Residential Construction Minor

The objective of the Residential Construction Minor is to provide an opportunity for Penn State students to gain an understanding of the residential building construction topics and issues with emphasis on sustainable land development, design and construction of residential buildings, as well as construction management of residential projects.

Residential building construction is a unique interdisciplinary field that draws upon civil and architectural engineering, architecture, real estate, management, finance, and marketing disciplines. Design principles, including economical, safe, and serviceable structural design, green building systems design, sustainable land development, and construction management are also included.

This minor is expected to be primarily of interest to students from Civil and Environmental Engineering, Architectural Engineering, and Architecture majors, but students from other majors can also enroll in this minor. In planning a program, students should check the prerequisite requirements for courses they wish to include in their minor. The minor will help students increase their competitiveness for employment in the residential market and construction industry.

Minor Requirements

The Minor consists of 22 credits: 13 required credits and 9 additional credits. The 9 additional credits are based on four (4) tracks: Architectural Engineering, Architecture, Civil Engineering, and All Other Majors.

A grade of C or better is required in all courses in the Minor. Students must also maintain at least a 2.0 GPA.

Minor-Required Courses

ALL 13 credits required. Suggested semester: 5-8

AE 449 – Ultra-High Performance Buildings: Passive House Principles & Design (3 credits)
AE 470 – Residential Building Design and Construction (3 credits)
CE 410 – Sustainable Residential Subdivision Design (3 credits)
CE 411 – Residential Construction Design Project (1 credit)

Select 1 additional course to count for the 13 Required Credits:

AE 471 – Construction Management of Residential Building Projects (3 credits)
AE 475 – Building Construction Engineering I (3 credits)

Track-Required Courses

Only 9 credits required. Suggested semester: 3-8

Architectural Engineering

AE 202 – Introduction to Architectural Engineering Concepts (3 credits)
AE 372 – Introduction to the Building Industry (3 credits)
AE 402 – Design of Concrete Structures for Buildings (3 credits)
AE 404 – Building Structural Systems in Steel and Concrete (3 credits)
AE 432 - Design of Masonry Structures
AE 454 – Advanced Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning System Design (3 credits)
AE/CE 542 – Building Enclosure Science and Design (3 credits)
BE 462 – Design of Wood Structures (3 credits)

Architecture

AE 210 – Introduction to Architectural Structural Systems (3 credits)
AE 421 – Architectural Structural Systems I (3 credits)
AE 422 – Architectural Structural Systems II (3 credits)
ARCH 380 – Building Environmental Systems I (3 credits)
ARCH 412 – Integrative Energy and Environmental Design (3 credits)
ARCH 480 – Technical Systems Integration (3 credits)
BA 301 – Finance (3 credits), FIN 100 – Introduction to Finance (3 credits), or FIN 301 – Corporation Finance (3 credits)

Civil Engineering

AE 432 – Design of Masonry Structures (3 credits)
CE/AE 542 – Building Enclosure Science and Design (3 credits)
BE 462 – Design of Wood Structures (3 credits)
CE 332 – Professionalism, Economics, & Construction Project Delivery (3 credits)
CE 336 – Materials Science for Civil Engineers (3 credits)
CE 341 – Design of Concrete Structures (3 credits)
CE 432 – Construction Project Management (3 credits)

All Other Majors

Can choose from the courses listed in the other three tracks

Application Form

Download the application form here: Residential Construction Minor Application Form

For more information:

Faculty in charge of Minor:

Dr. Ali Memari
Bernard and Henrietta Hankin Chair of Residential Building Construction
amm7@psu.edu