Architecture Prep is made up of graduates from schools such as the Bartlett, Cambridge, Harvard GSD, the AA, and more. We sit down with you and help you develop successful architecture school application portfolios, personal statements and supplemental essays to architecture schools for both undergraduate and graduate programs.
“I had only a vague idea of what was needed for my architecture school applications. The tutors at Architecture Prep guided me through the process tirelessly, and I was accepted into my dream school. I am truly thankful.”
Sarah, BSc Architecture Applicant
AP tutors graduated at the top of their class from the best schools in the world. Now they work at some of the most competitive positions within architecture and the built environment.
The personal statement / application essay
As part of your application you will be required to make a written statement pertaining to your interests, achievements and goals. There is a substantial weighting on the personal statement, though it is not as important (for lots of schools) as the portfolio. Check out portfolio tips here. General The personal statement, or ‘essay’ as it is sometimes known in US circles, is the chance for you to tell the school exactly what it is about you that makes you a candidate in a sea of applicants. This will require a lot of introspection, especially as architecture isn’t something that’s…
The architecture school application portfolio
Image by RNDRD, Morphosis. GA Houses. 9 1981, 158 Perhaps you’re wondering, do I need a portfolio for architecture school? How long should an architecture portfolio be? How do I make a portfolio with no experience? We have some answers for you. Making a portfolio is a different experience for everyone, but there are some guides to stick to for a successful application. The most significant component of architecture school, the studio component, is broken down into two main factions. The first is the work you do (project content), and the second is how that work is made legible to…
Before you begin your architecture school portfolio
Probably one of the most significant things applicants freak out about is the application portfolio. You’ve been asked to, in a way, do the undoable. They don’t teach architecture in school; your physics teachers seem to think you should be focusing on learning about structural engineering and your art teachers are perhaps a bit too vague. You’ve been asked to: Collate your work and Create something that holds it all together, though Make sure it doesn’t include tons of work on standard architectural practice, whilst Making sure it is inherently architectural It seems strange to make a portfolio architectural…
How to communicate your work effectively
Intellectual pontification is bad. This is one of the biggest traps you may fall into. This post may help you work around this classic pitfall. Intellectual pontification is bad because of one, singular reason. My old tutor used to endlessly repeat this reason. I’d credit him, but I’m not sure who said it first. ‘The proof is in the pudding, and the pudding isn’t made of words.’ This essentially means that you can talk and write about your visual, sensory, audible, tactile etc. work as much as you want with all sorts of lofty ideas and long words…
What goes into an architecture school application?
This post deals with the basic components. For the individual components to be explained in more detail, such as the portfolio, interview, or personal statement/essay keep an eye on application resources. Part 1: Ultimately, your application depends entirely on which school / application system you’re using. Part 2: However, each school follows a similar structure, wherever it may be in the world. Part 1: There are two main application systems for major universities, and then lots of application systems for different independent schools. They are: UCAS (UK system) UK high schoolers will be familiar with this. This is the…
Architecture school selection
Architecture is vocational, and this has made each of its schools vary in certain respects. Aside from geographical and financial differences, schools differ in course structure, course focus, collaboration vs non-collaboration, written heavy, design heavy…etc. Many applicants panic when choosing a school because they worry that traits from each school may force their own interests. Graduates get employed and become different sorts of architects, academics and practitioners than if they studied elsewhere, and this can be daunting. You may be asking yourself, ‘what if I pick the wrong school!?’ Fear not. While you will pick up some of the…
Architecture school rankings
Image by AA School of Architecture You may be in the early stages of your architecture school application and happen to find yourself looking through all sorts of architecture school rankings. There’s nothing wrong with school rankings, as long as they’re valid. Many of them should be taken with a pinch of salt. Here are a few important things to remember when looking through rankings: QS is not necessarily a quality rank for architecture. There are a lot of MIT and Bartlett grads out there proud of how their alma mater places in the upper echelons of the QS architecture…
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