Master of Science in Historic Preservation

The field of historic preservation is highly interconnected, even though people are working in their own specialties. Career opportunities

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can also open up in any part of the profession. For these two reasons alone, the curriculum is designed to give students a specialized education, a combination of theory and practice, to develop all the skills needed to understand and/or to practice in any area of preservation. It provides an intensive and broad-based education covering the four major areas of restoration and preservation: restoration design, preservation planning, architectural history, and materials conservation.

Chicago, a world center for modern architecture, provides the ideal environment for the program. The city is a living laboratory for the

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study of late nineteenth- and twentieth-century architecture, landscapes, and interiors—the development of the Chicago school of commercial architecture, the flowering of the Prairie style house, the progression of the City Beautiful movement in urban planning, and the creation of a broad spectrum of decorative building arts.

Located in the School's Sharp building (Holabird and Roche, 1903) in the center of downtown Chicago, near many of the early commercial landmark buildings, the MSHP program has its own studios, office, and resource center with Internet-connected computers. A laboratory for materials analysis, several computer labs, and the School's library are all housed in the Sharp building. The nearby museum of the Art Institute has extensive collections in areas of interest to students in historic preservation—the departments of architecture, European and American decorative arts, Asian art, and textiles. The museum's Ryerson and Burnham Libraries furnish world-class research facilities in art, architecture, and decorative arts.

Faculty members in the two-year MS in Historic Preservation program are all practicing professionals who have preserved or restored historic buildings, neighborhoods, and landscapes throughout the nation. Internships offer students practical experience working for pre-servation agencies, restoration architects and designers, or building conservationists. Class projects involve work on actual buildings and communities in and around Chicago, providing students with real-world experience. Graduates of the historic preservation program find jobs as preservation planners, consultants to restoration architects, historic site managers, historic building materials consultants, researchers, preservation advocates, and program directors.

In addition to course work, the two-year, 60 credit-hour program requires students to undertake an internship and write a thesis. The 210-hour internship with a preservation agency, conservator, restoration architect, or designer enables students to work on historically significant sites and to learn firsthand the latest preservation techniques. Our partnership with the Burren College of Art gives students the opportunity to study abroad in Ireland, with that nation’s historic preservation agency. The thesis demonstrates a student’s ability to produce sustained, scholarly work and develops the writing skills needed in the profession. The MSHP program’s balanced curriculum and emphasis on real-world experience prepare students for a wide range of professional opportunities. Graduates have gone on to become preservation planners, consultants to restoration architects, historic site managers, researchers, preservation advocates, and program directors. Because courses are interrelated, the program is geared for full-time students. Although part-time study is not prohibited, preference is given to applicants who plan to attend full-time. Candidates must have earned a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and completed three prerequisite courses:

• architectural drafting
• art history survey
• architectural history

Prerequisite classes must be completed and transcripts sent to the admissions office before beginning the program.

See admissions and services for further details.

Master of Science in Historic Preservation Curriculum Requirements

Area	Credit Hours
Core Courses Architectural design: Physical Documentation Restoration Design Studio Architectural & Social History: History & Theory of Historic Preservation American Commercial & civic Architecture American Interior Design American Residential & Institutional Architecture Preservation planning: Archival Documentation Preservation Planning Preservation Law Physical conservation: Historic Materials & Technology Building Pathology Building Conservation Lab	39
Electives from any department	18
Thesis I	3
Thesis II	3
Completion of the thesis
Total Credit Hours	60

1. Students have a maximum of four years to complete the degree (this includes time off for leaves-of-absence).

2. A minimum of 54 credit hours must be completed in residence at the School. Up to 6 transfer credits may be requested at the time of application for admission and are subject to approval at that time. No transfer credit will be permitted after a student is admitted.

3. Full-Time Status Minimum Requirement: 12 credit hours.