Undergraduate Architecture

Bachelor of Architecture Mission Statement

Undergraduate Architecture is a five-year Bachelor of Architecture program that prepares students with an early interest in architecture to become leading professional practitioners.  Students at Pratt learn that architecture is a meaningful cultural contribution dedicated to the sustenance of the imagination and the necessity for material embodiment within a larger social and ethical context. The five year design sequence offers a thorough foundation in architecture integrating critical thinking, design, technology, building, representation and social responsibility. Firmly committed to contemporary material practices, the program is constantly integrating new technologies into the curriculum. Students are encouraged to aspire towards creative and intellectual independence as well as to commit to authentically inspired architectural research.

Bachelor of Architecture Goals and Objectives

• Each student will demonstrate the ability to transform an idea to an architectural proposition by incorporating all skills developed from core to advance design.  (design excellence)
• Students at Pratt learn that architecture is a meaningful cultural contribution dedicated to the sustenance of the imagination and the necessity for material embodiment within a larger social and ethical context. (Critical Thinking / Cultural and Social Knowledge)
• Students will demonstrate the ability to communicate through visual medium from the hand to the computer. (Media & Representation)
• Students will demonstrate the critical use of digital technology, fabrication and environmentally responsible design in relationship to contemporary design and practice. (Technology: Computation and Digital Fabrication)
• Students will demonstrate the ability to integrate sustainable practices, material research and interdisciplinary approaches to find sustainable design solutions.  (Ecological Design)
• Students will demonstrate creative and intellectual independence to applied architectural research.  (Research)
• Pratt seeks to instill aesthetic judgment, knowledge, collaborative skill and technical expertise which can blend theory with creative applications in the preparation of students to become leaders in the profession.  (Professionalism)

Highest Professional Standards

In the United States, most state 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 U.S. professional degree programs in architecture, recognizes two types of degrees:  the Bachelor of Architecture and the Master of Architecture.  A program may be granted a five-year, three-year, or a two-year term of accreditation, depending on its degree of conformance with established educational standards.

Master’s degree programs may consist of a pre-professional undergraduate degree and a post-professional graduate degree, which, when earned sequentially, constitute an accredited professional education.  The pre-professional degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree, however.

The NAAB grants candidacy status to new programs that have developed viable plans for achieving initial accreditation.  Candidacy status indicates that a program should be accredited within six years of achieving candidacy, if its plan is properly implemented.

Bachelor of Architecture Program

The Bachelor of Architecture Program is a professional program accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) requiring a minimum of five years of study.  Most states require individuals intending to become architects hold an accredited degree.  These professional degrees are structured to educate those who aspire to registration and licensure to practice as architects.  The 170 credits required for the Bachelor of Architecture degree are organized into three categories: a core or required courses in architecture study, liberal arts courses and electives.  The core of 95 credits is primarily taken in the first three years and is designed to give the basic professional preparation in architectural design, construction technology, graphic communication and humanistic aspects of design. 

The liberal arts areas require 48 credits, of which 12 are taken within the School of Architecture, 6 credits in Humanities and Media Studies, 6 credits in Cultural Studies, 6 credits in Mathematics and Science, and 6 in Social Science.  The remaining 12 credits are taken as elective courses from the School of Liberal Arts and Science.  The remaining Electives category is composed of 15 credits of professional electives selected from courses offered by the School of Architecture’s undergraduate program, and 12 all-institute electives, selected from courses offered by any school in the Institute.  By purposefully selecting courses within all elective areas during their last four semesters, students can develop their own unique architectural education based on their own needs and goals.  This personalized fourth-year curriculum is directed toward a culmination in the fifth-year degree project.  Individual curricula may be developed to place more emphasis on such subject areas as design, preservation, building technology, history & Theory, planning, construction management and urban design in the final two years of study.  The degree project year completes the student’s academic architectural experience with an in-depth design study, preceded and accompanied by research.  The degree project is executed with the guidance from critics chosen by the student.  Undergraduate architecture students may also be interested in a Minor in Construction Management as well as options combining the undergraduate degrees with various master’s degrees in planning and facilities management.

Contact Information

Office of Undergraduate Architecture
School of Architecture
61 St. James Place
Higgins Hall North #101
Brooklyn, NY 11238