Architecture Brochure // College of Fine + Applied Arts // University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

DESIGNBE INNOVATIVE. A T ILLINOIS.

The Illinois School of Architecture
promises a world-class design education,
one that impacts both your future and
the future of the profession. Here, you
will learn to design buildings that:

• Improve our stewardship of natural
resources.

• Enhance how we live and work
together.

• Continue to amaze as they endure over
time.

Creating this world of beauty and
responsibility requires mastery of the art
and the science of architectural design.
That’s a world-class design education:
a promise we’ve been delivering on for
over 140 years.

Design tomorro w no w.

RECEIVE A WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION.

We have educated tens of thousands of
architects since our founding. And we
have done it by balancing a traditional
appreciation for structural integrity with
research-driven design innovation. Today
our graduates use that balanced approach
as they practice actively throughout the
U.S. and abroad. And when they see an
Illinois architecture graduate coming, they
know that with that diploma comes a talent
for design excellence fired by technical
virtuosity.

Build strong connections.

BENEFIT FROM OUR WORLDWIDE ALUMNI NETWORK.

Stand OuT.

OUR COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM GOES BEYOND DESIGN.

Design excellence fired by technical
virtuosity. What does that mean?
Simply put, Illinois architecture
graduates know how to put together
buildings. That’s why our grads are in
such demand.

Our curriculum breaks down the
complexity of architectural design, so
you end up knowing building design
from the inside out and the outside
in. Coursework covers everything
from drawing to structures to systems
to history to practice. It all comes
together in studio, where the art and
science of architectural design are put
to the test. It’s where your creative
vision begins teaching the world
to see its built environment in new—
startlingly new—ways.

Open Doors.

DIVERSE DISCIPLINES AND EXCEPTIONAL FACULTY CREATE OPPORTUNITY.

Our comprehensive design curriculum
provides the foundation you need to
meet tomorrow’s design challenges. Plus,
we offer an edge. At Illinois, you are part
of the College of Fine + Applied Arts. This
means you have the advantage of small
classes in subjects as diverse as urban
planning; graphic and industrial design;
and set, sound, and lighting design.

Taking classes in these and other arts
disciplines allows you to step out on the
very cutting edge of architectural design.
What’s more, classes across campus—in
psychology, information science, and
applied health, for example—expose
you to the latest research you need to
understand how people can thrive in the
spaces you make for them.

Find solutions together.

SOLVE REAL PROBLEMS WITH REAL PEOPLE.

In practice, you cannot solve every
design problem all by yourself. It takes
teamwork. And as an architecture
student at Illinois, you will learn to work
on teams. As part of a team, you will
always be learning how to reconcile
your unique creative vision with the
diverse perspectives of students and
faculty from around the state, the
country, and the world. It’s excellent
preparation for the real world of
practice where clients and colleagues
have myriad ways of achieving what
everyone wants—a better world.

For architects, designing a better world starts
with a bigger worldview. At Illinois, you will have
unmatched opportunities to study architecture
abroad. Our principal study-abroad center is located
in Barcelona, Spain, where our students spend a
year in residence exploring European architectural
traditions dating back centuries. You will move
seamlessly in and out of the Barcelona experience,
just as other students have done through our
Europe study-abroad program since 1970. Don’t
want to be away from campus for a full academic
year? The campus Study Abroad office offers
shorter-term options that span the globe.

Broaden your Worldview.

Imagine the possibilities.
FACILITIES MAKE THE DIFFERENCE.

We give you the space and tools you’ll need to research, refine, and realize your architectural imaginings.

For Designing
• Architecture Building, with historic studios bathed in natural light
• Temple Hoyne Buell Hall, designed by award-winning alumnus Ralph Johnson, FAIA, of Perkins+Will
• Temple Buell Architecture Gallery, a breathtaking space for exhibiting student boards and models
• Ricker Art and Architecture Library, with its unparalleled collection of architecture books, images, and

digital resources

For Making
• Woodshop
• Fabrication Laboratory
• Digital Modeling Lab
These facilities provide access to both traditional woodworking equipment and state-of-the-art digital
fabrication equipment, including a three-axis CNC router, a six-axis robotic arm, a vacuum former, laser-
cutters, and 3D printers.

For Computing
• Three labs, equipped with computers with industry-standard software for 3D modeling, rendering,

photo manipulation, and page layout
• Two state-of-the-art print labs, with nine large-format plotters, including one photo plotter and one

large-format scanner, as well as laser printers
• Template studios that house large-scale, individual-use, Wacom pen tablets

Since 1999, Dina Griffin has been president of Interactive Dudley M. Brooks, Ebony magazine.
Design Architects. Under her leadership, Interactive
Design has built a list of clients that includes the Art
Institute of Chicago, the Lincoln Park Zoo, the U.S.
General Services Administration, the City of Chicago,
and the University of Chicago. Her firm was recently
selected as a partner in the design of the Obama
Presidential Library in Chicago. She credits the education
and mentorship she received in the Illinois School of
Architecture as critical to her success as an architect and
a business leader. For Griffin and thousands more, success
in the architecture profession and many related fields
began at Illinois. Your success starts here, too.

M a k e the most of the opportunity.

YOU’RE IN WINNING COMPANY.

With a degree from the Illinois School of Architecture,
you will have access to exceptional career
opportunities that draw top salaries because our
program has earned a reputation for excellence
through the work of our faculty and our alumni
around the world. Illinois graduates are well prepared,
highly recruited, and generously compensated.

Career Fields Firms
• Architects • Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill
• Architectural Writers/Critics
• Architecture Faculty Architecture
• Construction Managers • BIG–Bjarke Ingels Group
• Corporate Architects • BLDD Architects
• Exhibit Designers • CannonDesign
• Furniture Designers • Gensler
• Graphic Designers • OKW Architects
• Interior Designers • Perkins+Will
• Lighting Designers • PGAV Destinations
• Production Designers • Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
• Public Architects • Space Architects + Planners
• Structural Engineers • Thornton Tomasetti
• University Architects • VOA

Draw Attention to yourself.

PUT OUR EXCEPTIONAL REPUTATION TO WORK FOR YOU.

Buildon tradition at Illinois.

Be innovative.
Be challenged.
Be extraordinary.
Choose the Illinois School of Architecture for a
world-class education and get ready to
change the world by design.

217.333.6061 + [email protected] + go.illinois.edu/FAAinfo
arch.illinois.edu + [email protected]

­F­ ront: Aqua Tower, Jeanne Gang (BS Architectural Studies, 1986), Studio Gang. Image by Denise
Czuprynski.
Back: Front entrance, Architecture Building, Charles Platt, 1925.