<p>OK, I don’t have rich parents and I sure as heck do not want to be waist deep in debt to get an M.Arch. </p>
<p>So I have one shot to do this right. I am currently attending a prep program that gears new design students to get into the arch school of their choice. </p>
<p>I want to know which arch schools offer the most as far connections, placement, best academic reputation and overall recognition among architects. </p>
<p>What are the “starchitect” schools? </p>
<p>So far I am thinking I want to apply to Rice University, Sci-Arc in LA, UCLA, Princeton. </p>
<p>Any thoughts? What do professional architects think of Sci Arc?</p>
<p>Texas, I think the first things you need to do is sort out the money and decide on the degree you’re going after. All of the schools on your list turn out successful architects and there are many others that do the same. </p>
<p>They are all also very expensive and the difference between 5 and 7 years of school, while signficant, may not be the only determining factor. For undergrad, some are generous with need based aid, some offer merit. Determine what you need or want, what you’re family is eligible for, what you can afford and go from there.</p>
<p>I assume what you’re saying is that you want to plunge right into the B.Arch. Neither UCLA nor Princeton offers the B.Arch so if that’s the degree you want you may have to expand your list. If the M.Arch is an option, then you’ll have lots of other equally prestigious choices. </p>
<p>All of the top rated architecture schools (both B.Arch and M.Arch) have well known alumni/ae, good networks and good career counseling. It’s up to you, though, to take advantage of opportunities while you’re in school – meet the visiting professors, seek internships, network with alumni, so that you’ll be immensely hireable when you do get that degree.</p>
<p>You might also think about the part of the country that you’re likely to end up in as some reputations are more regional.</p>
<p>So you want to have the best chances to become a starchitect? Statistically it is pretty clear that you should get a graduate degree from one of four schools in the U.S.;</p>
<p>Harvard
Columbia
Yale
Princeton</p>
<p>That is my personal order. You can argue the bottom three, but Harvard is clearly at the top. They simply attract the most ambitious students. I don’t think any other schools are even close. Will you get the best education at these schools? Maybe, but among the faculty, visiting critics, and classmates you will meet the right people.</p>
<p>Where you go for undergraduate does not really matter as long as you can get into the best programs for graduate school. Rice, Cornell, and UVA have a good reputation as feeder schools for these grad programs. However the schools are full of kids from all over.</p>
<p>Texas, If I understand you correctly 1)you believe you should go to the same university for your BA/BS and your M.Arch and 2) you believe that only schools in Texas and California (including publics and privates) are financially feasible. Both of these premises seem faulty to me, but maybe if you explained further why you think they are so we could offer some further advice.</p>
<p>If you limit yourself to a very specific geography, do you meet the academic / portfolio / SAT / etc requirements to get into some of these schools?</p>
<p>I am in a graduate prep program that prepares students to get into M.Arch programs. They help you perfect your portfolio and teach you the basics of design. Essentially the first year of graduate arch school. They have a 90% acceptance rate into the school of your choice. </p>
<p>I am working in LA and my family is in Houston. I could make a good school in either city work. </p>
<p>I would only go to a top Ivy if they offered ample scholarships.</p>
<p>That’s interesting. I haven’t heard of that program. Do you mind sharing the name of the program?</p>
<p>M.Arch programs do offer financial aid, but the amount can vary widely depending on (I believe) how much they want you in their class. </p>
<p>Nothing wrong with the M.Arch programs you’ve targeted, but I’m still not clear why programs in Houston or LA would be cheaper than programs in other parts of the country. Unless you mean you could live with your family and save some on that account.</p>
<p>This sounds a lot like a post-bach program such as those put together for med school applicants who feel they are not competitive for admissions right out of undergrad. I, too, have never heard of such a program for architecture, however.</p>
<p>I can’t help but think that the “90% acceptance rate to the school of your choice” is hyperbole.</p>
<p>It’s an institute that partnered with the local cc here in LA to provide students interested in arch. with the basics before they transfer or apply to arch school. </p>
<p>The reason why I’m asking about LA or Houston is because, my wife just started her job here in LA and we cannot just pick up and move. Unless we go back to Houston where she can transfer back to her old job, that’s the only way. </p>
<p>So it’s Rice in Houston or the schools in LA. Unless the financial aid package is too good to pass up at an Ivy that I have to go.</p>
<p>So what are the opinions of Sci Arc or UCLA among peers and professionals?</p>
<p>I think that the reason for the high feeder rate into the arch school of choice stems from the fact that they teach you the basics and help make your portfolio look professional. So when you apply you’re not submitting some photo album of landscapes pics you took on summer vacation.</p>
<p>Texas, I’m not that familiar with West Coast schools, but I would think you would want to look at USC. </p>
<p>Do you already have a BA or a BS? In M.Arch admissions the portfolio is extremely important, but so are grades, recommendations and educational background and general life experience.</p>
<p>I have a BA in government, 3.28 GPA, plenty of extracurriculars, internships and work experience in my field. My letters of recommendations from undergrad are excellent and the professors in this prep program are very well known among architects, especially in the LA area. I’m not worried so much about that as I am making it through the year and perfecting my portfolio.</p>