Undergraduate Programs

Bachelor of Architecture

The NAAB-accredited professional undergraduate program is designed to provide an exceptional university education. Students study architecture as well as other basic disciplines throughout the five-year program. We encourage students to pursue minors or elective courses to combine their interest in architecture with fields such as entrepreneurship, construction management, real estate development, or animation and digital arts.

Beginning in the first semester, students will be immersed in both architectural and general university studies. The first six semesters provide a foundation in understanding architecture through studies in design, technology and history, concluding with integrative studies that help develop a deeper understanding of becoming an architect. The remaining four semesters provide the opportunity to explore many aspects of architecture and to develop individual strengths and interests. One of these semesters may include domestic or international off-campus instruction. Studies will conclude with a comprehensive project including a component of directed research defined by the student based on choice and initiative.

Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies

This four-year, non-professional architectural studies degree program provides specialization in related fields and an alternative path to graduate studies in architecture or related fields. Students accepted into the professional Bachelor of Architecture program are eligible to elect this degree option at the end of the second year of study.

The curriculum includes a core program in the first two years identical to the Bachelor of Architecture professional degree program. In the second two years, students explore many aspects of architecture and related fields and develop individual strengths and interests. Students take a specialization course in the second year, which introduces them to related fields and alternative degree options. Students who do not wish to pursue the five-year Bachelor of Architecture, can elect to move into the four-year, non-professional Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies (BS in A.S.) program with a degree plan identifying electives that fulfill an area of concentration. The four-year program concludes with a capstone seminar, which allows all degree candidates to work collaboratively on areas of common interest.

Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Inventive Technologies

This four-year, non-professional degree program focuses on educating students to become leaders who develop innovative architectural products — an architecture-related field that is underrepresented but growing. This program will look at architecture and the architectural market through a lens of entrepreneurship as students develop critical thinking skills to address the wicked problems of the 21st century, such as climate change, social justice, health and wellness, and our increasingly virtual world.

Students will be taught to think about problems related to architecture and the built environment in more product-oriented or service-related ways (e.g. construction/assembly methods, manufacturing, delivery, life cycle, digital apps).

Off-Campus Programs and Other Enrichment Opportunities

Each year, a set of different off-campus programs are offered to our fourth-year Bachelor of Architecture students during their topic studio semesters. Locations vary, with recent studies in Asia, Latin America and the Mediterranean. Each of these semester-long offerings consists of a coordinated 17-unit, full-semester program that includes a studio course in design and required seminars in history and theory, technology and cultural studies. Students must be in good academic standing to be considered and to participate. Students may also participate in off-campus programs that require substantial travel outside of Los Angeles to a regional location within the continental United States. Students in the BSAS and BSAIT degree programs have select opportunities to travel abroad during summer offerings or special events.

Exhibits of Student Work

Throughout the year, selected students are given the opportunity to show work in organized exhibitions, in print publications and online. The school seeks multiple formats and opportunities to have student work shown in the community at large and at cultural institutions throughout the city and the world, with recent exhibits in Shanghai, France, Italy and Washington, D.C.

Field Trips

Field trips to locations in the larger California region as well as through the United States are organized each year in support of various aspects of the academic program. In addition, students regularly visit the many sites of significance in the local Los Angeles area for their general course work and personal interests.

Lectures and Exhibitions

The school provides significant service to the community and profession through public programs, and the participation of faculty members in community and professional activities. With the support and cooperation of the Architectural Guild, the school generates a vigorous program of lectures, exhibitions and tours.

Some of the world’s most distinguished and emerging architects, landscape architects and designers have lectured at USC. These include Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Mario Botta, David Adjaye, Yona Friedman, Mónica Ponce de León, Peter Cook, Yung Ho Chang, Thom Mayne, Michael Maltzan, Hitoshi Abe, Mia Lehrer, Fumihiko Maki, Jean Nouvel, Tatiana Bilboa, Will Bruder, Enrique Norten, Francois Roche, Adriaan Geuze, Kazuyo Sejima, Ai Wei Wei, Rem Koolhaas, Shigeru Ban, Hans Hollein, Charles Waldhem, Nader Tehrani, Cesar Pelli, Javier Sanchez, Laurie Olin, Toshiko Mori, Eric Owen Moss and Pei Zhu.

The school also provides the Helen Lindhurst Architecture Gallery and the Verle Annis Gallery for major architectural exhibitions by visiting guests, USC faculty, students and alumni.