Dalhousie architecture (BEDS) admission requirements: two years of university, a 2.5 GPA and a portfolio

Dal's professional architecture program has three parts. Years 1 and 2 are courses in any subject, at any university. Years 3 and 4 are the Bachelor of Environmental Design Studies. Years 5 and 6 are the Master of Architecture. You need the MArch and further licensing steps to become an architect.

So in Grade 12 you apply to a regular first degree. Dal's School simply suggests a subject you're likely to do well in. Many students in the program come in with a full degree, though only two years are required. If you start at Dal, the Bachelor of Science asks for a 75% minimum overall average, Academic English 12 and Pre-calculus Math 12.

A Grade 12 student today could start first year in fall 2027 and apply to BEDS in early 2029, for fall 2029 entry. Check your Grade 12 average with our Top 6 average calculator.

Dal advises high school students to take courses in three areas: art or music, math or science, and history or literature. It notes that Grade 12 math is a prerequisite for later university math and science courses.

In university, plan your two math or science courses, two humanities or social science courses and one writing course early. Dal also advises every applicant to take a freehand drawing course and a course in a material such as wood, metal or ceramics. Our high school course planner can help you map Grade 11 and 12.

Your portfolio is a single PDF of about 10 to 15 items, no larger than 20 MB, with your name on the first page. It can hold freehand sketches, precise drawings, paintings, furniture, sculpture, craft objects, creative photos, design projects or building projects. Don't add animations or links to outside files.

For group projects, Dal asks you to list the team members and describe your role. Dal's pages do not ban outside help with the portfolio, but they do ask you to show your own part in shared work.

You also send a personal statement of 1 to 2 pages about your interest in architecture and in Dal, a resume of 1 to 2 pages, and two signed reference letters. At least one should come from an academic instructor, ideally at university. SAT and GRE scores are not needed. If English is not your first language, Dal asks for IELTS 7.0 or TOEFL 92 iBT, the same as its graduate programs.

The minimum is a 2.5 grade point average, which Dal calls a B- average, over two years of university. Dal says priority goes to applicants with a good academic record and creative design ability. It also says admission is competitive, so meeting the minimums does not guarantee a seat.

Dal admits 70 students to BEDS each September. It does not publish an admitted average or a cutoff. Applicants who are 25 or older can apply as mature students without every academic requirement, but everyone needs at least one full year of university.

Dal's dates page lists March 1, 2027 for September 2027 entry to the Bachelor of Environmental Design Studies (Architecture). The School's application page says the portal opens in January and the deadline is March 1, and new BEDS applicants hear back in mid May.

The School's application steps still name the 2026-2027 academic year, so Dal has not yet posted the steps for later years. Expect a similar March 1 deadline in the year you apply, and confirm. See our Canadian deadlines page.

Dal may count one year of university equivalence for college study. Two or more years at a college or institute of technology plus one year at a university is normally acceptable.

If you studied architectural technology at a college for two or more years, you must also finish one full year of non-architecture courses at a university. Students who went straight into a university architecture program must also complete a full year of non-architecture courses first.

Each year covers five areas: design, representation, humanities, technology and professional practice. Terms include architectural history, building technology, representation and studio design. BEDS ends in April, and graduates may then be admitted to the MArch, which starts in early May.

BEDS includes a co-op work term, and Dal's pages describe its length two ways. The work term page and the program page say 12 weeks (500 hours). The courses page calls it a four month co-op work term. The MArch work term is 24 weeks (1000 hours) on one page and eight months on the courses page. Confirm the length with the School. Students usually work in an architecture office on design drawing, model making, computer drafting and construction supervision.

Dal charges by billing hour, at the rate of each course. For 2026-2027, Architecture is $314.50 per billing hour, or $4,717.50 for a 15 billing hour term. Dal's fall term estimate for Architecture is $6,754.93 and its winter estimate is $5,955.14, including auxiliary, society and incidental fees.

Our estimate, not a Dal figure: adding those two terms gives about $12,710 for one BEDS year at 2026-27 rates. Your first two years cost the rate of your own courses. Arts is $301.00 and Science is $341.50 per billing hour. Co-op students also pay a co-op program fee of $562.38 and a co-op orientation fee of $337.84. International students pay more.

If you start your first degree at Dal, you can apply for the General Entrance Award program. For 2027-2028 it opens October 1, 2026 and closes February 15, 2027. Dal says you typically need an 80% average to qualify. BEDS applicants are coming from university, so these entrance awards apply to your first year, not to BEDS itself.

If you want to start design work right away, Dal's Bachelor of Planning Studies takes students directly from high school. It asks for a 70% minimum overall average, Academic English 12, Academic Math 12, one academic Science 12 and two more academic subjects. Its first year includes Introduction to Community Design.

Planning is a different profession from architecture, but both are in Dal's Faculty of Architecture and Planning. Compare other routes on our Waterloo, Carleton and McGill pages, which admit from high school.

Becoming an architect through Dal takes about six years and two degrees. The first two years can be at any university, so your child could study closer to home first. Encourage a first degree they'd finish if BEDS doesn't work out, since 70 seats is a small class.

Help them keep a record of drawings, models and making projects from now on. Our Dalhousie guide covers life in Halifax.