Master of Architecture I AP Degree Requirements

Master of Architecture I AP

These degree requirements are for students entering Fall 2025. For requirements for students entering in previous years, please visit the MArch I Curriculum Details page.

A candidate who is admitted to the program with advanced standing (MArch I AP) will be recommended for the Master of Architecture as a professional degree upon satisfactory completion of a minimum of 100 units. The first semester of the MArch I AP follows a similar course of study and as that of the third semester of the MArch I program and the follows the same sequence for the rest of the semesters. Please note: entering AP students may not be waived out of all first-year courses, so individual schedules may vary.

First Semester

8 units | STU 1201 Third Semester Architecture Core Studio: INTEGRATE

2 units | SCI 6121 (M1) Environmental Systems I

2 units | SCI 6122 (M2) Environmental Systems II

4 units | SCI 6123 Construction Systems

4 units | SCI 6229 Structural Design II

Second Semester

8 units | STU 1202 Fourth Semester Architecture Core Studio: RELATE

4 units | HIS 4100 Buildings, Texts and Contexts: Origins and Ends*

4 units | SCI 6230 Cases in Contemporary Construction

4 units | Digital Media Requirement*** or Distributional or General Electives****

Third Semester

8 units | Option Studio**

4 units | PRO 7212 Foundations of Practice

8 units | Digital Media Requirement*** or Distributional or General Electives****

Fourth Semester

8 units | Option Studio**

4 units  | ADV 9203 Thesis Prep Course (or pre-approved alternative)*****

8 units | Distributional or General Electives****

Note: The department encourages students to take electives that support thesis interests during their fourth semester.

Fifth Semester

12 units | ADV 9301 Independent Design Thesis

8 units | Distributional or General Electives****

Footnotes

* MArch I AP students are required to take the Building, Texts, and Contexts (BTC) course HIS-4100 in their second semester (spring); however, students may elect to fulfill the BTC requirement with HIS-4223 in their first or third semester (fall) if that better accommodates their academic goals.

**A minimum of one Option Studio taken must be offered through the Department of Architecture.

***A 4-unit Digital Media Requirement course must be taken in the second or third semester. Offerings may vary by year.

****Students are required to fulfill the following distributional electives: 8 units of advanced history electives 4 units of global culture and diversity electives 4 units of professional practice electives An approved list of distributional electives is posted each term. Please note that some courses may count toward the satisfaction of two distributional electives. For example, an advanced history course may also fulfill a global culture and diversity requirement. For more information, please visit the MArch Distributional Electives page. General electives may be fulfilled through any course at the GSD or cross-registered courses at Harvard schools, MIT, or the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts.

*****Students are required to take ADV 9203 in their fourth semester; however, an alternative thesis prep course may be approved by petition to the department.