Graduate Program Admission
We are looking to enroll a diverse group of students from around the world who are comfortable working in innovative ways and seek to push the boundaries of the discipline.
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Programs
The admission process: an overview
Review our master's and doctoral program offerings to determine which program(s) are a fit for your graduate program application(s). You will complete an application to each program for which you wish to be considered for admission.
Applicants are responsible for completing and submitting all required application materials by the application deadline of January 10th. To ensure a complete and competitive application, review and reference this webpage as you complete your application.
Admission Timeline
mid-October - Graduate Program applications open in GradCAS.
early January - We will begin to review the application materials received when we return from Winter Break.
January 10 - Application Deadline - The application system will close on January 10th at 11:59pm EST. After the deadline, the application portal will close and no new applications will be accepted.
February 1 - Application materials must be received for applications to be considered complete. Incomplete applications may not be considered for admission.
February - The graduate admission committee will review Graduate Program candidate applications in February.
March - Admission decisions will be sent to master’s program applicants in early March. Candidates offered admission will have the opportunity to participate in admitted student programming to get to know the school.
April 15 - Deposit Deadline - Applicants need to accept their admission offer no later than April 15th to secure their place in the Graduate Program and to begin the initial enrollment process.
Application Requirements
Starting with the 2026-2027 Admission Cycle, the Carnegie Mellon Architecture Graduate Program will use GradCAS for admission applications. While we will continue to use SlideRoom to collect visual media such as the portfolio and/or video statement, the Graduate Program no longer uses SlideRoom for completing the full application.
Because our graduate programs are highly specialized, each program has unique application requirements. The chart below outlines the application requirements for the program that interests you with detailed information to follow.
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You will complete your application in GradCAS. Review all four quadrants of the application: Personal Information, Academic History, Supporting Information, and Program Materials. The first three quadrants are common to all GradCAS applications. The Program Materials section outlines the specific submission requirements and options for this program’s application.
Begin Your Application
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Through the Academic History section of GradCAS, request an official electronic transcript from U.S. schools you attended when completing your application in GradCAS. Select the appropriate electronic transcript vendor and follow the instructions for Sending Transcripts Electronically found in the GradCAS help center. GradCAS accepts electronic transcripts from Parchment and National Student Clearinghouse. If your school does not use one of these services, your transcript must be sent by mail from your school’s registrar to:
GradCAS Transcript Processing Center
P.O. Box 9217
Watertown, MA 02471For official international transcript(s) that cannot be sent electronically using Parchment and National Student Clearinghouse must request a certified transcript evaluation from ECE or WES. The electronic transcript evaluations can be ordered in GradCAS and when WES or ECE completes your evaluation, they'll send it to GradCAS. We do not accept unofficial or paper transcripts or evaluations in the School of Design. If a transcript is not in English, there must be an original or certified translation as part of the transcript(s).
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Upload to the Supporting Information section of GradCAS, your resumé/CV summarizing your education, employment experience, professional qualifications, and any noteworthy achievements.
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Upload a Personal Statement (1,000-1,500 words) in the Documents tab of the Program Materials section of GradCAS. Address the following:
Fit & Goals: Describe why CMU is a good fit for you at this point in your career, what specific focus areas you may want to explore in the Graduate Program, and your aspirations and plans for the future after leaving CMU, including how you hope to position yourself in design, research, and/or practice.
Background: Describe your background and most formative experiences leading you to pursue this particular program at CMU.
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Applicants whose native language/mother tongue is not English -AND- are not U.S. citizens must provide proof of English language proficiency. Submit at least one valid English proficiency score meeting our minimum requirements from one of the following exams: TOEFL; IELTS; or Duolingo English Test (DET).
Send official TOEFL and IELTS scores to GradCAS -AND- upload a copy of your score report to the Documents tab of the program's application:- TOEFL - Send to GradCAS with code: B886
- IELTS - Select "GradCAS" as the score recipient in your IELTS request.
If submitting Duolingo scores, include the link to your score report in the Program Questions tab of this program's application -AND- upload a copy of your score report to the Documents tab of this program's application.
TOEFL/IELTS/DET scores must be less than two years old for verification purposes. If you are interested in the online Duolingo English Test, please verify that you are administered a 2020 or later version on the 160-point scale with subsection scoring.
Applicants are required to report their official scores to GradCAS by the January 10th application deadline. Detailed answers to questions are outlined on the Graduate Admissions FAQ webpage.
Applicants whose scores do not meet the minimum requirements are strongly advised to retest with enough time to submit new scores before the deadline to ensure that the scores meet our admission standards for English language proficiency. Applications missing required scores may be considered incomplete.
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For the 2026-2027 admission cycle, the GRE is test-optional for master’s and PhD program applicants.
If submitting GRE scores, you must report them for verification purposes. To provide your GRE score, contact Education Testing Services (ETS) to send your GRE scores directly to our department using the institution code: 2074, GRE department code 4401. Official scores must be reported to Carnegie Mellon by January 10.
To facilitate on-time completion of your application, please schedule any required exams well in advance so that official scores are submitted to us by the deadline.
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If you have a personal/professional website that you would like to share with the admission committee, then you may include the link in the Program Questions tab of the Program Materials section of GradCAS.
If you would like to attach any other documents (e.g. research papers, professional writing, etc.) to your application you may add them to the Documents tab of the program's application.
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Upload your portfolio using the SlideRoom tab of the Program Materials section of the program's application. Format 25-30 pages in single spreads (landscape or portrait) saved as a single PDF document (maximum file size of 20MB with a maximum resolution of 150dpi).*
* M.Arch, MUD, MSRSD, and MSCD applicants are required to submit portfolios. Please reference the media section in SlideRoom for program-specific content and instructions.
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Upload to the SlideRoom tab of the Program Materials section of the application a 60-second video statement telling us something about you and your personal interests in architecture or the built environment.
The brief video needs no staging or post-production. Speak directly to the camera—we want to hear your authentic voice rather than viewing footage, slides, or your work. Keep production simple: clear audio, a steady camera, and no staging or post-production. Just just be yourself.
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Ask three individuals their permission to serve as references. We recommend selecting a variety of individuals who are familiar with your work and can speak to your qualifications for graduate studies.
Assign three references to your application in GradCAS. Once you have saved the recommendation request, your reference will receive an email from SlideRoom requesting them to submit a letter of recommendation and complete an evaluative recommendation form on your behalf. We recommend you advise your recommender to look for this important email in their email inbox as well as their spam and junk folders as sometimes these requests get filtered out.
We encourage you to contact your recommenders well in advance—at least one month before you plan to submit your application—to give them plenty of time. To help them write the strongest letter possible, we suggest providing them with materials like your resume, personal statement, and a clear deadline. Please remind them to check their email spam folder if they don't see the recommendation invitation from GradCAS.
Please be sure your recommenders submit their letters by the January 10th deadline. Your application may not be considered complete for committee review until all three required reference letters have been submitted on your behalf through GradCAS.
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Applicants are required to pay the $100 application fee.
Admission Review Process
Review of Application Materials Received
Our team begin an initial administrative review of applications received in mid-January to check for all required materials. Check GradCAS for application status updates. Incomplete application materials must be received no later than February 1 for applications to be considered complete.
In early February, complete applications will be assigned to at least three reviewers of a program’s admission committee. Applications that remain incomplete as of February 1 may not be considered for admission.
Evaluation of Application for Admission
All applications receive a first round of evaluations that are blind to other reviewers' scores and comments. The application review is based on a holistic approach that takes into consideration the requirements of the program and the application materials submitted. Each reviewer will complete a rated evaluation that considers an applicant’s statement of purpose, academic achievement, non-academic experience, references, and portfolio (for programs requiring one).
In mid to late February, members of each program’s admission committee will collectively meet with the admission director to review the first round of evaluations and discuss potential candidates for admission. It is at the discretion of each program’s admission committee if applicant interviews will be conducted as part of a second round of evaluations. Those applicants that the committee would like to interview will be contacted by the program’s track chair in mid to late February to set up a remote interview via Zoom with consideration of domestic and international time zones. Most master’s program applicants will not receive an interview. Therefore, an invitation to interview is not an indication of admission consideration.
The Graduate Program Admission Committee will complete all rounds of application evaluations by late February.
Evaluation of Eligibility for 2-year M.Arch Program
For NAAB-accreditation purposes, M.Arch program applicants being considered for admission will advance to a final round of evaluations to assess the content of their non-accredited degree. The M.Arch program track chair and admission director will review the applicant’s official transcript, previous undergraduate coursework, and experience outlined in a candidate’s resumé to evaluate on a binary yes/no basis if a candidate meets the overall requirements for placement in our two-year M.Arch program based on the following criteria:
- Architectural Design Studio Courses: 72 units (24 credit hours)
- Fundamentals of Architectural History & Theory or equivalent: 18 units (6 credit hours)
- Fundamentals of Structures and/or Construction: 18 units (6 credit hours)
- Fundamentals of Environmental Science and/or Systems or equivalent: 9 units (3 credit hours)
- General Studies: 36 units (12 credit hours)
We define General Studies in alignment with NAAB's description, which considers all non-architecture courses that provide basic knowledge and methodologies of the humanities, fine arts, mathematics, natural sciences, and social sciences.
M.Arch program applicants who do not meet the overall requirements for placement in our two-year M.Arch program based on this final evaluation will not be offered admission.
Notification of Admission Decisions
Each applicant will receive a final admission decision letter via email from "Carnegie Mellon Architecture | Graduate Admission" by March 15th. Contact the admission director, Alexis McCune Secosky, by email to inquire about the status of your final decision if you have not received your admission decision letter by March 20th.
Questions?
If you have any questions about your application, please refer to the Graduate Program Application FAQ. For more information, contact Carnegie Mellon Architecture Graduate Admissions.
Statement of Assurance: Policy Statement
Carnegie Mellon University does not discriminate in admission, employment, or administration of its programs or activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, handicap or disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, creed, ancestry, belief, veteran status, or genetic information. Furthermore, Carnegie Mellon University does not discriminate and is required not to discriminate in violation of federal, state or local laws or executive orders.
Inquiries concerning the application of and compliance with this statement should be directed to the university ombudsman, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, telephone 412-268-3930.
Obtain general information about Carnegie Mellon University by calling 412-268-2000.
The Carnegie Mellon University Statement of Assurance is available on the CMU website.