Historic Preservation

Students documenting a historic building in south Texas
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
HOW TO APPLY

Historic preservation seeks to find effective and artful ways of maintaining and reusing significant buildings, landscapes, and communities. Central to the discipline is the attempt to preserve cultural identity in the face of the threats of urban sprawl and loss of social diversity.

The Historic Preservation Program at The University of Texas at Austin exposes students to multiple fields in the discipline of historic preservation—architectural conservation and documentation, historic site management, and preservation planning and development. The coursework is practical, technical, and theoretical in scope, encompassing the study of history, research techniques, materials conservation, documentation and interpretation of historic resources, restoration methodologies, and sensitive design for adaptive reuse.

Students explore a wide array of historic properties, from rural vernacular sites to significant works of the Modern Movement, from interior furnishings and buildings to landscapes and urban centers. The special emphasis of the program is on works of the later nineteenth and twentieth centuries, especially on examples of Modernism. International travel is strongly supported by the program. Recent students have studied in Italy, Mexico, Turkey, and Ukraine, and there are also programs currently under development in China, France, and the Dominican Republic.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

Preservation in the Americas Cover

Preservation in the Americas—Finding Our Shared History

Structure within Carlsbad Caverns' Historic District

Work with the National Park Service

Historic preservation

DEGREES + PROGRAMS

The Historic Preservation Program at the University of Texas as Austin offers a graduate-level degree program and a doctoral-level degree in Historic Preservation, which can be achieved through the lens of Architecture or Community & Regional Planning.     

GRADUATE PH.D. 

Master of Science in Historic Preservation

Ph.D. in Historic Preservation

HISTORIC PRESERVATION STUDENTS IN ACTION

  • Instagram Post
    Scenes from our 2022-2024 Emerging Scholar in Design Fellow Tyler Swingle’s visit to Stuttgart, Germany.
    @utsoa

    Scenes from our 2022-2024 Emerging Scholar in Design Fellow Tyler Swingle’s visit to Stuttgart, Germany.

  • Instagram Post
    In this month’s issue of @txarchitects, Dean Heather Woofter outlines some of the upcoming priorities for the School of Architecture, and the evolution of architectural education in our changing world.<br />
    @utsoa

    In this month’s issue of @txarchitects, Dean Heather Woofter outlines some of the upcoming priorities for the School of Architecture, and the evolution of architectural education in our changing world.

  • Instagram Post
    Spring (break) has sprung 🪻 Don’t forget to stop and smell the bluebonnets
    @utsoa

    Spring (break) has sprung 🪻 Don’t forget to stop and smell the bluebonnets

  • Instagram Post
    If you’re heading out for SXSW this weekend, several School of Architecture community members are participating in this year’s conference!<br />
    @utsoa

    If you’re heading out for SXSW this weekend, several School of Architecture community members are participating in this year’s conference!

  • Instagram Post
    Work from our 2024-2026 Emerging Scholar in Design Patrick Danahy’s Advanced Design Studio “Post-Industrial Tower Houses,” by students Edward Bondoc @edri295 (1-4) and Luke Jerome (5-8).<br />
    @utsoa

    Work from our 2024-2026 Emerging Scholar in Design Patrick Danahy’s Advanced Design Studio “Post-Industrial Tower Houses,” by students Edward Bondoc @edri295 (1-4) and Luke Jerome (5-8).

  • Instagram Post
    Tomorrow, @rohunjararam is taking over our stories to show us what his studio got up to last month in Bogota, Colombia. <br />
    @utsoa

    Tomorrow, @rohunjararam is taking over our stories to show us what his studio got up to last month in Bogota, Colombia.

  • Instagram Post
    Tune in on tomorrow for a special student takeover highlighting Professor Juan Miro’s 2024 Studio Mexico! Architecture students @gracelevatino and @camilaveratudela will be showing us what their studio got up to in Mexico City during their week-long visit earlier this month.
    @utsoa

    Tune in on tomorrow for a special student takeover highlighting Professor Juan Miro’s 2024 Studio Mexico! Architecture students @gracelevatino and @camilaveratudela will be showing us what their studio got up to in Mexico City during their week-long visit earlier this month.

  • Instagram Post
    On Wednesday, Lindsey Wikstrom, founder of @mattaforma, joins our Spring 2024 lecture series to explore the role mass timber and renewable materials should pay in ensuring the planet’s survival.<br />
    @utsoa

    On Wednesday, Lindsey Wikstrom, founder of @mattaforma, joins our Spring 2024 lecture series to explore the role mass timber and renewable materials should pay in ensuring the planet’s survival.

  • Instagram Post
    Happy Friday 🌸
    @utsoa

    Happy Friday 🌸