Architectural Studies

What is architecture? The objective of the Five College Architectural Studies program is to cultivate concerned architectural designers and thinkers through a flexible yet rigorous interdisciplinary course of study. Our cross-disciplinary approach to architectural education introduces students to a multitude of ways of thinking about design in history, in theory and in the studio. The program encourages students to explore a broad cross-section of courses—both in and beyond the architecture discipline of architecture across the Five Colleges—and introduces students to a diverse collection of faculty members, methodologies and design approaches.

About the Program

The Five College Architectural Studies program encourages a serious commitment to the study and practice of architecture. It also opens students to discovering the ways in which architecture effects change in—and is affected by—its surrounding environment. Students are strongly encouraged to explore, study and analyze elements of the design process, including urban fabrics, social structures, environmental systems and economics of building. While immersed in a diverse cross-section of courses in a multitude of disciplines, students are encouraged to identify and develop their individual role as designers and thinkers. The impact of their actions on an individual, community and national level are probed.

The Five College architecture program embraces the complexity of the process and practice of architecture and attempts to convey—to students and to the community—the many sides of design. We explore architecture through: art, technology, environmental studies, history, theory, psychology, physiology, physics, media design, sociology, semiologylinguistics, politics, science and math; we consider creative modes of operation while we look at creativity, patterns, actions, weight, power, force, light, memory, time, sound, color, language, programming, syntax, form, environment, resources, humanity, struggle, infrastructure, consciousness, perception, networks, materials, transport, commodities, community, marketing, family, public-ness and private-ness. Students will find a personal connection to architecture by investigating the many ways in which the built environment impacts their lives and the ways in which they as students of architectural history, theory and practice might, in turn, change that world.

The Major

Amherst College, Hampshire College and Mount Holyoke College participate in the Five College Architectural Studies (FCAS) major. 

Please contact your advisor for more information about how the major works at your school.

Note that if you don't see classes from all campuses currently listed, they will appear as the campuses release their course schedules for the semester. The five campuses release their schedules on different dates. Visit this page for specific dates.

Program Co-Chairs:

Naomi Darling, Five College Associate Professor of Sustainable Architecture, Mount Holyoke College and UMass Amherst

Erika Zekos, Senior Lecturer in Architecture, UMass Amherst 

Five College Staff Liaison:

April Shandor, Academic Programs Coordinator

Connect with us:

Join our email list! The Five College Architectural Studies email list is open to faculty, staff and students interested in Architectural Studies to share announcements and information.