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
    Waterloo Park is a 11-acre park and green space along Austin’s Waller Creek less than one mile from the @utaustin campus.
    @utsoa

    Waterloo Park is a 11-acre park and green space along Austin’s Waller Creek less than one mile from the @utaustin campus.

  • Instagram Post
    Assistant Professor Daniel Koehler’s (@punktiert ) advanced research-by-design studio is exploring the convergence of Generative AI (GA) and advanced material systems in architectural design, using the typology of a contemporary school building as a testing ground. <br>
    @utsoa

    Assistant Professor Daniel Koehler’s (@punktiert ) advanced research-by-design studio is exploring the convergence of Generative AI (GA) and advanced material systems in architectural design, using the typology of a contemporary school building as a testing ground.

  • Instagram Post
    Thank you to everyone who joined us for the Landscape First conference last week!
    @utsoa

    Thank you to everyone who joined us for the Landscape First conference last week!

  • Instagram Post
    A multidisciplinary team of students took home first place in this year’s @americanplanningassociation Planning and Design competition.
    @utsoa

    A multidisciplinary team of students took home first place in this year’s @americanplanningassociation Planning and Design competition.

  • Instagram Post
    “540 Howard St.” by Jamie Treadwell for Lisa Iwamoto’s and Craig Scott’s (@cs_sf) Advanced Studio // 2023-2024 Design Excellence winner<br>
    @utsoa

    “540 Howard St.” by Jamie Treadwell for Lisa Iwamoto’s and Craig Scott’s (@cs_sf) Advanced Studio // 2023-2024 Design Excellence winner

  • Instagram Post
    Students in @juanasalcedoo’s advanced studio “Caring Cities / Hybrid Infrastructures” recently returned from Bogotá, Colombia.
    @utsoa

    Students in @juanasalcedoo’s advanced studio “Caring Cities / Hybrid Infrastructures” recently returned from Bogotá, Colombia.

  • Instagram Post
    We caught up with Assistant Professor of Practice @juanasalcedoo about her exhibition “Jaguar Lens” ahead of @UT_LLILAS’ Urban Entanglements Conference, which kicks off this evening and continues through March 28. <br>
    @utsoa

    We caught up with Assistant Professor of Practice @juanasalcedoo about her exhibition “Jaguar Lens” ahead of @UT_LLILAS’ Urban Entanglements Conference, which kicks off this evening and continues through March 28.

  • Instagram Post
    Tune in tomorrow for a special Career Services Instagram Takeover! <br>
    @utsoa

    Tune in tomorrow for a special Career Services Instagram Takeover!

  • Instagram Post
    Associate Professor Aleksandra Jaeschke’s recent scholarship explores and questions the validity of the frameworks used in architecture, emphasizing the importance of integrating knowledge from other domains, expanding system boundaries, and embracing non-Western perspectives.<br>
    @utsoa

    Associate Professor Aleksandra Jaeschke’s recent scholarship explores and questions the validity of the frameworks used in architecture, emphasizing the importance of integrating knowledge from other domains, expanding system boundaries, and embracing non-Western perspectives.