Historic Preservation - School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Historic Preservation from School of the Art Institute of Chicago is a Campus Master Historic Preservation degree that prepares you for a Science career. SAIC's Master of Science in Historic Preservation [MSHP] program prepares students to conserve, revitalize, and promote our built environment. Preserving and reusing historic buildings, furnishings, sites, and landscapes creates continuity between the past, present, and future that contributes significantly to the health of our culture and society. Preservation is sustainability because the greenest building is the one already built. Chicago, a world center for modern architecture, provides the ideal environment for the program. The city is a living laboratory for the study of late-19th- and 20th-century architecture, urban design, landscapes, and interiors. SAIC students witness landmarks that describe the development of the Chicago school of commercial architecture, the flowering of the Prairie-Style house, the City Beautiful movement in urban planning, and a broad spectrum of decorative building arts. Faculty are all practicing professionals who have preserved or restored historic buildings, neighborhoods, and landscapes throughout the nation. The field of historic preservation is highly interdisciplinary and career opportunities can arise in any part of the profession; therefore, the curriculum is designed to give students all the skills needed to practice in any area of historic preservation. It provides intensive and broad-based education covering four major areas: restoration design, materials conservation , architectural history, and preservation planning. In addition to course work, the two-year, 60 credit-hour Historic Preservation 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. SAIC's Historic Preservation program has extensive international contacts and offers students significant overseas study opportunities. 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. The program is geared toward full-time students, and while 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. Incoming students must have completed prerequisite courses in architectural drafting, architectural history, and a survey of art history before beginning the program. View more details on School of the Art Institute of Chicago . Ask your questions and apply online for this program or find other related Historic Preservation courses.