environmental Systems | 3 |
| **Open Elective | 3 | |
| Total | 15 | |
**Electives must include courses in architectural history (ARCH 313 and ARCH 323), humanities, natural science, and social sciences if these courses were not completed in the first and sophomore years. The number of electives required will vary based on the number of credits from Years 1 and 2.
Sample Fourth Year
| Fall Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 432 | UG3 Studio | 6 |
| ARCH 314 | Structures I | 3 |
| ARCH Elective (300/400 level) | 3 | |
| **Open Elective | 3-6 | |
| Total | 15-18 | |
| Winter Term | Credit Hours | |
|---|---|---|
| ARCH 442 | UG4 Studio | 6 |
| ARCH 324 | Structures II | 3 |
| **Open Elective (2) | 6 | |
| Total | 15 | |
**Electives must include courses in architectural history (ARCH 313 and ARCH 323), humanities, natural science, and social sciences if these courses were not completed in the first and sophomore years. The number of electives required will vary based on the number of credits from Years 1 and 2.
/ Academic Minors
Students in the architecture program have the option of electing one or more academic minors offered by departments across campus. Taubman College offers one minor: Real Estate Development.
Students are also welcome to complete any other student-initiated major or minor with other departments or schools on campus. The student must work directly with both departments to satisfy all requirements for both programs, allowing them to earn a minor or second area of concentration (major).
Career
Taubman College Career and Professional Development offers a variety of programs, services and resources to assist students and alumni in exploring careers, securing positions and continuing skill development and management.
For additional information on career opportunities, visit our career and professional development page.
Alumni Profile
Andrew Pozniak
B.S. ’12,
Lead Digital Sculptor - Lincoln Exteriors, Ford Motor Company
Alumni Stories