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Architecture

Entry requirements


104-136 UCAS Tariff points, including a minimum of 2 A Levels. General Studies is accepted.

Pass a named Access to HE Diploma (Preferably Art and Design or Combined), with at least 33 credits at Merit/Distinction.

Considered in combination

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

26-34

English and Mathematics accepted within as GCSE equivalent.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H3,H3,H3,H3,H4

104-136 tariff points. English and Mathematics accepted within as GCSE equivalent.

Considered in combination

Considered in combination

Considered in combination

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DMM-DDD

104-136 UCAS Tariff points

Considered in combination

104-136 tariff points, including two Advanced Highers. English and Maths accepted within as GCSE equivalent.

In combination with Advanced Highers

T Level

M

Preference on Digital Production, Design and Development, but other subjects may be considered on an individual basis.

UCAS Tariff

104-136

from a minimum of 2 A Levels

Considered in combination

You may also need to…

Present a portfolio

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Architecture

Ready to channel and apply your creative impulses and imagination to real-world built environment problems? Through critical thinking, hands-on work with a community of expert practitioners, designing and making, our professionally accredited architecture degree will give you the experience, skills and resilience to become a progressive thinker who can confidently design sustainable and inclusive solutions to our planet’s future challenges.

**Gain professional accreditation** from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) if you complete this degree successfully. This means that you won’t need to complete RIBA Part 1 separately.

**Study in an inspiring creative environment.** You’ll be based in our eye-catching Roland Levinsky Building with access to amazing facilities and resources.

**Join a diverse community** that aims to champion and support a culture of participation and inclusivity.

**Graduate ready for the workplace** with our focus on professional development. You'll work on live design projects, and we have strong links with Plymouth City Council and other regional community projects.

**Learn from expert academic tutors** with industry experience and interdisciplinary research interests.

**Enrich your learning** with field trips each year to project sites, European study trips, exchange study opportunities abroad and at home, and overseas summer schools. Previous destinations have included Barcelona, Berlin, Bilbao, Copenhagen, Paris, Porto, Rotterdam, Rome, Stockholm and Venice.

**Gain insights into the field** with talks from leading practitioners and theorists. Our Cross Professional Dialogue programme is a forum for discussion between architects, builders and others in the building industry. We also hold the annual ‘State of the Profession’ symposium with noted professionals, such as RIBA President Stephen Hodder, to discuss key issues in architecture today.

**Be part of the academic discussion.** Our highly respected Plymouth Architecture Society (PARCS) organises fortnightly lectures that feature leading architects, engineers and designers who showcase and discuss their work.

**Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) accreditation**

In April 2022, our BA (Hons) Architecture and master of architecture programmes were revalidated for the next five years with commendations for:

- Impact of our live project-based work on both learning and the wider community

- A vibrant and supportive studio culture grounded in mutual respect and trust between students and staff

- A critically engaged, well-rounded, empathetic student body, supported by an exemplary approach to collaborative working enabling students to become mature future professionals.

Modules

In the first year, you’ll develop awareness of basic principles of architecture, explored in parallel with developing knowledge and key skills. Building on this, you will be challenged to interrogate the meaning and role of architecture through experimentation and testing through making. Your learning will be guided by various projects engaging with co-joined issues of environment and people. The main learning activities will be pursued within a trans-disciplinary and trans-cultural environment.

The second year is coordinated to scaffold design in broader social and urban settings. An emphasis is on collaborative work in teams and professional contexts to explore architecture through contemporary social challenges, notably: changing patterns of living and working in urban communities. Working with advancing media, second-year students further the communicative skill set, and build a critical understanding of the role of design, making, and the built environment in the reproduction of daily life.

Third year is outward facing. It enables students to work on a range of scales, from master planning to architectural details. Live projects activate participatory consultation and interdisciplinary collaboration to respond to current global challenges. Vertical learning across the second and third year in the final semester fosters peer-to-peer learning. Students apply their own theoretical preoccupations into the design studio environment and graduate with a discursive portfolio.

The modules described for this course or programme are those being studied by current students, or expected new modules. Modules are subject to change depending on year of entry.

Assessment methods

For up to date details, please refer to our website or contact the institution directly.

The Uni


Course location:

University of Plymouth

Department:

School of Art, Design and Architecture

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

88%
Staff make the subject interesting
81%
Staff are good at explaining things
87%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
78%
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

73%
Library resources
87%
IT resources
79%
Course specific equipment and facilities
61%
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
61%
Male students
39%
Female students
46%
2:1 or above
5%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
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.

£19,500
med
Average annual salary
91%
low
Employed or in further education
89%
high
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

72%
Draughtspersons and related architectural technicians
11%
Architects, town planners and surveyors
3%
Teaching and educational professionals

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.

£22k

£22k

£24k

£24k

£32k

£32k

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.

Explore these similar courses...

Higher entry requirements
Kingston University | Kingston upon Thames
Architecture
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 128-144
Nearby University
Falmouth University | Falmouth
Architecture
BA (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 112-120

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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:

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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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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