Master of Science with a Major in Architecture

The College of Architecture's (COA) Master of Science (MS) Program is a non-professional program requiring a minimum of thirty semester hours of advanced study and is oriented toward advanced practice, scholarship and research. Applicants may have previous degrees in architecture or other related fields. The program accepts students with a professional degree in a design or design-related field, as well as students with a baccalaureate degree in a non-design field who wish to pursue an area of study offered in the Master of Science degree.

Concentration: Urban Design

The M.S.Arch/UD is an intensive two-semester plus post-professional degree program preparing architects, landscape architects and planners to develop design proposals at urban scales and the strategies to implement them. The Program is interdisciplinary, design focused, and research oriented.

The curriculum is centered on urban design studios with supporting interdisciplinary courses and electives, encouraging individually directed studies in design, policy, and development. The curriculum requires 36 semester credit hours in four components:

  1. Urban Design Studios - twelve credits. The Studios explore contemporary urban design issues in three ways. Some studios are practice-based in real world settings. Others are research oriented and still others may be speculative and theoretical. Although most studios are conducted within the Master of Architecture Program, opportunities also exist in Urban Design Workshops and in the Community Planning Studios in the City and Regional Planning Program. Studios most often investigate design issues in the Atlanta region, but occasionally take on projects in other locations where issues are similar to Atlanta's. Two recent studios were neighborhood rebuilding and affordable housing in Savannah and urban design strategies for growth management in Ecuador.
  2. Core Courses - 9 Credits. Three Core Courses create a common foundation of urban design thought and practice. These include the History of Urban Form, Introduction to Urban Design, and Urban Design Policy + Implementation. These courses are mandatory for all students.
  3. Electives - twelve credits. Two elective clusters - Design + Theory and Policy + Implementation - are available in the Architecture and City and Regional Planning Programs. Selected in agreement with the faculty advisor, these electives make up a program of study based on the student's individual interests, prior education and professional experi
  4. Independent Research - 3 Credits. Each student is required to prepare and present a focused research project. This work becomes the legacy of each student for the M.S.Arch/UD Program, for his or her classmates, and for subsequent students. Some of these research projects may become the frameworks for urban design policy in Atlanta. Others may result in published papers or background research for grants and externally sponsored research projects.

Specific requirements for this area of study may be found at the www.coa.gatech.edu/ud/.

For further details on the program, contact:

M.S. Program Advisor
Ph.D. Office, College of Architecture
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0155