College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs
601 W. Nedderman Drive
Suite 203
Arlington, TX 76019-0108
UTA Master of Architecture Degree Approved as a STEM Program
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has approved UTA’s request to designate its Master of Architecture degree program as a STEM program, changing its Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code to reflect this. UTA will become the third university in Texas to receive this designation for a graduate architecture program, preceded by UT San Antonio and Rice University.
The STEM CIP Code of 04.0902 was created after the US Congress passed the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education (CTE) Act in December 2018, which recognized architecture as a STEM discipline. The change to this CIP for UTA’s Master of Architecture acknowledges the program’s strong emphasis upon the STEM areas of digital fabrication, environmental systems, structural systems, and materials research and construction.
The STEM designation will enable faculty and students to compete for STEM discipline grants from entities such as the National Science Foundation, Department of Education, Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Institutes of Health. Collaborative research endeavors with Civil Engineering’s Architectural Engineering program will benefit as well. Expanded scholarship opportunities also will be available for students, especially those from under-represented groups within the STEM professions.
International students in the program will be eligible for an additional 24 months of Optional Practice Training (OPT) due to its STEM designation, enabling them to seek OPT employment for a total of 36 months after graduating. This enhanced ability of American architectural firms to hire and retain talented international UTA alumni for up to 3 years complements the globalization of such firms, increasing the value of a UTA graduate degree in architecture.
Housed within UTA’s College of Architecture, Planning and Public Affairs, the Master of Architecture program will change its CIP Code to 04.0902on September 1, 2019. The change will apply to all students and faculty after that date.