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Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning

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Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning
University of Michigan Seal
Location
Map
Michigan Ann Arbor
,
Michigan

USA
Information
TypePublic
Established1906
DeanMonica Ponce de Leon
ChairsTom Buresh, Architecture
Jean Wineman, Ph. D in Architecture
Jonathan Levine, Urban + Regional Planning
Faculty75
Enrollment607 Total
215 B.S.Arch, 205 M.Arch, 125 M.U.P., 15 M.U.D., 6 M.Sc, 41 Ph.D.
CampusSuburban
NicknameTCAUP
EndowmentUS $75 million [1]
AffiliationsNAAB, ACSP, ACSA, AIAS, AIA, APA
Websitehttp://www.tcaup.umich.edu/
http://arch.umich.edu/

The A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning (also Taubman College or TCAUP) is an internationally-renowned undergraduate and graduate institution for the built environment at the University of Michigan. Formerly known as the College of Architecture and Urban Planning, TCAUP gained the namesake of billionaire real estate developer and philanthropist A. Alfred Taubman when he donated $30 million to the college in May 1999. The gift was one of the largest in the history of the University of Michigan and the largest ever to a school of architecture.

History

In 1876, the University of Michigan became one of the first universities in the United States to offer courses in architecture, led by influential Chicago architect William Le Baron Jenney. After thirty years, a degree program within the Department of Engineering was established in 1906, under the direction of Emil Lorch, who served to administer the program and its ever-evolving iterations until 1937. Housed in what is now Lorch Hall on Central Campus, the program quickly grew into the Department of Architecture by 1913. In 1924, world-renowned architect Eliel Saarinen joined the faculty of the department, with which he was associated until his death (and is still associated by endowed professorships). By 1930, the College of Architecture had been established, and grew to become the College of Architecture and Design in 1939, introducing Landscape Architecture and, by 1948, one of the first Master of City Planning degrees. The 1940s also saw the college taking a progressive role with regards to architectural research, establishing the Architecture Research Laboratory that would pioneer the integration of design, construction, technology, planning and research. In 1965, the Landscape Architecture program moved to the university's School of Natural Resources.

In 1968, the college made history by establishing the first-ever doctoral program in architecture, fueled by a strong level of academic inquiry into the field.

In 1974, many positive changes took place for the college, including the separation of programs into the College of Architecture & Urban Planning and the School of Art & Design. During this same year, the programs outgrew their home on Central Campus and found a new home on North Campus, the Art and Architecture Building, in which both schools remain to this day.

Notable alumni

Rankings

Taubman College's graduate and undergraduate programs in architecture consistently rank among the most prestigious and most admired in the country [2] [3]. Most recently, the Master of Architecture program was ranked 8th the nation by the Design Futures Council and DesignIntelligence in their 2008 survey.

Programs in urban design and urban planning were recently ranked 6th and 11th in the nation, respectively, in Planetizen's 2007 Guide to Graduate Urban Planning Programs [4]. The urban design program was also recognized by New Urban News as the 4th best program in the nation for new urbanism [5].

Degrees

Bachelor of Science in Architecture

The UG option, as it is known by the college, is a 60 credit hour track which is completed in the junior and senior years of the students' undergraduate career. The freshman and sophomore years are focused primarily on pre-architecture and general education coursework, typically within the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, after which students transfer into the architecture program. Focus is placed on introducing students to the skills, knowledge and perceptions of various architectures in relation to their greater environment. The program is not a professional degree, and is not accredited by the NAAB, however students often do decide to continue into a professional Master of Architecture program.

Master of Architecture

As the flagship program of TCAUP, the Master of Architecture degree promotes a progressive, multidisciplinary study of design in the context of the relationship between people and their surrounding environments. The rigorous curriculum explores the richness of these environments in great detail, and allows students to choose from a variety of interests and topics to develop an understanding of architecture that is equally as rich. As a program accredited by the NAAB, focus is placed on professional development with respect to licensed architectural practice, though students have been known to choose relevant career tracks beyond these particular confines. With more than 200 students, it is the largest Master of Architecture program in the country. [6]

The Master of Architecture curriculum follows two tracks, for which students will qualify based on their undergraduate background:

  • 2G option : a 60 credit hour track which builds on previous academic background in architecture. Students are admitted into the 2G option if they have completed an undergraduate degree in architecture, typically a Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Architecture, consisting of at least four sequential architecture studios and other coursework in design, history, structures, construction, and environmental technology.
  • 3G option : a 108 credit hour track which assumes little or no previous background in architecture. Students admitted to the 3G option are required to begin coursework in the summer of their first year and pursue additional coursework during the following summers.

M.Arch students may also enroll in dual-degree programs with Urban Planning, Urban Design, Business Administration, Engineering, and Landscape Architecture (a unit of the School of Natural Resources).

Master of Urban Planning

The two-year MUP degree offers a broad curriculum that is accredited by the Planning Accreditation Board, an organization sponsored by the American Planning Association, the American Institute of Certified Planners, and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning. One-third of the curriculum is devoted to developing a wide range of knowledge on the field of planning, while the other two-thirds develop a more specific knowledge base in land use and environmental planning, housing, community and economic development, planning in developing countries, physical planning and urban design, and transportation planning. Students are also encouraged to incorporate courses outside TCAUP, and concurrent degree programs are also encouraged.

Master of Urban Design

The MUD program is a one year, 39 credit hour, post-professional degree program which accepts students from backgrounds in architecture, urban planning and landscape architecture. Though the curriculum takes root in the understanding of widely varied environments and habitats of human existence, the program is also highly influenced, unlike the architecture program, by the variety of principles and practices associated with the movement known as new urbanism. Taubman College Dean and Professor Douglas Kelbaugh, former partner of Peter Calthorpe, and Professor Robert Fishman are well known scholars associated with this movement.

Master of Science in Architecture

The Master of Science degree in architecture is a 2.5 semester, 32 credit hour, research-based post-professional program that develops a foundation of academic knowledge for the pursuit of post-professional degrees in related fields. The degree typically culminates in an independent research project which is geared towards a focus in building and environmental technology, design studies or architectural history and theory.

Though the program is currently non-studio based, a curriculum is being developed to add a studio/design based research track. This track would be offered in addition to the current tracks, and is being implemented as a dual-degree with the Master of Architecture program.

Doctoral programs

The Doctoral Program in Architecture and Doctoral Program in Urban + Regional Planning are designed for students who are interested in pursuing an intensely academic study of architecture that builds on an extensive body of research already established in the university. These bodies of research include, but are not limited to: building technology, design studies and history + theory in the architecture program and transportation planning, community development planning, regional planning, environmental planning, etc. in the urban + regional planning program. The emphasis of both programs are on interdisciplinary research and collaboration in the development of a dissertation thesis.

Certificate in Real Estate Development

The Certificate in Real Estate Development is a 17 credit hour, interdisciplinary program that provides students with a greater awareness of the issues associated with urban development, charging the developer with a great amount of social responsibility. Classes in business, law, urban and regional planning, natural resources and environment, landscape architecture, architecture, urban design, and engineering are integrated into a rather critical, though incredibly relevant perspective on development. This highly selective program is offered in conjunction with the Law School and the Stephen M. Ross School of Business to any graduate student enrolled at the University of Michigan.

Facilities

Template:Future building

Taubman College is located on the University of Michigan's North Campus in the Art & Architecture (A&A) Building. This building houses the largest academic studio in the world [7], at 30,000 continuous square feet, for roughly 450 undergraduate and graduate architecture students and graduate urban design students.

In 2007, Taubman College announced plans to spend $13 million to build a 16,000 square-foot addition to its building on North Campus. In that year the Board of Regents authorized the hiring of the Seattle-based architectural firm The Miller Hull Partnership. The addition will be built on the roof of the south wing of the existing A&A Building, creating a new face for the college. It will provide additional space to accommodate increased student enrollment and to improve the teaching and learning environment, including expanded faculty offices, more instructional space, a centralized reading room, a green roof, and additional energy-efficient features. [8] As of September 2008, the project had been put on hold, pending a re-evaluation process put forth by new Dean Ponce de Leon.

Many architecture students initiate design-build projects to help improve the appearance of the academic space and quality of life for the student body. Projects designed and built by the students range from tables and chairs, to exhibition space, to classroom renovations, student and faculty lounge renovations, and even the design for a print, copy and supplies store (called the Media Center). Many of the larger-scale projects, such as the award-winning student lounges and the Media Center, are a collaborative effort amongst students, practicing faculty members, and contractors.

North Campus is also home to the College of Engineering, the School of Computer Science, the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, and the School of Art & Design. Other pertinent facilities on North Campus include the Art, Architecture & Engineering Library, the Digital Media Commons, the Bentley Historical Library the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Maya Lin's Wave Field.

Study abroad

Students are exposed to significant travel opportunities throughout their time at TCAUP, M.Arch students are offered a program in Florence, which takes place in the fall semester of the final year, to which about 15 students attend. The program is administered by the University of Michigan, however students from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Duke University also participate, residing in the historic Villa Corsi-Salviati outside the city. In addition, summer studios have recently been offered by faculty members to Argentina, Brazil, China, France, Ghana, Guatemala, Iceland, India, Italy, Japan, and Switzerland.

In 2005, partners Robert Mangurian (SCI-Arc faculty) and Mary Ann Ray (TCAUP faculty) established a permanent study outlet in Beijing, called the Beijing Architectural Studio Enterprise (B.A.S.E.), to which TCAUP and SCI-Arc students frequent during the spring and summer months. Located in the northeast, along the 5th Ring Road in the emerging arts district of Caochangdi Village (adjacent to the well-known Dashanzi Art District), B.A.S.E. is an independent institution which is supported by a network of institutions and individuals in China and the United States, and offers academic opportunities for international and local architecture enthusiasts alike.

Fellowships and visiting professorships

Taubman College offers a variety of faculty fellowships and visiting professorships. These opportunities have brought some of the smartest young minds together with some of most renowned individuals of the academy and practice of architecture. The visiting professorships are endowed in the name of Eliel Saarinen, Charles Moore, Max Fisher, and Colin Clipson, and have attracted the following notable individuals:

  • Max Fisher Visiting Professors: Robert Somol, Larry Scarpa, Scott Marble + Karen Fairbanks, Stephen Kieran + James Timberlake, Kevin Daly + Chris Genik
  • Sustainability Visiting Professors: Alan Berger, Blaine Brownell

Lectures, publications and events

The Michigan Architecture Papers are published by the College at least once per year and have documented the lectures of acclaimed individuals such as Rafael Moneo, Diller + Scofidio, Mack Scogin & Merril Elam, Todd Williams & Billie Tsien, Kenneth Frampton, TEN Arquitectos, Michael Sorkin, Rafael Viñoly, Vincent Scully and Daniel Libeskind.

The Dimensions series is a student-designed and produced journal of student and faculty work, including M.Arch theses as well as submissions by and profiles of practicing architects.

TCAUP is currently celebrating its centennial, which is being marked by a variety of local, national and international events to both celebrate and reflect on the history of the school, as well as posit new trajectories for the future. Some of the many events include:

  • << PAUSE >> - as the first of two centennial conferences, held from November 2-4, 2006, << PAUSE >> was an introspective on the research, thoughts and works of the faculty at TCAUP. Moderated by several distinguished colleagues from outside the college, this conference was the college's rigorous attempt to establish its present identity and develop a more cohesive, inclusive dialogue between faculty for the benefit of the students.
  • Global Place: Practice, Politics and the Polis - was the college's second, and much larger, centennial conference, held from January 4-6, 2007, and addressed intersections and contradictions of the global and the local, with focus on the built environment. Prominent architects, artists and scholars spoke to both TCAUP and the world, including sociologist and economist Saskia Sassen, postcolonial theorist Homi K. Bhabha, and architects Charles Correa (ARCH: B.Arch. 1953); and Michael Sorkin.
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