UPENN DESIGN

How To Apply

Our online application can be accessed here. Once you begin your application, you may fill out
portions of the application, save your information, and go back in at a later date as long as you
submit the application before the deadline. Directions for uploading supporting material are
included in the application, as well as in our FAQ section.

If you are a current PennDesign student wishing to apply to a certificate program, the certificate
application form, including instructions for required materials, can be found here.

Certificate Programs

PennDesign students wishing to apply to a certificate program after they matriculate should
complete the Certificate Application and submit it to PennDesign's Office of Admission along
with a copy of their PennInTouch transcript. Students enrolled in other Penn graduate programs
may pursue certificates at PennDesign and can apply here. Additionally, our certificates can be
taken as stand-alone courses of study. This allows professionals to enhance and expand their
knowledge of their fields. The application can be found here.

The Certificate in Integrated Product Design is only available to PennDesign, SEAS, and
Wharton graduate students.
The Certificates in Urban Design and in Real Estate Design and Development are
available to PennDesign students only.
The Certificate in Environmental Building Design is available to PennDesign Master of
Architecture students only.

Required supporting material for each certificate can be found under the individual certificate
descriptions here.

Special Instructions for International Applicants

If you are not a US Citizen or Permanent Resident of the United States, please click here to view
our guidelines for international applicants. Please note that if you have attended a college or
university outside of the US for more than one year, you must submit a course-by-course
evaluation through WES (World Educational Services). The BASIC course-by-course evaluation
is sufficient. You do NOT need to send us a paper transcript. In addition, if you are admitted
to PennDesign before you have received your undergraduate degree, you will be required to
submit a second WES evaluation or upgrade showing your conferred degree prior to entering the
School of Design in the fall.

Application Deadlines
Students currently enrolled in a graduate or professional degree program at the University of
Pennsylvania may apply for Spring 2017 admission to our certificate programs. Spring certificate
admission is only available to current University of Pennsylvania students and those interested
should submit an application no later than November 1. Penn students not enrolled at
PennDesign should use our online application. PennDesign students should use our Certificate
Application Form.

Deadlines for Fall 2018 application are as follows:

December 15

Master of Science in Architecture

Ph.D. in Architecture
Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning

January 4

Master of Architecture Professional Degree

Master of Science in Design with a Concentration in Advanced Architectural Design
Master of Science in Design with a Concentration in Environmental Building Design

January 11

Master of City and Regional Planning

Master of Fine Arts
Master of Science in Historic Preservation
Master of Landscape Architecture
Master of Urban Spatial Analytics
All certificate programs

March 14

Notification letters are available online at 12:00 PM (noon, Eastern Daylight Savings Time). To
access your current application or to view your notification letter, click here.

Important note: Some departments will send their admitted students an informal notification
email prior to March 14. If you do receive such an email, it is essential that you still log in to
your application on March 14 to read your official notification letter. Your checklist will contain
any financial aid that we are offering.

Supporting Material

The following supporting material should be submitted through the online application.
Application Fee

An application fee of $80 must be submitted by credit card.

Transcripts and Evaluations

US Institutions
A scanned transcript from each US college or university attended for credit must be uploaded
into the application. In addition, you must have one official transcript (sealed and stamped)
from each college or university attended for credit sent directly to the PennDesign Office of
Admissions, 110 Meyerson Hall, 210 South 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6311.
Alternatively, we will accept official electronic transcripts sent directly from the US institution
to us at admissions@design.upenn.edu.

Non-US Institutions
Applicants completing undergraduate and/or graduate degrees from institutions outside of
the United States or that have completed more than one year of study for credit at a non-
US institution are required to submit a BASIC course-by-course evaluation from World
Education Services. http://www.wes.org/. You do not need to send us an official transcript
from your school. If you are admitted to your program before you have received your
undergraduate degree, you will be required to submit a second WES evaluation or upgrade
showing your conferred degree prior to entering the School of Design in the fall.

Study Abroad Programs. An applicant receiving a degree from a US college or university who
has participated in a study abroad program does not need to submit a WES evaluation for that
program IF the course names and grades from the program abroad appear on their main
transcript. If the course names and grades from the exchange program do not appear on their
main transcript and they attended the program for only one or two semesters, they may have the
study abroad institution send us an official (paper) transcript instead of submitting a WES
evaluation. However, if the study abroad program was longer than two semesters, they must
submit a WES course-by-course evaluation from the study abroad program in addition to their
official main transcript.

Letters of Recommendation

You must submit three letters of recommendation with at least two from college instructors.
Applicants who have been out of school for several years may submit recommendations from
employers or others in a position to evaluate their professional abilities and academic potential.
You will need your evaluators e-mail addresses when you fill out the recommendation section
of the application.

Personal Statement
You must upload a personal statement, no more than 500 words long, describing your
background, interest in your field, and your academic and career objectives. Your personal
statement should describe your background, your interest in the field to which you are applying,
and your academic and career objectives. You should be as specific as you can about the area in
which you plan to study. If you are an MFA applicant, you should include your ideas, as well as
the stylistic and conceptual priorities for your work.

Rsum

You must upload a rsum including employment, activities, community service, education, and
academic or professional honors.

Digital Portfolio

A digital portfolio must be submitted for applicants to Architecture, Landscape Architecture,

Fine Arts and Urban Design programs. Applicants to the Master of City Planning with a
Concentration in Urban Design are strongly encouraged to submit a portfolio of their design
work although it is not required. All work in the portfolio, including images and concepts, must
be original material created by you, and should be identified as academic, professional, or
personal. If professional or team projects are included in the portfolio, you must clearly identify
your specific role and responsibility in the production of the project. Labels and writing should
clearly explain the work. Paper portfolios are not accepted.

Architecture and Landscape Architecture Portfolios

Every applicant to the Master of Architecture, Master of Science in Design (both Advanced
Architectural Design and Environmental Building Design concentrations), Master of Landscape
Architecture, Master of Science in Architecture, or PhD in Architecture program is required to
submit a digital portfolio. Paper portfolios will NOT be accepted, and if submitted, will not be
returned. The portfolio is a synopsis of one's creative work. As a visual essay, it tells a story of a
person's interests, skills, and development over time. It should include projects that best express
one's visual, spatial, and constructional abilities. These projects might include drawings,
paintings, sculpture, or photography; graphic, industrial, or interior design; architectural,
landscape, or urban design. The faculty who evaluate the portfolios look less for competence in
architectural or landscape architectural design and more for a coherent demonstration of visual
and spatial abilities expressed through a basic understanding of material and construction.
Applicants to the MEBD and MSD should include at least five fully developed projects done
solely by the person submitting the portfolio; other group work can be added.

The digital portfolio should be formatted as one PDF document no larger than 10 MB, with no
more than 20 pages (maximum page size 10 x 12") or 10 pages (maximum 10 x 24") if you use
spreads. Cover pages or table of contents do not count towards total pages. We suggest that you
keep the format consistent. For instance, if you are using spreads, use all spreads. If you are
using pages, don't mix in spreads. Once your application is submitted, you will not be able to
make changes to your portfolio or upload a new one.
City Planning and Urban Design Portfolios
Applicants to the Certificate in Urban Design program should submit portfolios containing
reproductions of their work in the visual arts and design. Applicants to the Master of City
Planning program with a concentration in Urban Design are strongly encouraged to submit a
portfolio. Applicants with professional experience who wish to include examples of their
professional work may do so, but are advised to limit these to projects in which they had
principal design roles. If examples of collaborative projects are submitted, the applicant's
contribution should be specifically described. The digital portfolio should be formatted as one
PDF document no larger than 10 MB, with no more than 20 pages (maximum page size 10 x
12") or 10 pages (maximum 10 x 24") if you use spreads. Cover pages or table of contents do not
count towards total pages. We suggest that you keep the format consistent. For instance, if you
are using spreads, use all spreads. If you are using pages, don't mix in spreads. Once your
application is submitted, you will not be able to make changes to your portfolio or upload a new
one.

Fine Arts Portfolios

A portfolio is required of all applicants to Fine Arts, Time-Based and Interactive Media, and
Emerging Design and Research programs. The portfolio should indicate your major interest,
represent your best work, and demonstrate your abilities. At least half of the portfolio should
consist of work completed in the last two years. Applicants may choose to provide still images
and/or video. All work in the portfolio, including images and concepts, must be original material
created by you, and should be identified as academic, professional, or personal. If professional or
team projects are included in the portfolio, you must clearly identify your specific role and
responsibility in the production of the project. Labels and writing should clearly explain the
work.

Still Images
For still images, a total of up to twenty (20) images should be submitted. You will need to
combine your images into a single PDF to upload. The portfolio should contain a total of twenty
(20) RGB JPEGs. The review panel reviews slides at 1920 x 1080 pixels. If your images are
larger than this, please follow these directions:

1. Resize in Photoshop, Image->Image size

2. First set the Resolution to 72 Pixels/Inch
3. Set the Width so it is less than 1920 and the height so it is less than 1080
4. Save a copy of each image as jpeg at 90% quality (or 11/12 quality) for your submission
5. Each file should be just around 1 mb

To create your pdf, in Photoshop, go to File->Automate->PDF Presentation

1. Add your files
2. Check Presentation
3. Make Background Black or White
4. Don't include any text options
5. Leave "Advance Every" unchecked
6. No transitions
7. Click OK
8. Use the "Press Quality" Preset in the next PDF dialog box.

Video Submissions
We will accept up to 5 video links. Each video can be up to 10 minutes long. It is acceptable to
provide excerpts if videos are longer than 10 minutes. Submit all video work by providing up to
five links to your Image List PDF. Copy and paste the link to your video along with the title,
date, running time and intended format of presentation. Video hosting sites include (but are not
limited to) YouTube and Vimeo.

Image List for Fine Arts Portfolio Submissions

To describe your work, please include a list as follows: upload an additional PDF document
titled "Image Lis" describing the images uploaded and link URLs. The list should be headed with
your name and list the image number, title, date, medium, and dimensions of each work. For
video submissions, copy and paste the link to your video, also including the running time,
intended format of presentation (for example video installation, online video, cinema screening,
or not specified) for each video.

Writing Sample

Applicants to Master of Science in Architecture, Master of Science in Historic Preservation,

Master of Science in Design (both Advanced Architectural Design and Environmental Building
Design concentrations), and Ph.D. programs must submit a writing sample. M.S. in Architecture
and Ph.D. applicants must submit an essay or research report in English on the subject of their
field of specialization. M.S. in Historic Preservation applicants must submit an essay or research
report related to Historic Preservation and/or the history of the built environment. Applicants to
the Master of Science in Design degrees must submit one sample of writing and a description of
their computing skills and software proficiency. The latter can be either a paragraph or a list.

These writing samples can be examples of papers you have already written or they can be
prepared new for the application. We suggest that each sample should be no more than 10 pages.

Research Statement

Applicants to the PhD programs must submit a research statement. In a statement of no more
than 500 words, describe the area or field of study you propose, and if possible the topic or kinds
of topic you would like to research, explaining the importance of such a study, and the ways in
which you are prepared to undertake this research and writing.

Test Scores
Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores are required of all but MFA applicants
regardless of whether they are from the U.S. or abroad. To register for the GRE, go to
Educational Testing Service at www.gre.org. Official test scores must be sent by ETS to the
School of Design. The correct institution code to use when requesting scores is 2926; you do not
need a departmental code.. We suggest a minimum of 160 Verbal, 148 Quantitative, and 4.5 for
Analytical Writing. Keep in mind that these are not cut-off scores.

International applicants whose native language is not English and whose undergraduate
training of at least 4 years has not been conducted in the English language must submit
satisfactory certification of adequate English proficiency sufficient to pursue graduate study,
both comprehension and expression in the spoken and written word. Applicants must submit
scores of either the International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic),
Pearson's PTE Academic, or the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). We
suggest a minimum score of 100 on the TOEFL, 68 for the PTE Academic, and a band score of
7.5 for the IELTS, but these are not cut-off scores and we will review any complete application
we receive. If you have spent a minimum of 4 years in an English-speaking institution (for your
Bachelor's, for example), you will not be required to submit a TOEFL, PTE, or IELTS score.

Applicants may register for the IELTS at www.ielts.org, for the TOEFL at www.ets.org/toefl,
and for the PTE Academic at pearsonpte.com. The correct institution code to use when
requesting official TOEFL scores is 2926; you do not need a departmental code. Candidates
admitted to the School of Design may be required to successfully complete an English Language
Program prior to matriculation. They will be notified of this condition in their letter of
admission.

Application Checklist

Download an application checklist here.

MArch Prerequisites

To be admitted without conditions to the three-year Master of Architecture program, an applicant

is required to possess the following: an understanding of mechanics, heat, light, sound, and
electricity as demonstrated, for example, through the successful completion of not less than one
college-level physics course; an understanding of calculus, as demonstrated, for example,
through the successful completion of not less than one college-level calculus course; a general
knowledge of the history of Western architecture from ancient Egyptian through the modern
period, as demonstrated by the successful completion of not less than one college-level course; a
basic ability to produce freehand drawings of architectural forms and spaces, as demonstrated by
the successful completion of one college-level descriptive drawing course or by portfolio
submission of appropriate work from design studios; the successful completion of a minimum of
two semesters of college-level design studio courses. Candidates admitted with deficiencies in
any of these prerequisites must fulfill them before matriculation.
Dual Degrees or Degrees Plus Certificates

For a list of dual degrees, click here, and for certificates, click here. To apply to a dual degree
program, you must apply to the first degree program (preferably the one with the earliest
deadline) and submit that application. Once this application is submitted, you can fill out and
submit the second application. The application fee for the second program will be waived. If you
are interested in a degree plus certificate program, you will be able to apply for the certificate
program in the fall, after you matriculate into your degree program.