Carnegie Mellon University

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Tours

  1. Self-Guided Tour

    Welcome to Carnegie Mellon University, we're glad you are here! This Self-Guided Tour is for visitors to walk around campus.

    Stops

    1. Coulter Welcome Center

      Welcome to Carnegie Mellon University! The Coulter Welcome Center is a unique destination point for campus visitors. Visitors can join a campus tour, meet student ambassadors, navigate the interactive campus map and learn all about what CMU and Pittsburgh have to offer. 

      We are Open! The hours of operation are: Monday - Sunday from 9:00AM (EST) to 4:30PM (EST).

    2. Tepper Building

      Tepper Quad Building, is a 315,000 square foot state-of-the-art building, is home to the Tepper School of Business, the Coulter Welcome Center, fitness center, dining locations, JP Morgan and Chase AI Makerspace, and the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship.

      The Tepper School of Business houses three variations of undergraduate majors including Business administration major with 9 different concentrations, Multiple ways to earn an Economics major, and a Computational Finance major.

      Here at CMU we do not have a central dining hall, but 30+ different eateries around campus. Inside the Tepper Building we have Rohr Commons featuring Build Pizza, Forbes Ave Subs, Tepper Taqueria, and Millie's Coffee ‘N Creamery.

    3. Gates and Hillman Centers

      Gates and Hillman Centers for Future-Generation Technologies are home to the School of Computer Science and Computational Biology Department. These Gold LEED Certified Centers were made possible by lead gifts from the Bill and Melinda Gates and the Henry L. Hillman foundations. The building also houses a Mission Control Center for the student project Iris Rover created by over 300 students from across the university that was the first of its kind to survive a launch and a zero-gravity environment.

      The School of Computer Science was the first standalone school of Computer Science in the nation and launched the first Artificial Intelligence degree by a US University. The school houses five undergraduate majors including Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Computational Biology, Human Computer Interaction, Robotics.

    4. Warner Hall

      Warner Hall is home to the Office of Undergraduate Admission on the second floor. Their office is open from 8:30AM - 4:30PM Monday through Friday if you would like to stop in for a walk-in appointment.

      The HUB and Enrollment Services also reside here, which would be where you get your Student ID if you choose to attend CMU.


    5. Purnell Center for the Arts

      Purnell Center for the Arts is home to our School of Drama, the nation’s oldest degree-granting drama program, and includes state-of-the-art performance and education facilities like the Philip Chosky Theater and the Regina Gouger Miller Gallery. Whether you see yourself on stage, behind the scenes, or forging a creative path all on your own, our School of Drama’s specialized curriculum and dedicated, world-class faculty can help you get there with majors in acting/musical theater, design, dramaturgy, and production technology & management.

    6. Pausch Bridge

      Carnegie Mellon alumnus and professor Randy Pausch inspired millions through his “Last Lecture.” Now, the entire campus community will be able to remember his impact on Carnegie Mellon—and the world—every time they walk through campus.

       

      The Pausch Bridge connects one of the university’s fine arts buildings, Purnell Center, with the new Gates & Hillman Centers, the home for computer science at Carnegie Mellon.

    7. The Fence

      The Fence, capital T capital F, is a proper noun here on campus. It is a long standing tradition, acting as a rotating billboard for students as it’s in the middle of campus on the Cut!  The Cut is the grassy area between the CUC and Purnell. However, you can’t just walk up and paint it; there are a few rules to painting The Fence. 

      1. The Fence may only be painted by Carnegie Mellon University-affiliated students

      2. The Fence can only be painted between midnight and sunrise

      3. It must be painted in its entirety with 1920s technology - only paintbrushes/hands, no spray cans or dumping paint

      4. In order to paint, The Fence must be taken in the first place with two students in the gravel pit guarding it.

      Students often pitch tents to guard their work; But don’t worry; the clock tower next to it is fitted with power outlets, so people can plug in their space heaters, computer chargers, and continue on with life!

    8. Doherty Hall

      Doherty Hall contains some of the largest lecture style classrooms and renovated lab spaces for our Mellon College of Science students, in addition to lab and studio spaces for departments like Engineering, Chemistry, Biology and Art.

      The Mellon College of Science houses 4 departments with 20 majors including biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics. Over 70% of undergraduates in this college do research. The college facilities also include a Cloud Lab that is the first academic Cloud Laboratory in the country and home to programmable robot-run experimentation instruments.

      Also the new Richard King Mellon Hall of Sciences is coming in 2027 that will house our Mellon College of Science, the university's School of Computer Science and the public Institute for Contemporary Art. This mix of science, technology and art will spur exciting opportunities for cross-collaboration and embody Carnegie's Mellon spirit of innovation.

    9. Hamerschlag Hall

      Hamerschlag Hall is home to Electrical & Computer Engineering. The building's rotunda is one of the most iconic images on campus. This building also boasts a living roof

      The College of Engineering for undergraduates, houses 6 majors including chemical, civil, electrical and computer, mechanical, environmental, and materials science engineering. It also has 3 additional majors of Biomedical Engineering, Engineering & Public Policy and Engineering Design, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship.

    10. ANSYS Hall

      ANSYS Hall is a four story, 36,000 square foot mixed-use building that incorporates a maker assembly space with immediate access to the outdoor Maker Courtyard, student collaboration space, classrooms and offices. 

      On the first floor of this building is TechSpark, which you can see into. This facility is a 16,000 square foot makerspace that provides resources, certification, classes and equipment for rapidly prototyping designs from ideas to reality for educational, extracurricular, and research activities. It is a hands-on learning and exploration space available to all current CMU students, faculty and staff. In addition to the highbay area for projects, the makerspace supports machining, wood working, embedded electronics, additive manufacturing, molding and casting with a dedicated wood shop, metal shop, professional shop with welding, hot metals room with jewelry making and metal casting, polymer casting room, computer lab with suite of engineering software, and a fabrication shop with 15 3D printers, 6 laser cutters and a sewing center. 

    11. Scaife Hall

      Alan Magee Scaife Hall of Engineering is a new 85,000 square-foot building comprising labs, a drone arena, offices, classrooms, and a café. The labs support research in a variety of subjects ranging from Biology to Robotics to Rapid Prototyping and are supported by 100 PhD workspaces directly adjacent to the lab spaces. The building is the home for the Mechanical Engineering Department.

    12. Baker Hall

      Baker Hall is one of the oldest buildings on campus and connects to Porter Hall via a long, sloped hallway. Baker is home to the Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Our humanities are situated at the intersection of humanity and technology. For undergraduates, Dietrich houses 37 majors that are designed to be completed in 2 years, which allows students to add on additional majors, minors, and dual degrees. With this flexibility comes the ability to participate in experiences including internships, research, study abroad and more to prepare their students for the next step on their journey of graduate school or a career.

    13. Hunt Library

      University Libraries are a destination for discovery here on campus with 4 locations on campus. With our CMU ID we can access the Libraries wide range of services including borrowing from their collections, utilizing digital databases, consulting with the librarians and research specialists, and attending workshops, events and exhibits. Hunt Library opened in 1961 as the university’s first dedicated library building and was a gift from Roy and Rachel Hunt. It's the largest library on campus comprising the university's collections in the arts, humanities, and social science, University Archives, the video collection, and the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation, which specializes in the history of botany and all aspects of plant science. Fun fact the University Libraries contains an original printed copy of the Bill of Rights! Finally the building houses the university's IDeATe program, which offers nine undergraduate minors in domains that merge technology and arts expertise.

    14. College of Fine Arts Building

      College of Fine Arts Building is an architectural creation of Henry Hornbostel, the college’s first dean, and is home to three of its five schools: architecture, art, and music. To speak a little more about each of these:

      In the School of Music, where they place the 1on1 work of student and teacher at the heart of the educational experience. Integral to this process is superb coaching in ensembles where every music student is part of an orchestra, chorus, wind ensemble, or chamber group with the highest standards of discipline and musicianship.  

      The School of Architecture emphasizes the role of creativity in architectural design, helps students understand architecture’s historical, social and environmental contexts; critically engaging technology in architectural innovation; and work ethically to achieve social progress and justice in the built environment.

      The School of Art is a premier location for the interface between art, technology, and interdisciplinary art practice. The curriculum combines the advantages of a renowned studio program with the resources of a top-tier university.

      Finally this college houses four BXA intercollege degree programs. The BXA program was developed to assist students in pursuing new discoveries and fields that bring together academic rigor and creative training. The B stands for Bachelors in. The A stands for Arts. The X is the intersection of disciplines, innovation and curiosity where the variable changes depend on the academic unit a student integrates with their College of Fine Arts concentration-- the bachelor’s of humanities & arts, science & arts, computer science & arts and engineering & arts.

      Route Accessibility Note: If you do not want to use the stairs after this stop to get to Posner Hall, there is an alternative route to ues. Turn around to make a left going back to the Hunt Library. Continue until you get to Baker Hall where you will make a right to walk to the pathway next to The Fence. Once across from Doherty Hall and The Fence make a right and continue past the tennis court and the College of Fine Arts parking lot to go to Posner Hall.

    15. Posner Hall

      Posner Hall is adjacent to the Hall of the Arts, which is home to some teaching and rehearsal spaces for the School of Music. This building is home to a student-favorite eatery called The Exchange as well as the Student Academic Success Center. The  Student Academic Success Center focuses on creating spaces for students to engage in their coursework and approach to learning through options like academic coaching, subject-specific tutoring, effective communication strategies, accommodations for students with disabilities, and language support for multilingual learners.

    16. Margaret Morrison Carnegie Hall

      Margaret Morrison Carnegie Hall, affectionately known on campus as "Maggie Mo". This building originally housed the Margaret Morrison Carnegie College for Women, and it now houses some years of the design and architecture programs as well as our on campus children’s school! 

      The School of Design is an exploration of humanity and sustainable systems. With a focus on interdisciplinary learning, our programs prepare students for real-world design challenges by working collaboratively across fields. CMU was the first school to offer a degree in Industrial Design. Now it’s called “Product Design”.

    17. Highmark Center for Health, Wellness and Athletics

      The Highmark Center is a 160,000 square foot building recently opened which unifies robust health services, contemporary facilities and educational programs that support students’ minds, bodies and spirits in a comprehensive care model. It includes new full-service clinical areas as an expanded University Health Services; private and supportive spaces for Counseling and Psychological Services; and a modern athletics facility for practice, performance, training and athlete care.

    18. The Hill (Residence Halls)

      The Hill is a residence hall neighborhood that offers first year living. Housing Services consists of 26 residence halls, apartments, and house communities as part of University Housing. This includes 17 Sorority and Fraternity houses and apartment buildings, and 12 buildings with designated first-year living areas. All first-year students at Carnegie Mellon are required to live on campus. On-campus Housing is guaranteed for four years, (five for architecture students) who request it, as long as you stay on campus. 

      We have three housing “neighborhoods” around campus (Morewood Ave, Margaret Morrison St, and the Fifth Avenue corridor). We are currently in the Margaret Morrison St neighborhood. 

      Within those neighborhoods, we have three types of housing in our first-year residence halls including traditional, semi-suite, and apartment. 

      Creating community in the residence halls is a central focus of the residential staff at CMU. In all campus housing, we follow a house model where each residence hall has a Housefellow. These are full time professional staff that provide a vision for daily life in CMU’s housing communities. In addition we have Community Advisors (CAs) which were previously  successful RAs and help to oversee all current RAs in the building. Finally, Resident Assistants (RAs) are usually located on every floor and will plan house events to help residents get to know the people living around them.

    19. Gesling Stadium

      Welcome to modern day Gesling Stadium, home of the Carnegie Mellon Tartans! A tartan is woven wool fabric with a plaid design. It originated in Scotland, where every family or clan represented their lineage with a one-of-a-kind pattern worn proudly as a brand. The son of a Scottish weaver, our founder Andrew Carnegie inspired the Tartan as the official athletics team name and later a school color. The weaving of colors and line-weights in the Tartan represents different thoughts, interests, backgrounds and skills coming together to make up the fabric of our university.

      Carnegie Mellon has 19 DIII varsity teams and competes in the University Athletic Association (UAA). Behind you will see the soccer and IM fields. The Tartans closed the 2023-24 academic year in style with a national championship in women’s golf and a national runner-up finish in men’s golf, while the student-athlete cohort of 481 tallied remarkable achievements in the classroom. Nearly 68 percent earned a 3.50 grade-point average (GPA). The golf finishes, along with outstanding performances from the track and field athletes that resulted in six All-America finishes, helped propel the Tartans to 13th in the Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings, marking the department’s highest finish.

      CMU also has Club Sports that offers the opportunity to participate in non-varsity intercollegiate athletic competition and formalized group instruction. We have about 25 or so on campus that are recognized student organizations that establish their own leadership, structure, membership requirements, competition schedules and more. The clubs provide social, competitive, instructional, and safe environments based on the common interests of the participating members.

      Finally our other tier of sports here at CMU are Intramural. The goal of this program is to establish fun and inviting playing environments for all skill levels. Various leagues and tournaments are offered to the entire University community each year. If you like sports, we definitely have something for you!

       

    20. Cohon University Center

      Jared L. Cohon University Center is our student union. Here students can take advantage of the student fitness facilities, catch a show at the black-box theater, visit the chapel, gather with other students in meeting rooms, or get lunch in one of many eateries.

      You see our Scotty statue mascot that was funded and created by multiple CMU alumni. Our mascot is the Scottish Highland Terrier or Scottie for short. We like to call the dog “Scotty” who is a confident, independent and spirited breed. We students like to rub its nose for goodluck, so feel free to try that out before leaving this stop!

      Additionally, located in this building is The Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion. The Center offers resources to enhance an inclusive and transformative student experience for our student population that joins us from 120 different countries. The Center is focused on access, success, campus climate and intergroup dialogue.

    21. University Store

      The University Store includes branded university merchandise. While the store does not carry traditional textbooks, they can assist students that need help finding course materials. Located on the lower level of the store is the Art Store that carries art supplies for everyone from Art and Architecture students, to casual hobbyists. They also sell computers that are priced with an Educational Discount.

      Hours of operation vary, but typically the store is open:

      Monday through Friday: 10AM - 5PM
      Saturday: 12PM - 4PM
      Sunday: Closed 

      If the store is open you are welcome to go in and grab some swag if you are interested. If they are closed, you can always look at some of the gear online!

    22. Walking to the Sky

      Carnegie Mellon installed Walking to the Sky, a 100-foot-tall, seven-ton sculpture created by internationally renowned alumnus Jonathan Borofsky (A'64), on its campus. The sculpture is a gift from Carnegie Mellon Trustee Jill Gansman Kraus (A'74) and her husband, Peter Kraus, of New York City.

      If you look towards Forbes Ave, you will see a bus stop location. All Carnegie Mellon University students receive a free pass to travel through Pittsburgh on its buses, inclines and rail system into the 90 neighborhoods that make up the city. Most amenities are a quick ride away including free access to museums within the city from the Arts Pass that we have.

      We have now completed the self-guided tour and we hope you enjoyed your visit to Carnegie Mellon University! We enjoyed sharing our experiences, stories and campus with you! Feel free to stop back at the Coulter Welcome Center in the Tepper Building if you have any additional questions.