CIP Code = 040201
The Master of Architecture degree, coupled with the 138 credit hour Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies, is a professional education designed for those interested in becoming a licensed architect. The program revolves around a comprehensive studio project undertaken, over the duration of three quarters. New students will submit a Plan of Study for approval by the Graduate Program Coordinator within the first week of the Fall Quarter.
Facilities
Hale Hall serves as the main facility for the School of Architecture. Offices and the student gallery are located on the first floor while the upper floors hold two large open plan studios, classrooms, additional faculty offices, and facilities for digital craft production. First-year studios and drawing classes take place in the Wyly Tower of Learning. Other facilities include a 10,000 sq. ft. Art and Architecture Workshop (metalwork and woodwork shop facilities) and a 3500 sq. ft. Fabrication and Assembly Shop located on the South Campus.
Statement of NAAB-Accredited Degrees
In the United States, most 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 professional degree programs in architecture offered by institutions with U.S. regional accreditation, recognizes three types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture, the Master of Architecture, and the Doctor of Architecture. A program may be granted an eight-year term, an eight-year term with conditions, or a two-year term of continuing accreditation, or a three-year term of initial accreditation, depending on the extent of its conformance with established education standards. Doctor of Architecture and Master of Architecture degree programs may require a non-accredited undergraduate degree in architecture for admission. However, the non-accredited degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree.
The NAAB grants candidacy status to new programs that have developed viable plans for achieving initial accreditation. Candidacy status indicates that a program expects to achieve initial accreditation within six years of achieving candidacy if its plan is properly implemented.
In order to meet the education requirements set forth by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, an applicant for an NCARB Certificate must hold a professional degree in architecture from a program accredited by the NAAB; the degree must have been awarded not more than two years prior to initial accreditation. However, meeting the education requirement for the NCARB Certificate may not be equivalent to meeting the education requirement for registration in a specific jurisdiction. Please contact NCARB for more information.
Louisiana Tech University’s School of Design offers a NAAB-accredited M.Arch (pre- professional degree + 30 graduate credits) degree program.
Admission Requirements
Admission to the MArch program is for the Fall Quarter only and, because of the required Graduate Program committee review of each applicant, the application deadline is May 1. (For applicants who In addition to meeting the general admission requirements of the Graduate School, the applicant must possess a pre-professional undergraduate degree in architecture, a minimum 2.75 grade point average (4.0 scale) in all required Architecture Studios 300 level and above (or equivalent) for the pre-professional degree, a portfolio of representative design work, three letters of recommendation, and a typed personal statement. Portfolio requirements may be requested by applicants from the School of Architecture. For the School of Architecture, the GRE-general testing requirement may be waived as a criterion for admission to the Graduate School. Students seeking graduate assistantships may be required to take the GRE-general exam as a qualification to compete for an assistantship and/or out-of-state tuition fee waiver.
Pre-professional degrees not earned at Louisiana Tech University will be individually evaluated by the Graduate Program Coordinator and may be subject to “leveling” coursework as a condition to admission.
Transfer Credit
The transfer of graduate credit from another graduate institution, graduate credit by examination, graduate credit as a graduating senior, or credit earned other than as a regularly enrolled graduate student in the School of Architecture at Louisiana Tech must meet all University standards and is also subject to approval by the Graduate Program Coordinator as part of the Plan of Study. Courses taken for graduate credit while the student is registered in a non-degree graduate category will not be applied to a degree program without approval by the student’s advisor and the Director of Graduate Studies. No transfer credit will be granted towards the Master of Architecture degree for grades below “B”. A maximum of six hours may be transferred toward the Master of Architecture degree. Transfer credit is also subject to the performance criteria mandated by the National Architectural Accrediting Board. Additional information is given in the Graduate School section of the University Catalog under “Transfer Credit.”
Graduation
The candidate for the Master of Architecture must complete a minimum of 30 graduate credit hours including a three-quarter sequential comprehensive design project. A Graduate Advisory Committee, appointed for each student, shall review the final project in a formal presentation and oral defense. The student must earn a minimum grade of “B” in each course of the sequence in order to advance to the next course in the sequence or to graduate.
Financial Support
A limited number of graduate assistantships may be available to qualified students on a competitive basis. Graduate Assistants receive a stipend for the academic year (three quarters) and a waiver of out-ofstate tuition, where applicable. The deadline for assistantship applications is May 1.
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