ONLY THE 6TH UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM IN THE NATION

The Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Urban Design is the only program of its kind in Texas and surrounding regions with an increasing demand for bachelor's-level sustainable degrees.

The only program in Texas and surrounding states:

  • Located within the 4th-largest metropolitan area in the nation
  • Located within the Metropolitan Statistical Area with the highest demand by employers for bachelor’s-level sustainable design and urban planning professionals in Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and New Mexico.

The only program in the nation that incorporates all the disciplines necessary to bring an urban design project to fruition:

  • Landscape Architecture
  • Architecture
  • Urban Planning
  • Public Policy and Administration

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Urban Design is a four-year program (120 credit hours), whose innovative curriculum prepares students for the rapidly growing interdisciplinary field of urban design with approximately 120 credit hours, including 18 hours of prescribed electives from over a dozen disciplines:

  • Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
  • History of Urban Design, Form and Infrastructure
  • Information and Data Visualization
  • Landscape Architecture
  • Sustainable Urban Communities
  • Urban Climate Change Studio
  • Urban Geography and Public Policy
  • Urban Mobility Studio
  • Urban Programming and Diagramming
  • Urban Resiliency Studio

MAJOR REQUIREMENTS

  • All entering students majoring in Sustainable Urban Design are admitted into our Design Basic Studies program.
  • Sustainable Urban Design Basic Studies students complete 1st and 2nd year UDES/ARCH/LARC/PLAN courses in the correct sequence and also complete their core curriculum. These courses must be completed before declaring major and enrolling into the 3rd/4th year major required UDES and LARC courses.
  • The Undergraduate Sustainable Urban Design Program consists of a series of lectures and design studios that must be taken sequentially. The program will take a minimum of 8 semesters (4 years) to complete for both new freshmen and transfer students.
  • The course sequencing of both the design and lecture courses has been designed to help students successfully complete the program. The course sequencing is strictly enforced.
  • After completing all requirements for admission to a degree program, students may be declared into the Architecture major. The department requires a minimum 2.8 GPA, both overall and within the major. 

The program prepares students to enter graduate programs in landscape architecture, urban planning, and public administration but the program is not a pre-professional landscape architecture program. Therefore, graduates of the B.S. in Sustainable Urban Design will need to enroll in Path A of CAPPA’s Master of Landscape Architecture program or an equivalent at another institution. 

FACILITATED ADMISSION OF OUTSTANDING UT ARLINGTON UNDERGRADUATES

The Master of Landscape Architecture program offers outstanding graduating students from UTA's Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Urban Design program the opportunity to participate in the Facilitated Admissions program.

Students are recommended for Facilitated Admission by the Master of Landscape Architecture Graduate Advisor. To qualify the students must meet the following minimum requirements:

  • Graduation from UTA's Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Urban Design program no more than one academic year prior to the semester for which facilitated admission is sought.
    • If the student has not yet graduated from the program, they must be in their final undergraduate semester and have applied for undergraduate graduation. 
  •  Achieved a grade-point average of 3.5 in these calculations:
    • Last 60 hours GPA as calculated in Graduate Admissions for admission purposes,
    • All work completed to date at UTA (cumulative GPA),
    • Within their major (from LARC and UDES courses)

Students who qualify for Facilitated Admission will be admitted into graduate school without completing the application for admission, submitting the application fee, or taking the GRE or GMAT test. The Graduate Advisor of the Master of Landscape Architecture program will complete an Facilitated Admission Application on behalf of the student. 

Students completing the Bachelor of Science in Sustainable Urban Design from UTA who do not meet the Facilitated Admission requirements above, may still be considered for advanced standing in the Master of Landscape Architecture program on individual review.

 

Prescribed Course Sequence

Fall Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
ARCH 1101 Student Success (UNIV 1131 for freshmen) 1
ARCH 1301 Introduction to Architecture and Interior Design 3
ENGL 1301 Rhetoric and Composition I 3
MATH 1301 Contemporary Mathematics 3
POLS 2312 State and Local Government 3
UDES 1301 Introduction to Principles of Sustainable Urban Design 3

Total Credit Hours: 16 hrs


 

Spring Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
ENGL 1302 Rhetoric and Composition II 3
LARC 4300 Introduction to Landscape Architecture 3
MATH 1303 Trigonometry 3
UDES 2303 History of Urban Design, Form, and Infrastructure 3
UDES 2441 Urban Programming and Diagramming I  4

Total Credit Hours: 16 hrs

Fall Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
GEOL 1330 Global Warming  3
GLOBAL 2301 Introduction to Global Issues 3
HIST 1301 History of the United States to 1865 3
PLAN 4356 Introduction to Geographic Information Systems 3
UDES 2442 Urban Programming and Diagramming II 4

Total Credit Hours: 16 hrs


 

Spring Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
HIST 1302 History of the United States 1865 to Present  3
PHYS 1351 Energy and Environment 3
POLS 2311 Government of the United States 3
UDES 3551 Urban Design Studio I: Urban Resiliency 5
 --- Social and Behavioral Sciences Elective 3

Total Credit Hours: 17 hrs

Fall Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
LARC 4324 Environmental Art and Data Visualization 3
PLAN 4320 Sustainable Urban Communities 3
UDES 3552 Urban Design Studio II: Urban Mobility
5
--- Prescribed Elective 3

Total Credit Hours: 14 hrs


 

Spring Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
PAPP 4307 Urban Geography 3
PLAN 4357 Intermediate Geographic Information Systems 3
UDES 3304 Digital Methods in Sustainable Urban Design 3
UDES 4551 Urban Design Studio III: Climate Change 5

Total Credit Hours: 14 hrs

Fall Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
UDES 4304 Capstone Prep Course 3
UDES 4552 Urban Design Studio VI: Advanced Sustainable Urban Design 5
LARC 4326 Des & Human Behavior: Landscape Architecture  3
--- Prescribed Elective 3

Total Credit Hours: 14 hrs


 

Spring Semester

Course Code Course Name SCH
UDES 4405 Capstone Project 5
--- Prescribed Elective  3
--- Prescribed Elective 3
--- Prescribed Elective 3
     

Total Credit Hours: 13 hrs


Total Program SCH: 120 hrs