Master of Architectural History

Admission

Applicants must hold an approved baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university. Admission to graduate study will normally require an average of B or better and a command of at least one foreign language. Candidates admitted to the program must, before beginning their work for the degree, have taken the equivalent of ARH 1010 (History of Architecture I: prehistory-14th century) and 1020 (History of Architecture 2, 15th century-present) and one semester of architectural design studio (ARCH 2010). These prerequisites may be satisfied by taking ARH 1004 and ARCH 2040, or the equivalent, during the school’s summer session. (Students do not normally enter the program in the spring semester, although this is permitted in special circumstances with approval of the chair.)

Curriculum

The program’s purpose is to equip the student with a sound background in architectural history, including its principles and interpretation. The degree requires a minimum of 36 credits at the graduate level.

The degree requirements should be considered as a minimum core program. Thus, the student should expect to take more than the required minimum courses during the normal four semesters of residency, usually totaling 48 credits. Qualified students interested in historic preservation can complete the requirements for the Certificate in Historic Preservation and the Master of Architectural History within a two-year period.

Historic Preservation Certificate Program

Students wishing to enter the Historic Preservation Certificate Program must be admitted to one of the graduate degree programs in the School of Architecture. In order to ensure proper academic advising and program coordination, students interested in the Historic Preservation Program should attend the program meeting at the start of the fall semester. Upon arriving at the Architecture School they should also file a program participation form with the Architecture School’s registrar. Students who complete the required 21 credits of preservation course work receive a Certificate in Historic Preservation, in addition to their master’s degree. There are individual courses that fulfill the requirements of the historic preservation certificate curriculum that also fulfill requirements within the architectural history department curriculum. Thus, students normally complete the course work for the historic preservation certificate during the same period in which they complete their degree program. The certificate program courses fulfill the degree program’s requirement for minor field of study. The courses in Group B of the Foundations of Preservation Core can count towards a major field requirement in American architectural history. 

Placement Examination

Students with diverse backgrounds and from different disciplines are admitted to our program. For those students who lack adequate undergraduate preparation in the field, the curriculum has been structured to allow them to remedy this situation.

Upon entry into the program, candidates will take a placement examination composed of two sections. Section one covers Prehistory to the 14th Century, the second section covers the 15th Century to the Present.  Both Sections include non-western material. Students whose exams evidence significant gaps in one or more of these fields are required to take the appropriate course or courses during the first year. Only one such course may be used to satisfy the degree requirements; it would take the place of an open elective.

Language Qualification

Candidates are required to demonstrate a reading knowledge of one foreign language, preferably French, Italian, or German. Depending on the student’s area of study languages such as Chinese, Japanese (etc.) may be substituted. This requirement may be satisfied by earning the grade of B or better in an intermediate-level university course in the language within two years prior to admission to the University of Virginia graduate program. Alternatively, the student can take the ETS Graduate School Foreign Language Test and pass with a score of at least 550, or take University of Virginia language courses at the intermediate level, or pass the language departmental reading test. Architectural History students should take care of this language requirement soon after entry.

Course Distribution

Three credits must be in ARH 8001 (Methods in Architectural History), one credit in SARC 6000 (The Common Course), and three thesis credits. In addition, each student must have at least nine credits at the 8000 level or above, and at least one course from four of the following distribution areas: Ancient and Medieval Architecture, Renaissance and Baroque Architecture, European Architecture since 1700, American Architecture, and non-Western Architecture. Open Electives can include additional ARH graduate courses, graduate courses elsewhere in the university, or courses taken to fulfill the Historic Preservation Certificate. Courses taken at other institutions are normally not accepted. Under exceptional circumstances a petition to receive credit for one or two courses might be granted.

Major and Minor Field Areas

Each student must complete a major field of nine credits and a minor field of six credits selected from among the distribution areas listed above. Students enrolled in the Historic Preservation Certificate Program may select historic preservation as their six-credit minor. Of the 36 credits required for the degree, 33 must be in ARH courses or ARAH courses with appropriate architectural history content. In extraordinary circumstances, and by prior approval of the Director of Graduate Studies, the student may substitute other courses, e.g., History or English.

Thesis

The thesis is a major piece of independent work undertaken under the supervision of a committee of three faculty members. The committee is normally composed of two full-time Departmental Faculty, one of whom serves as Chair, and a third member who may be from outside the department. The thesis represents three credits, normally taken during the student’s fourth semester. It is possible to explore the thesis topic more broadly by enrolling for an independent research course in conjunction with or prior to the thesis course.

Typical Program of Study

Architectural History Course Descriptions

• ARH 5500 - Selected Topics in Architectural History Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 5601 - Historic Preservation Theory and Practice Credits: 3
• ARH 5602 - Community History Workshop Credits: 3
• ARH 5603 - Community Public History Seminar Credits: 3
• ARH 5604 - Field Methods I: Reading and Recording Historic Buildings Credits: 3
• ARH 5607 - Historic Preservation at UVA Credits: 3
• ARH 5993 - Independent Studies in Architectural History Credits: 1 to 4
• ARH 7010 - History of Architecture I Credits: 3
• ARH 7020 - Adv.History of World Architecture + Urbanism, 1400 - present Credits: 3
• ARH 7100 - History of Medieval Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7101 - Early Medieval Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7102 - Later Medieval Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7201 - Italian Renaissance Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7202 - Italian Architecture, 1550-1750 Credits: 3
• ARH 7203 - European Classical Architecture Outside Italy, 1400-1750 Credits: 3
• ARH 7204 - Italy, Spain & The Ottoman Empire, 1400-1700 Credits: 3
• ARH 7205 - Rome, Istanbul, Venice Credits: 3
• ARH 7206 - Mediterranean Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7207 - Arts and Architecture of the Islamic World Credits: 3
• ARH 7401 - History of Modern Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7402 - Postwar Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7500 - Special Topics in Architecture History Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 7601 - East Meets West Credits: 3
• ARH 7602 - World Buddhist Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7603 - Archaeological Approaches to Atlantic Slavery Credits: 3
• ARH 7604 - Historical Archaeology Credits: 3
• ARH 7605 - Drawing Historic Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7606 - Landscape Archaeology Credits: 3
• ARH 7701 - Early American Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7702 - Later American Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7703 - Nineteenth-Century American Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7704 - Twentieth-Century American Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7801 - Adv. East Asia Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7802 - Modern Japanese Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 7993 - Independent Study: Architectural History Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 8001 - Methods in Architectural History Credits: 3
• ARH 8002 - Digital Technologies in Architectural History Credits: 3
• ARH 8994 - Thesis Credits: 3
• ARH 8995 - MA Thesis Research Credits: 3
• ARH 8999 - Thesis Project Credits: 6 to 12
• ARH 9100 - Seminar in Medieval Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 9202 - Borromini & Baroque Rome Credits: 3
• ARH 9510 - Seminar in Medieval Architecture Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 9520 - Seminar in Renaissance Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 9530 - Seminar in 18th/19th Century Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 9540 - Seminar in 20th/21st Century Architecture Credits: 3
• ARH 9550 - Seminar in Ancient/Archaeology Architecture Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 9560 - Seminar in Theory, Comparative, & Other Topics Credits: 3
• ARH 9570 - Seminar in Architecture of the Americas Credits: 3
• ARH 9580 - Seminar in Architecture of East, South, and Southeast Asia Credits: 1 to 3
• ARH 9590 - Seminar in Architecture of Africa or Islam Credits: 3
• ARH 9993 - Independent Studies in Architectural History Credits: 3
• ARH 9999 - Non-Topical Research Credits: 3 to 12
• SARC 6000 - The Common Course Credits: 1