Architecture (Graduate Program)

For information regarding the UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM, click here.   

Program Overview

The master’s degree in architecture is a professional degree program dedicated to the development of professional skills and design excellence as a means of engaging the natural and cultural forces that shape the built environment. The program emphasizes inquiry into the role of design in the study of place, the role of architecture in social equity and resilience, and the relationship of these to the conceptual and physical assembly of buildings. Investigation of the remarkable diversity of urban and rural landscapes of Louisiana and the Lower Mississippi Delta Region provides a local context for informed studies that lead to engagement with broader regional and global concerns. 

Administration

Admission

Applications and supporting materials for all graduate study must be submitted through the online application site for the LSU Graduate School. Official transcripts, official test scores, and other materials that come from third-party sources must be mailed to: Graduate Student Services, 114 West David Boyd Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. These paper documents are stored electronically and departments have access to all materials submitted by and/or on behalf of a student applying to graduate study. The application deadline is February 1st for the School of Architecture.

Students seeking admission must submit the following:

• Statement of Intent, up to 500 words, that articulates your future goals and perspective on the way your graduate education will help you achieve these goals.
• Transcripts from all universities attended or attending and from which you have received degrees. To be admitted without probation, applicants need to have satisfactory credentials from a bachelor degree with  a 3.0 minimum GPA.,
• Three letters of recommendation
• A digital portfolio of creative work. Digital portfolios should be one PDF file with a maximum size of 30 megabites.
• International students whose native language is not English must also submit an acceptable TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE score.
• GRE is optional.

Applicants can upload all application material to the Graduate School Application portal. If needed, some material can be mailed to the LSU School of Architecture, Attn: Graduate Selection Committee, 136 Atkinson Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803. All inquiries regarding the application process can be sent by email to sarch@lsu.edu. Graduate Assistantships are selectively awarded at the time of admission to the program or later.

Financial Assistance

Financial assistance is available to selected students. To ensure consideration for financial aid, all application materials should be submitted in accordance with deadlines (at time of application for School of Architecture) established by the LSU Graduate School.

Research Facilities & Units

The school has achieved national and international recognition for research in coastal sustainability, historic preservation, design technology, and community design studies. Research resources include:

• The College of Art & Design Fabrication Lab is a digital fabrication laboratory for students and faculty. The factory provides the capacity to create a multidisciplinary, active, team-learning environment by leveraging large-scale digital fabrication equipment for cutting, shaping, and forming, metal, wood, and plastic toward the resolution of creative design problems.
• The Design Shop at the LSU College of Art & Design provides students with a work space, hand tools, and power machinery for a variety of uses and materials. Under the supervision of the Design Shop Manager this large and comprehensive workshop is available for student use to complete class projects. In addition to a top of the line woodworking area, the shop houses 2 60 wall Universal laser cutters and 1 150 watt BOSS.
• The VizLab is dedicated to teaching and research in the areas of computer-aided design, image-processing, and more applications in architecture, art, interior design, and landscape architecture. VizLab also offers services ranging from large-format printing and scanning to visual development using virtual and augmented reality. 
• Coastal Ecosystems Design Studio (CEDS), an interdisciplinary research environment with opportunities for academic enrichment and specialization in coastal adaptation and restoration.

Graduate Faculty

(check current faculty listings by department here)

Traci Birch, PhD, (6A) • AICP: Urban planning and design; ecosystem management; coastal sustainability; climate change and social justice
Irene Brisson, PhD •  History and theory of built environment, ethnography of design, Haitian and Caribbean architecture, disaster studies, Black feminist theory, spatial justice.
Fabio Capra Ribeiro, PhD • Spatial and environmental justice; representation and visual communication; online education
J. Michael Desmond, PhD (7M) • History, theory, and criticism of architecture; architecture and the city; American architecture and cultural mythology
Meredith Gaglio, PhD • History and theory of architecture and the environment, sustainable design and community planning, ecology, environmental justice
Marwan Ghandour • Comparative architecture and urbanism in the global south and the industrial periphery.
Robert Holton (6A) • Contextual fields, advanced building construction, fabrication, and material technologies
Paul Holmquist, PhD (6A) • History and theory of architecture, sustainable urbanism, design for the public realm
Soo Jeong Jo, PhD • Environmental systems, building performance simulation and sustainable design
Kristopher Palagi (6A) • Architectural Design, Construction materials and assemblies
Thomas Sofranko (M) • Abstraction and composition, design education
Annicia Streete • Multi-disciplinary architectural practice, Afrofuturism, Caribbean and Latin American building practices, informal building technology in the African diaspora.
Alcibiades P. Tsolakis (M) • Art and design, construction, Mediterranean architecture, Islamic art, drawing and sculpture

Programs

• Architecture, M.Arch