Degree Nomenclature

The Architecture Department at Cal Poly offers a five-year Bachelor of Architecture degree (BArch). This is a first professional degree accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB).  In addition, the department offers the Master of Science in Architecture, which is a post-professional degree in the broad field of architecture with an emphasis on environmental planning and design in an information society.  These are not the only degrees available to prospective students; other institutions offer programs leading to the following:

Students interested in pursuing an advanced degree in architecture with a specialization in areas such as design theory, healthcare facilities, historic preservation, solar design, etc., can resume their studies at the graduate level to receive the MS or PhD in Architecture.  They may choose to do this either directly after receiving their undergraduate degree or after a few years in a professional office. Some choose to return after many years of professional training.

Becoming an Architect

A professional degree is required by most jurisdictions for licensure, the basic requirement being eight years of combined education and work experience.  Since you can only receive a maximum of five years of education credit, the Bachelor of Architecture degree offered by Cal Poly is the most efficient path to licensure.  Students completing this degree are immediately eligible to take the Architectural Registration Exams (ARE), although must work an additional three year internship before being eligible to take the oral California Supplemental Exam (CSE).  The National Council of Architectural Accrediting Boards (NCARB) has established the Intern Development Program (IDP) to ensure that interns are exposed to the broad sweep of professional experience during this time.  California has established its own Comprehensive Intern Development Program (CIDP), which overlays a requirement for evidence of experience onto the time-based IDP requirement.

Polytechnic Education

The education offered in the Architecture Department at Cal Poly is based on the polytechnic tradition. Graduates receive an education that finds its identity at the intersection of art and science. This curricular approach has been central to the Department’s tradition for 45 years and provides our graduates with a balanced education enabling them to be responsible design professionals in an ever-changing world.

College of Architecture & Environmental Design

Architecture is one of five departments in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, along with Architectural Engineering, City and Regional Planning, Landscape Architecture, and Construction Management.  This unique combination of disciplines, all responsible in some way for the conception and production of the built environment, makes possible an integrative and interdisciplinary approach to the learning of architecture.

Learn by Doing

Cal Poly’s historical commitment to the pedagogy of learn by doing means an emphasis on hand-on, project-based learning that amplifies the interdisciplinary opportunities offered by the College’s five departments.  Students learn to think creatively and critically, while directly applying their knowledge through a design-based education.

Faculty

The Architecture Faculty typically have multiple degrees and 98% are registered architects.  Their teaching abilities are complemented by robust scholarly agendas, giving students a unique perspective on the culture, discipline, and profession of architecture.

Alumni

With over 850 full-time students, Cal Poly has one of the largest architectural programs in the United States.  It is my understanding that 1 out of 5 architects in California are graduates from our program and that 1 out of 20 architects in the United States are graduates from the Architecture Department. This impressive number of alumni offers graduating students with ample opportunity to merge smoothly with the profession.  Graduates hold leadership roles as principals of national and international design firms, work for prize-winning architects, or join forces with small, creative practices in a number of metropolitan areas.

National Ranking

The Architecture Department is nationally ranked year after year in the top six architecture programs.  In 2009, the department was ranked by Design Intelligence third after Cornell and Virginia Tech. 

Go to Architecture Program Ranking web page.

Program Admissions Statistics

The Architecture program has been impacted for some time.  This is to say that, due to its reputation for excellence, the program receives many more applications than it can admit students.  For your information, we are including the following statistics from Fall 2007:

Our students are some of the best and brightest in California.  We encourage you to apply and join their ranks.

BArch Programs: Ranked by Tuition

Design Intelligence Programs

The listed institutions represent the top twenty three undergraduate architecture programs in the nation as defined by Design Intelligence. In 2009, the architecture program at Cal Poly ranked the third best undergraduate program in the nation. To see the full rankings, go to our Architecture Program Ranking web page.

Cal Poly’s program is $34,931 below the most expensive ($39,974 Carnegie Mellon University) and $944 above the least expensive ($4,099 Virginia Polytechnic Institute) as reflected in the chart below based on Winter 2009 data.

Rank University Tuition & Fees
1 Carnegie Mellon University $39,974
2 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute $37,990
3 University of Southern California $37,694
4 University of Notre Dame $36,850
5 Cornell University $36,504
6 Rhode Island School of Design $34,665
7 Syracuse University $33,480
8 Cooper Union $33,000
9 Pratt Institute $32,990
10 Rice University $30,830
11 Illinois Institute of Technology $26,709
12 Pennsylvania State University $18,674
13 Southern California Institute of Architecture $11,345
14 University of Texas at Austin $9,354
15 University of Arkansas $7,104
16 Boston Architectural College $7,100
17 Auburn University $6,762
18 Iowa State University $6,651
19 University of Oregon $6,531
20 University of Arizona $5,774
21 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo $5,043
22 Oklahoma State University $4,221
23 Virginia Polytechnic Institute $4,099

California Programs

The listed institutions represent the Bachelor of Architecture programs in California.

Cal Poly’s program is $27,283 below the most expensive ($32,326 California College of the Arts, CCA) as reflected in the chart below based on Winter 2009 data.

Rank University Tuition & Fees
1 California College of the Arts, CCA (San Francisco) $32,326
2 Woodberry University (Los Angeles) $26,501
3 Academy of Art University (San Francisco) $19,905
4 New School of Architecture and Design (San Diego) $19,500
5 Berkeley $19,050
6 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo $5,043
7 California State Polytechnic University, Pomona $3,300

Application Links

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