Type | Public architecture school |
---|---|
Established | 1980 |
Dean | Brian Schriner (Dean, College of Architecture + The Arts |
Location | Miami, Florida, U.S. |
Website | soa |
The FIU School of Architecture is the architecture school at Florida International University, located in Miami, Florida in the United States. It is one of the university's 26 schools and colleges and is a school within the College of Architecture and the Arts. The school was founded in the 1980s.
The FIU School of Architecture is composed of three closely aligned departments: Architecture, Interior Architecture, and Landscape Architecture + Environmental and Urban Design. Jointly headed by the three department chairs, the School of Architecture provides a rich and diverse platform for interdisciplinary activities at the curricular and research levels. Students in any of the SOA disciplines are taught together in a single design stream for the first two years of their curricula, and then come back together for integrated design charrettes and studios as advanced students. Under the aegis of the School of Architecture, faculty in the three design disciplines apply for grants together, collaborate on the writing of books, and undertake design research through studios and external charrettes involving graduate students.
In 1995, the school began its Master of Architecture program. In 2001, the school began construction on its new home, the Paul Cejas Architecture Building, and in 2003 the school moved from its decades-long home on the second floor of Viertes Haus to the Paul Cejas Architecture Building. Viertes Haus only provided enough space for classrooms and no studio spaces for the students. The Paul Cejas Architecture Building was inaugurated on April 11, 2003. The building is named after former FIU trustee Paul L. Cejas, who years ago, as a member of the state Board of Regents, championed the creation of the school and later made a significant philanthropic gifts to FIU totaling $2 million in support of the School of Architecture.
In 2008, the school converted all its undergraduate bachelor's degrees to their graduate master's equivalents. Previously, an undergraduate student would receive a Bachelor of Arts in Architecture, and then upon graduation, would apply for the 2-year Master of Architecture professional degree. Now, all undergraduate students start in their master's program beginning their freshmen year, and graduate in either 5 or 6 years.