USC School of Architecture

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At the annual USC Architectural Guild Career Fair, students meet with firm representatives to discuss potential jobs, internships or other design community opportunities. Photo by Steve Cohn.

• Undergraduate Architecture Programs   
• Graduate Architecture Programs  
• Degree Programs
• Courses of Instruction  

The USC School of Architecture offers undergraduate and graduate education in architecture and architectural studies, landscape architecture, heritage conservation and building science. Its faculty is active in professional practice, design research and in extended professional education.

Work in the school is conducted in an intellectual climate, which promotes inquiry, introduces principles and values, and teaches the disciplines necessary to work in collaboration with other professionals to develop design and research excellence.

The school is located in the center of Los Angeles, the second largest urban region in the country, which offers a unique understanding of 21st century growth and change. In such an environment the possibilities for teaching and learning are extraordinary.

The school is highly selective in its admissions and enjoys the strong support of alumni and the professions it serves. The opportunity exists for students to have close contact with faculty, other students and practicing architects.

An architecture curriculum was initiated at USC in 1914. In 1919, a Department of Architecture was created and a separate School of Architecture was organized in 1925. The school shares Watt and Harris Halls with the USC Roski School of Art and Design and the Fisher Museum of Art.

USC School of Architecture
Watt Hall 204
(213) 740-2723
FAX: (213) 740-8884
arch.usc.edu

Administration

Willow Bay, MBA, Interim Dean

TBD, Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs

Trudi Sandmeier, MA, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs; Director, Heritage Conservation Programs

Joon-Ho Choi, PhD, Associate Dean of Research & Creative Work; Director, Center for Wellness and the Built Environment

TBD, Diversity and Inclusion Liaison

Kyle Konis, PhD, Director, Chase L. Leavitt Graduate Program of Building Science

Alison Hirsch, PhD, Director, Landscape Architecture and Urbanism Programs

Alvin Huang, MArch, Director, Graduate & Post-Professional Architecture Programs

Doris Sung, MArch, Director, Undergraduate Architecture Programs

Lauren Matchison, MArch, Director, Pre-College Programs

Faiza Moatasim, PhD, Director, Center for City Design

Faculty

Della and Harry MacDonald Dean’s Chair in Architecture: TBA

Judge Widney Professor of Architecture: Frank O. Gehry, FAIA, MArch

Professors: Milton S. F. Curry, MArch; Diane Ghirardo, PhD; John V. Mutlow, MArch (UD); Douglas E. Noble, PhD; Victor Regnier, MArch*; John Wilson, PhD

Associate Professors: Joon-Ho Choi, PhD; Vittoria Di Palma, PhD; Alison Hirsch, PhD; Alvin Huang, MArch; Kyle Konis, PhD; Charles Lagreco, MFA (Arch); Amy Murphy, PhD; Alexander Robinson, MLArch; Doris Sung, MArch

Assistant Professors: Sascha Delz, DSc; Aroussiak Gabrielian, PhD; Faiza Moatasim, PhD; Ginger Nolan, PhD; Bhavna Sharma, PhD

Professors of the Practice of Architecture: Yo-ichiro Hakomori, PhD; Wesley Jones, MArch; Karen M. Kensek, MArch; Esther Margulies, MLArch; Gary Paige, BArch; Hadrian Predock, MArch; Trudi Sandmeier, MA

Associate Professors of the Practice of Architecture: Valery Augustin, MArch; Lauren Matchison, MArch; Scott Mitchell, MArch; Lee Olvera, MArch; Selwyn Ting, MArch; Olivier Touraine, Dipl Ing (Arch); Geoffrey von Oeyen, MArch

Adjunct Professors: Michael Arden, MA; Tigran Ayrapetyan, MS; Vinayak Bharne, MArch; Mina Mei-Szu Chow, MArch; Mario Cipresso, MArch; John Dutton, MArch; Miller Fong, BAArch; T. Jeff Guh, PhD; Eric Haas, MArch; Peyton Hall, MED;  Rob Ley, MArch; Lawrence Scarpa, MArch; Warren Techentin, MArch; Patrick Tighe, MArch; Roland Wahlroos-Ritter, Dipl Ing

Adjunct Associate Professors: Rob Berry, MArch; Victoria Coaloa, MArch; Wendy Fok, DDes; John Frane, MArch; Lauren Dandridge Gaines, BS; Sophia Gruzdys, MArch; Jerry Hastings, BS; Jessica Henson, MLArch; Michael Hricak, MArch; Andy Ku, MArch; Lisa Little, MArch; Eric Nulman, MArch; John Southern, MArch; Scott Uriu, BArch, Eui-Sung Yi, MArch

Adjunct Assistant Professors: Mary Casper, MArch; Janek Dombrowa, BS (Arch); Peter Ekman, PhD; Kathryn Horak, MHP; Christof Janzten, MArch; Erin Kasimow, MArch;  John Lesak, MArch; Ryan Tyler Martinez, MArch; Jay Platt, MS; Marcos Sánchez, PhD; Lee Schneider; Takako Tajima, MLArch; Brian Tichenor, MLArch; Jennifer Toy, MLArch/MUP

Lecturers: Kais Al-Rawi, MArch; Victoria Turkel Behner, PhD; Jasmine Benyamin, PhD; Hallie Black, BArch; Anthony Brower, MArch; Isaac Brown, PhD; Gesa Buttner-Dias, MArch/MS; Erik Carver, MArch; Vlanka Catalan, MArch; Dora Chi, BArch; Kate Chiu, MArch; Matt Conway, MArch; Chava Danielson, MArch; Meredith Drake Reitan, PhD; Lauren Elachi, MLA; David Gerber, DDes; Sarah Hammond, BArch; Douglas Kent, MS/MLA; Andrew Kovacs, MArch; Jimenez Lai, MArch;  Alejandra Lillo, MArch; Xun Liu, MLA; Soheil Mohammadi, MS; Amanda Ortland, MArch; Michael Patterson, PhD; Shane Reiner-Roth, MArch; Mary Ringhoff, MA; Juan Salazar, MArch; Santosh Shahi, PhD; Kevin Sherrod, MArch; Teddy Slowik, MArch; Julia Sulzer, MArch; Gideon Susman, PhD; Takayuki Tachibe, MArch; Sanjeev Tankha, MBS; Evelyn Tickle, MArch; Elizabeth Valmont, PhD; Ying Wang, MArch; Jia Zhou Zhu, MArch

Citizen Architect Fellow: Daniel Tran, MFA/MS

Postdoctoral Fellow, USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities: Jessica Varner, PhD

Emeritus Faculty: James Ambrose, MS; Kenneth Breisch, PhD; Frank Dimster, MArch; Robert S. Harris, MFA (Arch); Ralph Knowles, MArch*; Graeme M. Morland, DiplArch; Goetz Schierle, PhD; Marc Schiler, MS, ArchSci; James Steele, PhD

*Recipient of university-wide or school teaching award.

Degree Programs

The School of Architecture offers curricula leading to the following degrees.

Bachelor of Architecture: a five-year undergraduate accredited professional degree program.

Bachelor of Science in Architectural Studies: a four-year undergraduate non-professional architectural studies degree program providing specialization in related fields and an alternative path to graduate studies in architecture and other design fields.

Bachelor of Science in Architecture and Inventive Technologies: 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.

Minor in Architecture: provides the flexibility of complementing a student’s major with an area of specialization. Not available for architecture majors.

Minor in Landscape Architecture: provides students with the ability to integrate the natural and cultural profession of landscape architecture into their course of study. Not available for architecture majors.

Master of Advanced Architectural Studies: a 48-unit, three-semester program for students who hold a first professional degree from an accredited school of architecture.

Master of Advanced Architectural Research Studies, City Design and Housing Emphasis: a 42-unit, three-semester program for students who hold a first professional degree from an accredited school of architecture.

Master of Advanced Architectural Research Studies, Performative Design and Technology Emphasis: a 42-unit, three-semester program for students who hold a first professional degree from an accredited school of architecture.

Master of Architecture: a 102-unit, three-year accredited degree for students who have completed a bachelor’s degree with a major other than one of the design professions; a 64-unit, two-year accredited degree for students holding a pre-professional degree with a major in architecture.

Master of Heritage Conservation: a 48-unit program designed to prepare individuals for work in heritage conservation and its allied disciplines, including architecture, urban planning, cultural resource management, real estate development, construction and materials conservation.

Master of Landscape Architecture: a 96-unit, six-semester curriculum for students with no prior degree in architecture, landscape architecture or environmental design; a 64-unit, four-semester curriculum for students who hold a first non-accredited degree in architecture, landscape architecture or environmental design.

Master of Building Science: a 48-unit, two-year program for applicants who hold an architecture, engineering or science-related degree (e.g., Bachelor of Architecture, Bachelor of Architectural Engineering, Bachelor of Science in Engineering, Environmental Studies, Physics or Mathematics). Students with five-year professional degrees in architecture and a minimum of five years of experience may be given advanced standing.

Dual Degree in Advanced Architectural Studies and Urban Planning: a 72-unit program leading to the post-professional Master of Architecture and the Master of Urban Planning degrees. Admission to both degree programs is required.

Dual Degree in Building Science and Heritage Conservation: a 72-unit program leading to the Master of Building Science and Master of Heritage Conservation degrees. Admission to both degree programs is required.

Dual Degree in Heritage Conservation and Urban Planning: a 60-unit program leading to the Master of Heritage Conservation and Master of Urban Planning degrees. Admission to both degree programs is required.

Dual Degree in Heritage Conservation and Landscape Architecture: a 87- or 111-unit program leading to the Master of Heritage Conservation and Master of Landscape Architecture degrees. Admission to both degree programs is required.

Dual Degree in Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning: a 84- or 110-unit program leading to the Master of Landscape Architecture and Master of Urban Planning degrees. Admission to both degree programs is required.

Certificate in Architecture: The focus of this program is on understanding the broad and complex role of architecture within the urban and cultural context. Studies focus on cities and architecture throughout the world where conditions of increasing density, environmental challenges and cultural complexity require design initiatives that support amenity, sustainability and cultural meaning. The certificate is open to graduate students not pursuing a Master of Architecture degree.

Certificate in Building Façade Art Science and Technology: The program is designed to provide students with the deep knowledge and skills necessary for careers in the increasingly technical field of façade system design, fabrication, delivery and operation.

Certificate in Building Science: This program is intended as a supplementary credential for students enrolled in graduate course work in architecture, landscape architecture, historic preservation, urban planning or related disciplines, and also for practicing design and planning professionals with undergraduate or graduate degrees and related experience.

Certificate in Heritage Conservation: This program is for those who wish to augment their current work in heritage conservation, and for graduate students who wish to obtain a complementary specialization in conjunction with their degree.

Certificate in Landscape Architecture: This program provides an opportunity for professionals and graduate students to develop understandings and skills related to the basic subjects inherent in the field of landscape architecture.

Certificate in Sustainable Design: This certificate provides students with the tools necessary to understand and quantify sources of energy use in buildings and landscapes and to use design of natural and man-made systems to reduce their energy use. Environmental, economic and socially responsible solutions will be explored through the course work.

National Architecture Accrediting Board Statement

In the United States, most registration boards require a degree from an accredited professional degree program as a prerequisite for licensure. The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which is the sole agency authorized to accredit professional degree programs in architecture offered by institutions with U.S. regional accreditation, recognizes three types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture, the Master of Architecture and the Doctor of Architecture. A program may be granted an eight-year, three-year or two-year term of accreditation, depending on the extent of its conformance with established educational standards.

Doctor of Architecture and Master of Architecture degree programs may require a pre-professional undergraduate degree in architecture for admission. However, the pre-professional degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree.

The University of Southern California School of Architecture offers the following NAAB-accredited degree programs:

Bachelor of Architecture (160 undergraduate credits)

Master of Architecture (pre-professional degree + 64 graduate credits)

Master of Architecture (non-professional degree + 102 graduate credits)

Next accreditation visit for all programs: 2023

Integrated Path to Architectural Licensure Initiative

The USC School of Architecture is one of the initial 14 accredited architecture schools in the United States accepted to participate in the National Council of Architectural Registration Board’s (NCARB) Integrated Path to Architectural Licensure Initiative (IPAL). IPAL monitors and provides support for obtaining architectural registration in designated professional accredited programs with an integrated approach to Architectural Experience Programs (AXP) and Architectural Registration Exam requirements required for licensure.  

Participation in the IPAL program does not change any of the existing professional degree requirements. With guidance and support, both BArch and MArch students at the USC School of Architecture will be encouraged to take advantage of the increased access to state and national licensure examinations concurrent with enrollment in their degree studies. The programs will provide support and encourage architectural experience in the professional community, which will allow the opportunity to significantly reduce the amount of time necessary to become a licensed architect while increasing the awareness and interaction between professional and academic experiences.

National Landscape Architecture Accreditation Board Statement

The USC Master of Landscape Architecture first professional curricula (three-year and two-year curricula) are accredited by the American Society of Landscape Architects Landscape Architecture Accreditation Board (LAAB). The LAAB conditions of accreditation (including the student performance criteria) are posted on the ASLA website, asla.org/AccreditationLAAB.aspx. The last review in November 2017 was completed successfully and we were granted the maximum renewal until December 2022.

Other Programs

Exploration of Architecture Summer Program for High School Students

The School of Architecture offers a four-week program for high school students (must have completed ninth grade by the start of the program) who have no previous experience but are interested in architecture. The program, which began in 1983, is particularly rewarding for students who are contemplating a career in architecture. However, all students find the exposure to the unique problem-solving methodologies of architecture a benefit regardless of their final career choice. Living on campus in a USC residence hall, high school students experience what it is like to be a university student. They participate in studio classes with professional critics and present their ideas in reviews attended by parents and friends.

The program also exposes them, through case studies, sketching exercises and field trips, to some of the most dramatic and impressive historical and modern architecture of Los Angeles. 

Obtain program details by visiting the School of Architecture website or by calling (800) 281-8616.

The Building Science Program in Civil Engineering

The Sonny Astani Department of Civil Engineering offers an undergraduate program leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering, with an emphasis in building science. The curriculum includes most of the work that is required for the major in structures, plus 30 units in architectural studies offered by the School of Architecture. See the USC Viterbi School of Engineering , Civil Engineering  section of this catalogue for further information. 

Programs

• Architectural Studies (BS)
• Architecture (BArch)
• Architecture and Inventive Technologies (BS)

• Architecture Minor
• Landscape Architecture Minor

• Advanced Architectural Research Studies (City Design and Housing) (MAARS)
• Advanced Architectural Research Studies (Performative Design and Technology) (MAARS)
• Advanced Architectural Studies (MAAS)
• Architecture (MArch)
• Building Science (MBS)
• Heritage Conservation (MHC)
• Landscape Architecture (MLArch)

• Master of Advanced Architectural Studies/Master of Urban Planning (MAAS/MUP)
• Master of Building Science/Master of Heritage Conservation (MBS/MHC)
• Master of Heritage Conservation/Master of Landscape Architecture (MHC/MLArch)
• Master of Landscape Architecture/Master of Urban Planning (MLArch/MUP)

• Architecture Certificate
• Building Facade Art Science and Technology Certificate
• Building Science Certificate
• Heritage Conservation Certificate
• Landscape Architecture Certificate
• Sustainable Design Graduate Certificate

• Architecture (PhD)

Courses

All courses must be taken in sequential order, a before b.

• ARCH 100x A-LAB Architecture Development Program
• ARCH 102a Architectural Design I
• ARCH 102bL Architectural Design I
• ARCH 104 History and Theory of Architecture, Technology, Innovation
• ARCH 105L Fundamentals of Design Communication
• ARCH 106x Workshop in Architecture
• ARCH 108 Idea to Reality
• ARCH 109 Design Foundation Workshop
• ARCH 114 Architecture: Culture and Community
• ARCH 202aL Architectural Design II
• ARCH 202bL Architectural Design II
• ARCH 203 Visualizing and Experiencing the Built Environment
• ARCH 205aL Building Science I
• ARCH 205bL Building Science I
• ARCH 207 Computer Applications in Architecture
• ARCH 211 Materials and Methods of Building Construction
• ARCH 213a Building Structures and Seismic Design
• ARCH 213b Building Structures and Seismic Design
• ARCH 214ag World History of Architecture
• ARCH 214bg World History of Architecture
• ARCH 215 Design for the Thermal and Atmospheric Environment
• ARCH 218 Resilient Design
• ARCH 219 Design at the Scale of the Human Body Workshop
• ARCH 220 The Architect’s Sketchbook
• ARCH 228 Social Environments
• ARCH 229 Shelter Design Workshop
• ARCH 302aL Architectural Design III
• ARCH 302bL Architectural Design III
• ARCH 303 Principles of Spatial Design I
• ARCH 304x Intensive Survey: Prehistory to the Present
• ARCH 305aL Building Science II
• ARCH 305bL Building Science II
• ARCH 306m Shelter
• ARCH 307 Digital Tools for Architecture
• ARCH 313 Design of Building Structures
• ARCH 314 History of Architecture: Contemporary Issues
• ARCH 315 Design for the Luminous and Sonic Environment
• ARCH 316 Place and Culture
• ARCH 318 Experimental Futures
• ARCH 319 Architectural Product Design Workshop
• ARCH 326 The Modern Movement in Architecture
• ARCH 328 Entrepreneurial Practices for Architecture
• ARCH 329 Professional Practicum Workshop
• ARCH 341 History of Italian Architecture 1400–1990
• ARCH 370 Architectural Studies — Expanding the Field
• ARCH 390 Special Problems
• ARCH 402aL Architectural Design IV
• ARCH 402bL Architectural Design IV
• ARCH 403 Principles of Spatial Design II
• ARCH 404 Topics in Modern Architecture in Southern California
• ARCH 405aL Building Science III
• ARCH 405bL Building Science III
• ARCH 406 Global Studies: Topics in Architecture, Urbanism, History and Art
• ARCH 407 Advanced Computer Applications
• ARCH 409L Design Foundation
• ARCH 410 Computer Transformations
• ARCH 411 Architectural Technology
• ARCH 412L GeoDesign Practicum
• ARCH 414 Perspectives in History and Theory in Architecture
• ARCH 417 Computer Programming in Architecture
• ARCH 418 Designing with Natural Forces
• ARCH 419 Architectural Sustainability Tools and Methods
• ARCH 420 Visual Communication and Graphic Expression
• ARCH 421 Digital Architectural Photography
• ARCH 422L Architectural Photography — Film and Digital
• ARCH 423 Light, Color and the Character of Material
• ARCH 424L Field Studies in Architecture
• ARCH 425L Field Studies in Urbanism
• ARCH 426L Field Studies in Tectonics
• ARCH 430 Design Teaching Methods
• ARCH 431 Nonconventional Materials for the Built Environment
• ARCH 432 People, Places and Culture: Architecture of the Public Realm
• ARCH 439 Landscape Architecture Foundations Workshop
• ARCH 440m Literature and the Urban Experience
• ARCH 442m Women’s Spaces in History: “Hussies,” “Harems” and “Housewives”
• ARCH 444 Great Houses of Los Angeles
• ARCH 447 Ecological Factors in Design
• ARCH 454 Contemporary Asian Architecture
• ARCH 464 The Politics of Architectures and Infrastructures
• ARCH 465 The Landscape Imaginary
• ARCH 469 Mixed Use Development Process
• ARCH 470a Architectural Studies Capstone
• ARCH 470b Architectural Studies Capstone
• ARCH 472 Building Skins: Materials and Methods for Facades and Enclosures
• ARCH 480 Conversations on the Expanded Role of the Architect
• ARCH 481 Furniture Design
• ARCH 490x Directed Research
• ARCH 499 Special Topics
• ARCH 500aL Comprehensive Architectural Design
• ARCH 500zL Comprehensive Architectural Design
• ARCH 501 Critical Topics in Architecture
• ARCH 502aL Architectural Design V
• ARCH 502zL Architectural Design V
• ARCH 505aL Graduate Architecture Design I
• ARCH 505bL Graduate Architecture Design I
• ARCH 507 Theories of Computer Technology
• ARCH 510 Independent Degree Project Preparation
• ARCH 511L Building Systems: Materials and Construction
• ARCH 512 Material + Process: Material Systems
• ARCH 513L Seminar: Advanced Structures
• ARCH 514a Global History of Architecture

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