For Students Entering Fall 2023

For requirements for students entering in previous years, please scroll to the bottom of this page.

A candidate who is admitted to the program with advanced standing (MArch I AP) will be recommended for the Master of Architecture as a professional degree upon satisfactory completion of a minimum of 100 units. The first semester of the MArch I AP follows a similar course of study and as that of the third semester of the MArch I program and the follows the same sequence for the rest of the semesters. Please note: entering AP students may not be waived out of all first-year courses, so individual schedules may vary.

First Semester

  • 8 unitsSTU 1201 Third Semester Architecture Core Studio: INTEGRATE
  • 2 unitsSCI 6121 (M1) Environmental Systems I
  • 2 unitsSCI 6122 (M2) Environmental Systems II
  • 4 unitsSCI 6123 Construction Systems
  • 4 unitsSCI 6229 Structural Design II

Second Semester

  • 8 unitsSTU 1202 Fourth Semester Architecture Core Studio: RELATE
  • 4 unitsSCI 6230 Cases in Contemporary Construction
  • 8 unitsDigital Media Requirement*** or Distributional or General Electives****

Third Semester

  • 8 unitsOption Studio**
  • 4 unitsPRO 7212 Foundations of Practice
  • 8 unitsDigital Media Requirement*** or Distributional or General Electives****

Fourth Semester

  • 8 unitsOption Studio**
  • 4 units ADV 9203 Thesis Prep Course (or pre-approved alternative)*****
  • 8 unitsDistributional or General Electives****

Note: The department encourages students to take electives that support thesis interests during their fourth semester.

Fifth Semester

  • 12 unitsADV 9301 Independent Design Thesis
  • 8 unitsDistributional or General Electives****

Footnotes

**A minimum of one Option Studio taken must be offered through the Department of Architecture.

***A 4-unit Digital Media Requirement course must be taken in the second or third semester. Offerings may vary by year.
****Students are required to fulfill the following distributional electives:

        8 units of advanced history electives
        4 units of global culture and diversity electives
        4 units of professional practice electives

An approved list of distributional electives is posted each term. Please note that some courses may count toward the satisfaction of two distributional electives. For example, an advanced history course may also fulfill a global culture and diversity requirement. For more information, please visit the MArch Distributional Electives page.

General electives may be fulfilled through any course at the GSD or cross-registered courses at Harvard schools, MIT, or the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts.

*****Students are required to take ADV 9203 in their fourth semester; however, an alternative thesis prep course may be approved by petition to the department.

Requirements for students entering in fall 2022
Requirements for students entering in fall 2021
Requirements for students entering in fall 2020
Requirements for students entering in fall 2019
Requirements for students entering in fall 2018

If you entered in an earlier year and are uncertain of your program requirements, please contact the Architecture Department Program Coordinator.