Info on NA field???

Hi,

I am a second year student in the field of Architecture and am interested in diverting to the field of Naval Architecture. I was wondering if continuing with a BArch, I would be able to complete additional educational requirements to pursue a career in NA ,i.e. masters(if thats even possible with a BArch) or associates, or if I would need to transfer from my Architecture studies completely.

I'd appreciate any feedback of information to clarify everything else I've read online!

Thanks!

 

have u check the course structure of NA ? its not like usual architecture.
you should have the basic science background.. it will be clear to you if u analyse the courses that offered from year 1 to final year. if u then think u r enough to take them.. then go ahead...
you have to start from first year of NA ,means need to transfer from architecture completely if want to be a NA ,,

 

One option would be to transfer to a university that offers naval architecture. As "zeroname" points out, naval architecture is often taught in a different manner to architecture, when taught outside of a university. Still, there is great value in having a degree when wishing to design commercial marine vessels. In fact, the drydocks & shipyards I have worked at require a p.eng. designation.

 

Personally, if your core interest is designing boats, yachts, ships, I would switch now. How focused is your naval architecture interest (what types of boats do you want to design) and what type of role do you envision playing? I'm not sure what your architecture program is like; the one I'm familiar with had the first two years balanced with conceptual, styling, physics, humanities, and mathematics (calculus, statistics/logic, etc.). Then the 3rd and 4th years got more into building systems, code compliance, structures, materials, and more architecturally-centric courses. The problem I see with doing both is that for the architecture degree to be something you can also use, you need to be licensed/accredited which probably means going well beyond the BA (a decade ago it was an MA + finishing the IDP hours as an intern). So as Zero says, look at the required courses for a NA degree and also the requirements to finish your architecture degree+licensure to a point it will be useful to you, add a little time for the unexpected, and take a minute now to evaluate how much steam (and money) you have and what you really want to focus on and really decide whether you want to split your energy to be happy or whether you want to lean one way or the other now.

 

If you are in the University of Califorina system, UCBerkley has NA under the ME/Ocean Engineering masters program that may be a good place to start.

As for the academics, transfering sooner may be better than waiting. With a BA in Architecture as opposed to a BSE, you will need to re-orient your structural understanding slightly and your fluids significantly if you drop into a NA masters program. Get all the higher math you can through non-linear Dif Eqs. Additionally, you will most likely not have any of the basic marine machinery or ocean engineering required for NA program.

Check out this resource site at SNAME. http://www.sname.org/SNAME/SNAME/Resources/Default.aspx

 

Also make sure you know what you are getting into. A naval architecture degree is an engineering degree. There is no required portfolio and no art or styling classes. It is math and physics. I'd also recommend comparing required classes of a naval architecture program. That should give you a good idea as what to expect.

There are some programs in Europe that allow you to study naval architecture or at least "boat design" at the masters level from other engineering fields and I believe traditional architecture. I have no info on these programs and no knowledge of how successful their graduates are.

http://www.chalmers.se/en/

http://www.ied.edu/Courses/Design/M...(English language)/info.html?courseId=DRG541E

http://www.english.polimi.it/academ...cation/specializing_masters/scheda.php?id=126

 

Sounds like you're at Cal Poly. An NA major is similar to a Mechanical Engineering major during the first two years. Talk to the ME students regarding their course work, because that is what you will need for Naval Architecture. Any math and science courses you may have already taken need to be ABET accredited to count for an NA program.