BSc Architectural Studies

The BSc is a three-year full-time programme with modules varying in size from 10 to 60 credits. Each year consists of 120 credits.

Modules in each year of the programme are based around five areas:

• Architectural Design
• Architectural Technology
• History & Theory
• Design Skills, Principles & Methods
• Practice & Ethics

Design studio modules are 50 or 60 credits. This recognises the emphasis on design project work within the programme and the need for students to show how they can integrate the learning from their other modules into their design projects.

The programme is structured to support the development of your own interests. Within your Year Two modules you will be able to choose from a range of topics, including design projects, essay subjects and technical focus. In Year Three you can choose between optional thematic studio modules, based on expertise within our School.

Year One

In this foundational year, you will be introduced to the design studio, where you will learn from one another and develop an architectural sense of knowing and designing. You will work in groups, undertake basic research, take risks and adopt a process of reflective learning and development as part of a collaborative and inclusive studio culture. You will develop an ethical awareness of your actions. Whilst each of the modules will be assessed independently, aspects such as design skills, principles and methods and architectural technology will feed into the spring semester portfolio submission.

A study visit will provide further opportunities to socialise with peers and tutors while engaging with real-world places, buildings, environments, and communities incorporating context across all subject threads.

Core Modules for Year One

• Explorations in Architectural Design
• Principles of Architectural Technology
• Chronologies of Architecture
• Architect & Society
• Design Foundations

Year Two

Building on the foundations of the previous year you will apply techniques, skills, and knowledge to inform and deepen your learning, particularly within the integrated studio project. You will increase your ability to respond to increasingly complex contexts, spatial arrangements, environmental performance and building typologies, as your awareness of professional practice expands.

Design projects will increase in scale and socio-economic engagement, addressing notions of dwelling and community projects. Greater emphasis will be placed on the research, analysis, evaluation and interpretation of data and parameters that inform design decisions. Computational skills that support diverse ways of representing, and modelling ideas will be enhanced.

A study visit will be structured around the integrated studio. Locations will vary across the UK and Europe as relevant to the studio.

Core Modules for Year Two

• Design in Context
• Architectural Technology in Context
• Architecture in Context
• Architecture & Professional Contexts
• Design Development
• Conceptualising Design

Year Three

In Year Three you can select an optional thematic studio module to focus your studies on a particular subject through design and theory into practice and technical integration. You will develop your abilities in environmental modelling, theoretical thinking, and presentation techniques. Your work is reflected through your ongoing practice and ethics portfolio, encouraging a personal ethical stance and preparing you for employment in the following year.

A study visit will typically be coordinated around your chosen thematic studios, identifying contexts appropriate to the theme and integrated subject threads. Locations will vary across the UK and further afield as relevant to the studio.

The thematic studios integrate design, history and theory, and architectural technology to provide greater theoretical and technical support alongside design project work.

Core Modules for Year Three

• Design Manifesto
• Integrating Technology
• Theories and Thinkers
• Architectural Practice & Economic Context
• Design Integration

Optional Modules for Year Three

• Thematic Studio: Urbanism
• Thematic Studio: Making
• Thematic Studio: Environment
• Thematic Studio: Adaptation
• Thematic Studio: Personhood & Place

How Will I Be Assessed?

You will experience a range of different approaches to assessment, which allow you to demonstrate your learning across the subject and to gain valuable feedback which can be applied to future learning.

As with other creative subjects, much of your assessment will be through coursework. This may be subject-specific, such as a technical report or a portfolio of collated studies from one or more subjects. Through your design portfolio, you will demonstrate your studio project work and include evidence of learning across the range of modules you have studied. Design Project Reviews, where you present your project work to a panel of reviewers, and provide valuable feedback to inform your project work. Reflective portfolios will assess personal insight on knowledge, observation and experiences within and across subjects and the discipline.

What Skills Will I Practise and Develop?

On successful completion of your Programme, you will be able to:

Knowledge & Understanding

• KU 1 Interpret and evolve design briefs and subsequent proposals as a response to knowledge, observations and interpretations of site, communities, history, technology, people and users
• KU 2 Understand and integrate a range of sustainable building construction systems, assemblies and methods, including structures and materials, into architectural and urban design proposals
• KU 3 Introduce appropriate responses to site and occupant needs through services and sustainable technologies to reduce environmental impact
• KU 4 Synthesise the principles of building physics and performance within the context of environmental comfort, energy and daylight modelling, and life cycle analysis
• KU 5 Critically appraise and synthesise knowledge of historical and cultural traditions, movements, styles and theories of architecture and associated arts

Intellectual Skills

• IS 1 Associate and apply appropriate methods and techniques of analysis and interpretation within the histories and theories of architectural design
• IS 2 Generate, through iterative processes, design concepts and strategies based on a thorough understanding of multiple contexts and inspirations
• IS 3 Analyse and reflect upon, the often contradicting, theoretical, physical, social and environmental parameters of architectural design in the development of architectural ideas
• IS 4 Critically assess design proposals and sites in terms of how they influence occupant wellbeing, environmental, climatic and biodiversity demands, construction and fire/ life safety
• IS 5 Propose and defend the spatial, experiential, and compositional qualities of design proposals as appropriate to building users and wider society

Professional Practical Skills

• PPS 1 Produce complex and well-resolved architectural and urban design proposals that respond to diverse social, cultural, environmental and socio-economic contexts
• PPS 2 Critically evaluate and use appropriate analytical and research methods to develop reasoned arguments, hypotheses and design decisions
• PPS 3 Systematically select and integrate representation and presentation techniques and tools, aligned with professional conventions, in design, written, modelled and technology work
• PPS 4 Identify ethical responsibilities and fundamentals of practice, including the role of the architect within collaborative professional relationships and with regard to economic, legal and regulatory processes

Transferable/Key Skills

• KS 1 Develop a personal position on design, ethical and professional contexts with regards to career ambitions
• KS 2 Identify and apply reflective techniques, that inform individual and collaborative performance and learning in complex and unpredictable situations
• KS 3 Apply diverse transferable/ employability skills including: working collaboratively and independently; time management; analytical, logical and lateral thinking to address complex problems; and listening, respecting and contributing to the opinions of others
• KS 4 Apply a range of effective and appropriate communication methods and media in the presentation of design proposals, research, theories, ideas and decisions

A degree in architecture opens up a range of opportunities across the world. Our ‘grounded creativity’ approach to design supports the development of graduates who are ready for professional practice, with the confidence and awareness to undertake professional responsibilities.

We have a strong record of employability and further study following graduation. During your studies, we’ll support you in preparing a professional CV and portfolio. You’ll have access to dedicated career events and opportunities to learn from active architects and industry consultants, many of whom regularly advertise for graduate positions in the school.

We’re committed to ensuring you develop the six graduate attributes; skills that the University has identified are key skills valued by industry and employers. As a Cardiff graduate, you will be:

• Collaborative
• An effective communicator
• Ethically, socially, and environmentally aware
• An independent and critical thinker
• Innovative, enterprising, and commercially aware
• Reflective and resilient

Our emphasis on collaborative and ethical practice will encourage you to develop a personal stance on the impact and influence of architecture on a global society.

Typically, graduates go on to proceed with their training to become registered architects. Previous graduates have also found the BSc is a good foundation for entry into other creative and design disciplines, going on to roles in web design, product design, automotive design, set design, graphic design or illustration, architectural journalism, photography, architectural history and craft/maker-based disciplines.

The majority of our graduates proceed to a career in architectural practice and are found in many eminent practices in the UK and across the world.

Graduate Careers

• Architect
• Urban Designer
• Research Officer