The mission of the Certificate in Architecture is to provide UW-Madison students an opportunity to explore theories and practices of architecture, and the design and meaning of the built environment within socio-political, historical, cultural, and ecological contexts.
The population of the world now exceeds eight billion, half of which live in cities. These numbers will only increase as the century progresses, and the need to understand the issues and challenges in maintaining health, safety, and quality of life in the built environment has never been greater. A collaboration of architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects, and urban planners will be needed to apply art and science to address these challenges, using lessons from history to understand contemporary problems.
The certificate requirements create collaborative opportunities for students in engineering, architecture, art history, interior architecture, landscape architecture, and planning. For example, the certificate offers opportunities for engineering students to take courses in art history with students from art history and other majors. Similarly, art history students have opportunities to take courses in engineering, and so on. These cross-college educational opportunities are rare within established curriculum requirements and offer rich experiences for understanding the perspectives, theories, and practices of those in different professions.
At least 3 of the 15 credits will be taught online as a UW-Madison course number by architecture faculty at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee.
All undergraduate students in good academic standing are eligible to apply. We encourage students to declare as early as possible in order to plan their required coursework. Students should complete and submit the declaration form to declare the certificate.
program requirements
- Students must successfully complete at least 15 credits, including 9 credits in courses numbered 300 or higher.
- Students must complete certificate courses with a GPA of 2.000 or higher.
- Courses completed on a pass/fail or credit/no credit basis will not count toward these requirements.
Required Coursework
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Studio Requirement | 3 | |
| Architectural Making I | ||
| Architectural History Course | 3-4 | |
| Choose one from the following: | ||
| Architectural Thinking | ||
| A History of the World in 20 Buildings | ||
| History of Architecture and Interiors I: Antiquity through 18th Century | ||
| History of Architecture & Interiors II: 19th and 20th Centuries | ||
| History of Landscape Architecture | ||
| Electives | 8-9 | |
| Must select courses from at least two different focus areas. | ||
| Area 1: Studio | ||
| Architectural Making II | ||
| Frank Lloyd Wright - Design Seminar | ||
| Architectural Design | ||
| Design: Fundamentals I | ||
| Introduction to Landscape Architecture Design | ||
| Principles of Landscape Architecture Design and Graphics | ||
| Area 2: History | ||
| Introduction to Architectural Theory | ||
| Architectural Thinking | ||
| A History of the World in 20 Buildings | ||
| Introduction to African Art and Architecture | ||
| History of Islamic Art and Architecture | ||
| Romanesque and Gothic Art and Architecture | ||
| History of Wisconsin Architecture, 1800-present | ||
| Great Cities of Islam | ||
| Cities of Asia | ||
| Cities and Sanctuaries of Ancient Greece | ||
| Art and Architecture in the Age of the Caliphs | ||
| History of American Vernacular Architecture and Landscapes | ||
| Frank Lloyd Wright | ||
| History of Architecture and Interiors I: Antiquity through 18th Century | ||
| History of Architecture & Interiors II: 19th and 20th Centuries | ||
| Survey of Landscape Architecture Design | ||
| History of Landscape Architecture | ||
| Introduction to the City | ||
| Area 3: Tools | ||
| Architectural Visualization | ||
| Building Information Modeling (BIM) | ||
| Virtual Reality | ||
| Introduction to Landscape Architecture Design | ||
| Shaping the Built Environment | ||
| Civil Engineering Graphics (was ME 170 before Fall 2023) | ||
| Area 4: Construction | ||
| Electrical Systems for Construction | ||
| Mechanical Systems for Construction | ||
| Interior Architectural Design | ||
| Thermal Systems Modeling | ||
- Demonstrate knowledge of basic concepts in architecture and related disciplines
- Employ skills in scale and proportion, composition and form in both 2D and 3D
- Distinguish and develop a working knowledge of significant developments in architectural thinking across time and in a cross-cultural context
- Apply critical thinking to ideas and theories in the history of architecture
The Certificate in Architecture is a collaboration of the following departments:
- UW-Madison’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- UW-Madison’s Department of Art History
- UW-Madison’s Department of Design Studies
- UW-Madison’s Department of Mechanical Engineering
- UW-Madison’s Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture
- UW-Milwaukee’s Department of Architecture
Faculty representatives of the UW-Madison departments are as follows:
- Greg Harrington, Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering (Certificate Director)
- Anna Andrzejewski, Professor, Art History
- Michael Cheadle, Assistant Teaching Professor, Mechanical Engineering
- Uchita Vaid, Assistant Professor, Design Studies
- Edna Ledesma, Assistant Professor, Planning & Landscape Architecture