The Architecture Minor at Taubman College offers undergraduate students an accessible and interdisciplinary opportunity to explore the built environment as a lens for understanding the world. Designed for students from any major, the minor introduces architectural thinking as a way to engage critically and creatively with space, culture, history, sustainability, and design.
Eligibility
The Architecture Minor is currently open to undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA) and Taubman College (Urban Technology) who have a declared major* and have completed at least one semester at U-M.
*Urban Technology students are auto-declared into Urban Tech when admitted to the degree program.
We welcome interest from other units and the minor will continue to be submitted for consideration across campus. If your home unit is not yet listed above, complete this brief form to express your interest.
Minor Requirements
The 15-credit architecture minor contains a core introductory course, ARCH 212: Understanding Architecture, designed specifically for non-majors, which touches on all aspects of architecture’s inherently interdisciplinary content.
Beyond ARCH 212, students will select their remaining 12 credits from a list of courses across three suggested concentrations: Architectural Humanities, Design Studies, and Environmental Sustainability, with the choice to either concentrate in one area or spread their learning across all three.
Students must complete at least two upper-level courses (numbered 300 or above) as part of the minor.
How do I declare the architecture minor?
Eligible undergraduate students can submit a request to declare the minor by completing the declaration form linked above. You can expect to hear back from a member of the Taubman College advising team within 48 business hours.
If approved, Taubman College will notify your home unit who will update your academic record to reflect this. Please note that it may take a few days for that to occur, but there is no further action required on your part to make it happen.
I’m declared, what’s next?
As a new minor student, the main priority is to make progress toward completing the requirements. You’ll ultimately need to earn a minimum of 15 credits, including ARCH 212: Understanding Architecture, and 12 credits of pre-approved electives from this list.
As outlined on the Minor website, students choose to complete electives within three particular concentrations. These concentrations are completely optional. All of the pre-approved elective courses can count toward the minor and if you choose to explore beyond any one specified concentration, you will be credited with completing the ‘student-designated’ concentration instead. The concentrations are simply resources developed to help guide your course selection if you have deep interest in a certain area of content.
Architecture Minor Courses
The approved list of elective courses is dynamic and evolving. View the link below to view the latest version.
- Students may take minor courses in any order.
- Courses taken prior to declaring the minor will count toward minor requirements.
- Special topics or experimental courses often offer varied sections under the same course number. For example, ARCH 409 may be “Design Activism & Social Justice” or “Fresh Graphics”, depending on the term. Pay close attention to the Course Title to verify whether a particular course is approved to count toward the minor.
- The majority of the elective courses that count toward the minor are open classes and you can register for them during your regular registration period for an upcoming term.
- Select courses will have enrollment restrictions. You’ll need to work with the academic unit that owns the course to elect these courses. For example, you should contact Taubman College for assistance with classes such as URP 423 or ARCH 313, and LSA for assistance with SOC 216 or ENVIRON 222.
Minor Policies
When enrolled in a Taubman College-administered minor, students must abide by their home academic unitʼs policies regarding shared courses within distribution requirements and the minor, as well as those between major and minor or between multiple minors.
- Courses graded pass/fail may not be used toward the architecture minor.
- Test credits may not be used to meet the requirements of the architecture minor.
- Students must complete at least two upper-level courses (numbered 300 or above) as part of the minor.
- Generally, all U-M students can only double-count one course between your major and your minor. You are encouraged to refer to your home unit’s specific policies and confirm details with the academic advisor for your major.
- Courses elected to meet the requirements of a minor may also be part of a student’s area distribution plan.
- Students can only use up to two courses from outside of the University of Michigan for the minor (no more than 6 credits).
- A student must earn an overall GPA of at least 2.0 in the minor.
How can I check my minor progress?
After your home unit has added your declaration to your academic record, you’ll find a new section within your Degree Audit that is specific to the minor. As you enroll in and complete minor courses you’ll see them reflected in the appropriate concentrations. All concentrations will be visible until you’ve completed one in full. Please note that, depending on your major requirements and/or any exceptions you are granted, some of the courses may not initially appear as you expect on your audit. That will be resolved once you request a minor release and we work with your home unit to manually update things behind the scenes.
Requesting exceptions
While the pre-approved elective list is your primary resource for identifying appropriate minor courses, the list is always evolving and, in some cases, students may be able to petition for an exception to have an alternative course used toward the minor. A new exception process is being developed, but for now if you are interested in submitting a petition for an exception simply email TaubmanCollegeAdvising@umich.edu with the following: the course name, number and title, course syllabus and/or course description. Submissions will be reviewed by the Faculty Director of the Minor.
I changed my mind, can I drop the minor?
We understand that academic plans change. If at any time you decide that you’d like to drop the minor, email TaubmanCollegeAdvising@umich.edu, and we will work with your home unit to update your record.
Completing your minor
To officially graduate with your minor, you’ll need to obtain a Minor Release from our Taubman College Advising team. You can do so as soon as you’ve completed the minor requirements and/or are currently enrolled in your final minor course(s). Most students will request their Minor Release after they’ve registered for the final term before graduation. If you happen to complete your requirements early, you’re welcome to request a Minor Release prior to your final term. Just like your declaration, you can request your Minor Release by submitting the form linked above.