The request to create ARCH 4607 and revise BA in Architecture and Bachelor of Architecture

Date: May 1, 2015
To: College of Arts + Architecture
From: Office of Academic Affairs
Approved On: April 20, 2015
Approved by: Undergraduate Course and Curriculum Committee
Implementation Date: Spring 2016

Note: Deletions are strikethroughs. Insertions are underlined.

Catalog Copy

ARCH 4301. Materials and Assembly Principles. (3) Prerequisite: ARCH 4302 or permission of instructor. Introduces the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of architectural materials, systems, and processes. Students will be introduced to the physical properties of materials relevant to their application in construction, assembly, and detail systems. Topics include: masonry, concrete, wood, steel, glass, cladding, and roofing and flooring materials and their assemblies. (Fall) (Spring) Cross listed with ARCH 5301.

ARCH 4302. Environmental Systems Principles. (3) Prerequisite: ARCH 4301 or permission of instructor. Introduces qualitative and quantitative analytical methods commonly used to assess the impact of environmental forces on occupant thermal and luminous comfort, energy performance, and regional sustainability. Students will be introduced to the interplay between climatic events, patterns of building use, and the architectural variables that inform the appropriate application of building systems technology. Topics include: building envelope performance, and the introduction of passive and mechanical systems for heating, cooling, illuminating, and ventilating buildings. (Spring) (Fall) Cross listed with ARCH 5302.

ARCH 4605. Computational Practice. (3) Prerequisite: ARCH 4604 or permission of instructor. Capstone course for digital media and computational studies in the School of Architecture. The goal of this seminar course is to provide students with experience using advanced digital tools and methods, including digital fabrication, parametrics, Building Information Modeling/Management (BIM), scripting, and performance analysis in preparation for professional practice and/or advanced graduate research. (Spring) (Fall)

ARCH 4607. Urban Seminar. (3) Prerequisite: Enrollment in Bachelor of Architecture degree program. An inquiry into critical matters concerning the contemporary city, this course runs parallel to and resonates with an urban building design studio based on the Center City Campus. Topics focus on the social, cultural, political, historical, and theoretical dimensions of the city.

Bachelor of Arts in Architecture

The undergraduate Bachelor of Arts in Architecture is a 4-year pre-professional foundation degree, which requires 128 credit hours. Students who wish to become registered architects must also earn a professional accredited degree—either a 1-year Bachelor of Architecture (128+30 credit hours) or a 2-year Master of Architecture (128+60 credit hours). Information on the Master of Architecture degree program may be found in UNC Charlotte Graduate Catalog.

Degree Requirements

Core Program

All undergraduate students in the School of Architecture complete a three-year core sequence of courses designed to provide a solid understanding of fundamental issues, knowledge, and skills related to architecture. These courses include a series of coordinated design studios, skill-building seminars, a four-semester sequence of architectural history (three survey courses and one history topic elective), and four courses in building technology (one course in Architectural Materials, two courses in Structures, and one course in Environmental Systems Principles).

  • ARCH 1101 Architecture Design Studio I (5)
  • ARCH 1102 Architecture Design Studio II (5)
  • ARCH 1601 Recording Observations (2)
  • ARCH 1602 Components of Form (2)
  • ARCH 2101 Architecture Design Studio III (3)
  • ARCH 2102 Architecture Design Studio IV (5)
  • ARCH 3101 Architecture Design Studio V (5)
  • ARCH 3102 Architecture Design Studio VI (3)
  • ARCH 3601 Writing Architecture (W) (3)
  • ARCH 4050 Architectural Elective (3)
  • ARCH 4201 Architectural History I (3)
  • ARCH 4202 Architectural History II (3)
  • ARCH 4301 Material and Assembly Principles (5)
  • ARCH 4302 Environmental Systems Principles (3)
  • ARCH 4303 Structural Principles (3)
  • ARCH 4304 Structural Systems (3)*
  • ARCH 4604 Computational Methods (3)
Advanced Program

Undergraduate students begin the Advanced Program in their fourth year of study. The Advanced Program presents opportunities for greater depth of inquiry, breadth of understanding and synthesis through architectural design and advanced electives. In the Fourth Year, various topical design studios are offered which permit specific focused design exploration in areas such as: digital design, urban and community design, tectonic issues, lighting and energy use, landscape and site, and contemporary issues in architectural design.

  • ARCH 4050 Architecture Elective (3)*
  • ARCH 4050 Architecture Elective (3)*
  • ARCH 4605 Computational Practice (3)*
  • ARCH 4101 Topical Architecture Studio VII (5)*
  • ARCH 4102 Topical Arch Studio VIII (5)*
  • ARCH 4203 Architectural History III (3)
  • ARCH 4204 Architectural History Elective (3) (W)
  • Foreign Language 1201 or higher (4)
  • Foreign Language 1202 or higher (4)

*Alternative: Students who do not intend to pursue an accredited professional degree (the BArch or MArch) may complete a modified version of the above curriculum to earn a non-pre-professional version of the Bachelor of Arts in Architecture. This alternative allows greater academic flexibility for students to augment their architectural studies with coursework from other University departments, allowing double major or minor in other disciplines, or to prepare for graduate studies in related fields (such as planning, urban design, landscape architecture, or architectural history). This alternative path requires 128 credit hours, and includes the above curriculum except for the following courses (marked with *): ARCH 4304, ARCH 4101, ARCH 4102, ARCH 4605, and two one ARCH 4050 electives. To complete the credit hour requirements for the degree, students must substitute 19 credit hours of coursework in other areas to replace these credits.

Bachelor of Architecture (Professional Accredited Degree)

Students who complete the pre-professional four-year Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, including all requirements outlined above, are eligible for admission into the fifth-year Bachelor of Architecture degree program. The Fifth Year is composed of a two-semester sequence of linked studios that are focused on an individual Comprehensive Architectural Project involving design research and development. The Fifth Year also includes one technology course (Building Systems Integration), one course in Professional Practice, one course in advanced Computational Practice, as well as architecture electives.

The Bachelor of Architecture requires an additional 30 credit hours of coursework, in addition to the 128 hours for the B.A. in Architecture, for a total of 158 hours. The Bachelor of Architecture curriculum at UNC Charlotte includes the four-year Bachelor of Arts in Architecture curriculum outlined above, plus an additional year with the following courses:

  • ARCH 4050 Architecture Elective (3)
  • ARCH 4050 Architecture Elective (3)
  • ARCH 4103 Comprehensive Architectural Project Schematic (6)
  • ARCH 4104 Project Design (6)
  • ARCH 4205 Architectural History Elective (3) (W)
  • ARCH 4206 Professional Practice (3)
  • ARCH 4305 Building Systems Integration (3)
  • ARCH 4605 Computational Practice (3)
  • ARCH 4607 Urban Seminar (3)

The School also offers a fifth-year Bachelor of Architecture program for students who have a four-year architectural or environmental design degree from another NAAB accredited institution. Following an assessment of curriculum for equivalence with the UNC Charlotte B.A. in Architecture program, students are required to complete a minimum of 30 credit hours, including 12 hours of architectural studio and 18 hours of other architectural courses. Students entering the fifth-year Bachelor of Architecture program from other architecture programs who have curriculum deficiencies will be required to complete additional coursework and credit hours. No transfer credit is accepted for this program.