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Architecture (including foundation year)

Entry requirements


GCSE/National 4/National 5

You will be required to have: English Language GCSE at grade C/grade 4 or above (or equivalent) You will be required to have Maths GCSE at grade C/grade 4 or above (or equivalent)

UCAS Tariff

32

At least one A level (or a minimum of 32 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification, eg BTEC Subsidiary/National/BTEC Extended Diploma).

You may also need to…

Attend an interview

Present a portfolio

About this course


This course has alternative study modes. Contact the university to find out how the information below might vary.

Course option

4years

Full-time | 2024

Other options

8 years | Part-time | 2024

Subject

Architecture

**Why study this course?**

Our Architecture (including foundation year) BA (Hons) is designed to offer an alternative route into higher education if you can’t meet the necessary entry requirements for the standard three-year degree. It’s also the ideal choice if you’d like to practise your skills before embarking on the bachelor's part of your degree to explore your potential within multiple creative practices.

On completion of this four-year degree you’ll receive exemption from RIBA Part 1 and you’ll be prepared to continue working towards Parts 2 and 3 to register as an architect with the Architects Registration Board (ARB).

**More about this course**

The foundation year on this bachelor's course in architecture is an intensive year that will equip you with studio and workshop skills to help you progress on to more in-depth study of architecture in the subsequent three years of your degree. You’ll learn how to make informed decisions about your own work, become a creative practitioner and gain confidence to present and defend your work.

The foundation year will be shared with others studying a degree with a foundation year at the School of Art, Architecture and Design, so the subjects you’ll study will not be directly linked to architecture but you’ll get to explore different creative practices. There is an emphasis on engagement with materials, forms and processes to develop your practical skills in all creative practices within the School. You’ll also attend lectures and seminars that will introduce you to of historical, contemporary and cultural contexts within a range of creative practices.

Following the foundation year you’ll join students studying the standard three-year degree and graduate with the same award and title as them. To find out more about the subsequent three years of your degree visit our Architecture BA (Hons) course page.

If you find that another discipline in the School of Art, Architecture and Design will be more suited to your interests and abilities, there will be flexibility to allow you to change your specialism at the end of your foundation year.

Modules

Year 0 modules include:

Critical and Contextual Studies: Foundation
Formats
Project
Techniques
Year 1 modules include:

Critical and Contextual Studies 1 (Architecture)
Design Project 1.2
Design Skills 1.1
Technology 1
Year 2 modules include:

Critical and Contextual Studies 2 (Architecture)
Design Project 2.2
Design Skills 2.1
Technology 2
Year 3 modules include:

Critical and Contextual Studies 3: Dissertation (Architecture)
Design Project Development 3.1
Design Project Resolution 3.2: Comprehensive Design Project
Integrated Design Audit

Assessment methods

During the foundation year your assessments will be based on a design portfolio of A1 sheets relating to design projects, showing your development in making and representation skills. You’ll also be assessed by coursework, which will take the form of an annotated workbook that evidences your work processes.

Following the foundation year you’ll be assessed according to the criteria set out by the Architects’ Registration Board (ARB) and the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Project work will make up 50% of your mark and you’ll be assessed primarily on your demonstration of competence and the quality of the work in your portfolio.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£19,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£19,250
per year
International
£19,250
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£19,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Aldgate

Department:

School of Art, Architecture and Design

Read full university profile

What students say


We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.

75%
Architecture

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Architecture

Teaching and learning

84%
Staff make the subject interesting
88%
Staff are good at explaining things
78%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
72%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

59%
Library resources
82%
IT resources
63%
Course specific equipment and facilities
56%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

83%
UK students
17%
International students
49%
Male students
51%
Female students
65%
2:1 or above
21%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

E
B
D

After graduation


The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Architecture

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£22,000
high
Average annual salary
94%
med
Employed or in further education
86%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

Architecture had a difficult time a few years back during the great recession, but those days are over and the degree is in demand as house building and infrastructure have increased in importance. Most working architects secure jobs in the architecture industry, more usually starting as assistants rather than full-blown architects or chartered technicians. Some, however, move into management, design or marketing roles, where they find their planning, design and project management skills are very welcome. Nearly half the architecture-related jobs last year were in London or the South-East, and this group are rather more likely than average to find their jobs through personal contacts, so polish your networking skills, or see if you can get work experience if you want to succeed as an architect.

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Architecture

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£20k

£20k

£23k

£23k

£26k

£26k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here