A woman in a black shirt stands in front of a large architectural plan, pointing to a section on the map while presenting to an audience.
ARCHITECTURAL STUDIES MINOR

The Architectural Studies Minor is designed to provide a foundation in architecture concepts for students in majors outside of the School of Architecture. Students may obtain only one minor from the School of Architecture. 

To fulfill the Architectural Studies Minor, students must complete 15 semester hours of coursework as described below. At least half of the coursework must be completed in residence at The University of Texas at Austin. All coursework must be taken on a letter-grade basis and completed in conjunction with the student's major requirements. Six hours must be upper-division.

HOW TO APPLY

  1. Apply for your SOA minor of choice in UT Direct through the Minor/Certificate Inventory System. Students may only apply for one SOA minor. Multiple applications to our different minors will be rejected.
  2. Complete the required survey after you have applied for a minor in the Minor/Certificate Suite. The Qualtrics survey will be accessible here: Required SOA Minor Survey.
    1. If the application window is open and you are experiencing problems accessing the survey, please contact soa-ug@austin.utexas.edu for support.
    2. If the survey is listed as closed and the application period has concluded, that means we are no longer accepting applications for that review cycle and you will need to try again once it reopens during one of the windows listed above. We do not accept late applications.
  3. Beginning Fall 2026, students must possess and maintain at least a 3.0 GPA in order to qualify for an SOA minor. Students who do not maintain at least a 3.0 GPA are at risk for being removed from the minor. 
  4. Please note, meeting the above criteria does not guarantee you a spot in an SOA minor. Our space is incredibly limited in upper division courses with seating preference awarded to SOA majors.
    1. Students who are in their final year at UT with no Architecture, Interior Design, or Landscape Architecture coursework completed are unlikely to complete the minor in full and are encouraged to consider alternative options; especially if you are required to complete a minor as part of your degree requirements.

COURSES

LOWER-DIVISION
ARC 308 Architecture and Society
ARC 318K World Architecture: Origins to 1750
ARC 318L World Architecture: The Industrial Revolution to the Present

UPPER-DIVISION
Architecture 327C through 327U courses
Architecture 342C through 342U courses
ARC 350R Topics in Design Theory (Topic 1, 3 OR 4)
ARC 369J City Architecture

OTHER MINORS

Several people are reading or talking in a rendering of a sunlit courtyard filled with lush greenery, flowering plants, and vines climbing the walls. A butterfly flies near the center, creating a peaceful, natural atmosphere.

INTERIOR DESIGN

A detailed architectural blueprint showing various floor plans, cross-sections, and construction notes for a building, spread out on a table with some sheets of white paper partially underneath.

ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY

A group of people sit on a grassy area outdoors, sketching or drawing on large sheets of paper, surrounded by trees and greenery in natural sunlight.

LANDSCAPE STUDIES