institute of architecture and planning

master in architecture

master in city and regional planning

master in landscape architecture

bs in architecture and environmental design

Curriculum

The Master of Architecture program offers evening courses to accommodate the needs of students who work or intern in the architecture profession. The program leading to the Master of Architecture consists of 90 total semester credits (75 core credits and 15 elective credits) of coursework, normally requiring a minimum of three years full-time graduate study to complete.

The following is the core curriculum of the 90 credit program:

First Year (Fall)

 

 

ARCH.510

Environmental Design I

6

ARCH.511

Built Environment History I

3

ARCH.513

Architectural Technology I (Statics)

3

ENST.512

Graphics Workshop

3

 

 

First Year (Spring)

 

ARCH.520

Architectural Design Studio II

6

ARCH.521

Built Environment History II

3

ARCH.522

Architectural Technology II (Building Systems-Structures)

3

ARCH.523

Architectural Technology III (Environmental Controls)

3

 

 

Second Year (Fall)

 

ARCH.530

Architectural Design Studio III

6

ARCH.531

Built Environment History III

3

ARCH.532

Architectural Technology IV (Building Systems-Structures)

3

ARCH.533

Architectural Technology V (Building Materials)

3

 

 

 

Second Year (Spring)

 

ARCH.540

Architectural Design Studio IV

6

ARCH.541

Architectural Technology VI (Production Techniques)

3

ARCH.561

Architectural Practice, Law and Management

3

Elective

 

3

 

 

 

Third Year (Fall)

 

 

ARCH.550

Architectural Design Studio V

6

ARCH.799

Architectural Thesis Seminar

3

CREP.514

Principles of Urban Design I (Urban Form)

3

Elective

 

3

 

 

 

Third Year (Spring)

 

ARCH.799

Architectural Design Studio VI

6

Elective

 

3

Elective

 

3

Elective

 

3

 

 

 

 

Core Credits

75

 

Elective Credits

15

 

Total Credits

90

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Course Description

ARCH 510       Environmental Design I
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
This studio is an introduction to the vocabulary and tools of the built environment professional through an interdisciplinary studio for all first year architecture students. The course is designed to move students from an initial view of their personal values and environment to a more expansive view of values and environments of others. Students will also be introduced to contemporary trends of the built environment professions, basic problem solving and visual communication skills. Using Baltimore as a laboratory, students will analyze through drawings, models and diagrams, the interrelated complexities of forms, spaces and structures of the city. Prerequisite: Admission to program.

ARCH 511       Built Environment History I
Three Hours: 3 Credits
An introduction to the historic foundations of built form, including settlement patterns and indigenous building types. Beginning with Egyptian architecture and continuing to the philosophical start of the Renaissance, this course is a foundation in the history and theory of architecture that develops an understanding of the close relationship between social forces and the forms of architecture. Prerequisite: Admission to program.

ARCH 513       Technology I (Statics and Strength of Materials)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course is devoted to the development and application of the principles of static mechanics and strength of materials as they relate to the analysis of building structures. Prerequisites of physics and mathematics through college algebra are required. Prerequisite: Admission to program.

ARCH 520       Architectural Design Studio II
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
The architecture students are introduced to a familiar environmental package of the home and adjacent landscape. The intention of the course is to teach students to design residences and communities based on an understanding of the form and structures of urban home and community prototypes. Emphasis will be placed on developing design criteria through the analysis of conditions, needs, aspirations and resources of the resident’s-environment. Attention will be given to the role of the residential neighborhoods in the city by understanding the elements that produce the satisfying urban home and residential community. Prerequisite: ARCH 510.

ARCH 521       Built Environment History II
Three Hours: 3 Credits
Building on the concepts of ARCH 511 Built Environment History I, this course is an introduction to architectural and urban design history from 1500 to 1900, with an emphasis on world architecture and the significance of multicultural architectural traditions. The development of specific built form topologies is studied, including patron residential, religious, civic structures, and urban space. Emphasis will be placed on two specific areas. The first is to identify significant architects, their theories and buildings; the second is to look at how cities evolved, adapting to new uses and styles of habitation. Prerequisite: ARCH 511.

ARCH 522       Architectural Technology II (Building Systems-Structures)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
The purposes of this course are (1) to develop the student’s skills and techniques in the design of basic elements of various wood and steel structural systems; (2) to expand their understanding of the principles and characteristics of various structural materials; and (3) to enhance his/her ability to resolve structural problems of cost, durability, space, legal restrictions, time and aesthetics. Prerequisite: ARCH 513.

ARCH 523       Architectural Technology Ill (Environmental Controls)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
The purposes of this course are to expand the students’ understanding of the nature and characteristics of various environmental systems as well as to develop their ability to make choices between systems that best resolve the problems of cost, social accommodation, operating efficiency, durability, scheduling, safety, and aesthetics. Prerequisite: ARCH 510.

ARCH 530       Architectural Design Studio III
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
As a continuing study of an urban neighborhood, students will be introduced to commercial and/or institutional forms and their contexts. Students will explore various issues related to the programming, planning and designing of various types of commercial and institutional establishments. Emphasis will be placed on the requirements, analyzing various environmental concerns, planning considerations and jointly developing design solutions that address architectural and landscape architectural requirements. The course will be organized into a sequence of design problems. Prerequisite: ARCH 520.

ARCH 531       Built Environment History Ill
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course covers the philosophy of modem architecture since 1910, the building styles and works by masters of modern architecture after World War II, and introduces the graduate student to divergent architectural theories that began with post-modem architecture. Emphasis is placed on individual research projects and presentations by students on a particular theory of architecture or by a particular architect during the contemporary era. Prerequisite: ARCH 521.

ARCH 532       Architectural Technology IV (Building Systems-Structures)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
This course is a continuation of Architectural Technology Ill and is designed to (1) develop students’ skills and techniques in the, design of basic elements of various concrete structural systems; (2) expand their understanding of the principles and characteristics of various structural materials; and (3) enhance their ability to resolve structural problems of cost, durability, space, legal restrictions, time and aesthetics. Prerequisite: ARCH 522.

ARCH 533       Architectural Technology V (Building Materials)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
In this course, students learn to evaluate selected sets of building materials. Additionally, students will be required to apply their analytical skills to the selections of materials for a selected project. Emphasis will be given to the relationship between design and construction. Although the analytical process to be taught can be universally applied in material selections, the focus will be on those materials and techniques commonly used in the Central Atlantic Region of the United States. The principles of specification writing and existing CSI standards are introduced and applied on specific assignments. Prerequisite: ARCH 523.

ARCH 540       Architectural Design Studio IV
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
The intent of this studio is to explore design approaches to multi-use public facilities. Assignments and design problems will require the students to use their experiences in data collection and analysis in developing design approaches for multi-use facilities. Problem statements will be developed in concert with current needs of selected municipalities. Specific emphasis will be placed on having the students develop extensive sets of presentation documents outlining structural, environmental and spatial character of the built form(s) they create. Prerequisite: ARCH 530.

ARCH 541       Architectural Technology IV (Production Techniques)
Three Hours: 3 Credits
The main thrusts of this course are intended to acquaint the students with the principles of communicating building construction. The course will focus on an overview of how the major components of a building fit together, the rationales behind their construction, and the methods of graphically describing these concepts. Further, the course work, lectures, and laboratory experiences are intended to present as clearly as possible the implications of the choice of a particular communication tool. Specification writing is applied on assigned segments. Prerequisite: ARCH 533.

ARCH 550       Architectural Design Studio V
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
This studio will deal with larger-scale development in the Baltimore metropolitan region. The projects will address the many facets of urban residential development, including financial, social and environmental concerns. Proposed criteria for development, land use, programming and physical built form will be dealt with on a site-specific basis. It is the intention that the site and the context of the problem force the designer to consider mixed, residential and commercial uses. The quality and standard of physical design synthesis will playa major role in determining the ultimate viability for future development. Prerequisite: ARCH 540. Co-requisite or prerequisite: ARCH 531.

ARCH 561       Architectural Practices, Law and Management
Three Hours: 3 Credits
The objective of this course is to explore the roles, relationships, and legal responsibilities of an architect. The architect’s professional interaction with consultants, owners, contractors and the various governmental authorities that regulate the building industry will be discussed. The fundamentals of professional practice and ethics, as well as various management tools will also be explored. Prerequisite: ARCH 540.

ARCH 771       Terminal Project Seminar
Three Hours: 3 Credits
The seminar will include discussions of trends in contemporary professional design. The primary intent of this effort is to assist the student’s selection of a direction for the final semester terminal thesis. A secondary objective is to compel the student to develop a design program, based on research and evaluation, for his/her terminal design in the final semester. Prerequisite: ARCH 531 and 540.

ARCH 772       Architectural Design Studio VI-Terminal Project
Twelve Hours: 6 Credits
Prerequisite: ARCH 550; Prerequisite or co-requisite ARCH 541 Tech VI.

This studio involves the conception, development and design of a comprehensive thesis project programmed in ARCH 799.185.  Lectures, seminars and outside assignments as required. 

ARCH 797       Thesis Guidance
Two Hours: 2 Credits

ARCH 799       Thesis Seminar
Three Hours: 3 Credits