A liberal arts education provides a unique and imaginative approach to studying architecture and design. It allows for a vast, cross-disciplinary study of more than just the buildings themselves. This study that St. Olaf provides is the ideal education for a student like me, looking to achieve more than just the conventional surface-level study of architecture. This liberal arts approach is advantageous. It allows me to take a step back, and critically examine the broad field of architecture, while also allowing me to narrow in on specific architectural topics often overlooked, and further ascertain them as a complete study. For example, in my studies, I am able to explore how architectural design has historically influenced society, while at the same time, exploring what aspects of design enable the structures to actually have this power of influence. Often, because of the cross-disciplinary nature of St. Olaf’s courses, I am able to gain this knowledge, and then apply it to other courses, all creating this interactive web of knowledge, that for me, is “architecture.” This cross-disciplinary approach allows me to mesh multiple narratives into my study.
This major is also ideal for St. Olaf College because it allows me to (literally) push the boundaries of my study of architecture. St. Olaf College, being ranked #1 in study abroad, has given me the very unique opportunity to explore architectural design worldwide. The ease and convenience in studying abroad at St. Olaf, is advantageous. Because I can easily take advantage of travel, my perspectives on architecture can be not exclusively limited to the United States, but rather diversified in a larger context.
The cross-disciplinary nature of this major allows me to relate classes and coursework to each other. For example I am currently integrating my knowledge of renewable energy systems from my environmental studies class in Copenhagen to this capstone project when I consider light, solar heating, and thermal mass for the structure.