College of Engineering and Architecture
College of Engineering and Architecture
University College Dublin
Dublin 4
IE
N 53° 18' 40.13'', E 53° 18' 40.13''
http://www.ucd.ie/
Head of School
Master of Architecture
Master of advanced Studies
About UCD School of Architecture
Architecture is fundamentally about the future, about making plans and proposals for how the full range of human activities and needs can be housed and sustained. The UCD School of Architecture invites its students to engage creatively and constructively with the complex challenge of designing the future through learning by doing, students propose, test and develop ideas. There is a strong emphasis on group work and collaboration, mainly through design task and problem solving. Our aim is to deepen our students’ understanding, extend their capacities and broaden their horizons.
Celebrating its centenary in 2011/12, the School of Architecture has long led the way for architecture in Ireland. Its undergraduate, graduate and research programmes cover all aspects of the practice of architecture and landscape architecture, as well as advanced areas of conservation, sustainability, history and urbanism. Its staff include many of the leading figures in architectural practice as well as internationally-recognised researchers. Its graduates are working all over the world. Many have achieved great prominence in architectural design and related fields.
Rooted in its context, the school is global in its outlook. Uniquely in Ireland, its architecture programmes are accredited by the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) as well as the RIAI, thus ensuring all graduates an internationally benchmarked qualification. It has the widest range of facilities in Ireland, and the most established and respected courses.
Our programmes are taught in unique facilities on the Belfield campus including spacious design studios, a well-equipped workshop and building laboratory, the built environment laboratory, exhibition spaces and the best architectural library in the country.
However, the educational experience is not confined to the studios, lecture theatres, labs and library – it spills over into the cafes and social spaces, and out into students’ daily encounters with the world around them.
Located to the south of the city centre, the School of Architecture shares its campus with the School of Geography, Planning and Environmental Policy, the UCD Earth Institute and the Environmental Protection Agency. Richview is a satellite campus, located to the west of the main UCD campus, Belfield, and is a collection of resources and activities, offering a complete campus in itself .
416 students (320 Bachelor, 82 Master, 14 PhD), 3% of foreign students.
45 staff members (8 full-time and approx. 37 visiting lecturers and critics).
Please contact the school for more information.
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3D point measurement
3D-printing
Blackboard learn platform
Building Material Lab
Built Environment Lab
Cafeteria
Computing service
Environmental Performance Lab
Foam Cutter
Laser Cutter
Lecture Room
Library
Light - Lab
Photographic Studio
Printing facilities
Accommodation is available on campus but is limited. For further information click here. Otherwise, you can go to here to find accommodation in the loacl area or in Dublin in general.
These depend on the programme. Please contact the school for more information.
Fees vary depending on the programme. UCD hosts a fees page here. Otherwise, contact the school office for more information.
Application deadlines vary between offered programmes. Please contact the school office for more information.
The BSc. degree is awarded after 3 years. Throughout the degree two main elements are taught: the design project and the lecture programme. The design project is based in our design studios and taught through a combination of lectures, individual tuition, field trips, group tutorials, large reviews and exhibitions (architectural design, drawing and model-making).
Master of Architecture, MArch, 2-year programme, Master, 120,
The new MArch (RIBA and RIAI Part II exempt) is two years full-time. It replaces the BArch and fulfils the requirements for the second part of professional education in architecture. Starts September 2012.
Master of advanced Studies, MArchSc, 1 Year, Master, 90,
Three taught masters programmes (M.Arch.Sc): Conservation & Heritage, Sustainable Building Design and Urban Design.
See below for information on Research Masters and Doctoral degrees.
UCD Architecture Programme
Today, the UCD Architecture programme consists of the BSc (Architectural Science) and MArch (Hons).
There are two main elements to the BSc undergraduate programme – project work (architectural design, drawing and model making) and lecture programmes (historical and theoretical material). Project work is taught in the architecture design studios through a combination of lectures, individual tuition, field trips, group tutorials, large reviews and exhibitions. Lecture-based modules are grouped under the broad headings of Technical (Architectural Technologies, Structures, Environmental Science), and Cultural (Architectural History and Theory, Ecology, Conservation).
Through the UCD Horizons programme, from second year, students can choose to study modules ranging from languages and politics or philosophy and art history, to mathematical and scientific subjects.
To find out more about the UCD School of Architecture undergraduate programme, go to myUCD.
The two-year 120-ECTS Masters programme fulfils the requirements for the second part of professional education in architecture (RIBA and RIAI Part II exempt). It equips students to deal with complex design problems in challenging contexts. Through studio projects, academic writing and practical experiment it develops professional capacities while placing equal emphasis on research and critical enquiry. It situates architecture within a broader field of disciplines and influences.
Across the two years of the programme, students participate in studio modules whose emphasis is on augmenting and extending design capacities through an intensive engagement with the discipline of architecture and through the meaningful incorporation of research methods and research findings into creative design. Each student will trace an individual trajectory through the studio course, culminating in a design thesis which serves as a summative statement of their architectural intentions and abilities.
To find out more about the UCD School of Architecture Masters in Architecture, go to Graduate Studies.
Research Masters Degrees
Masters in Urban and Building Conservation (MUBC)
Established over 25 years ago, this programme equips students to deal with all the complexities inherent in rehabilitation and restoration of buildings, cities and landscapes. Rooted strongly in conservation practice and policy, the programme also involves detailed research into the history and heritage of the built environment.
With a strong international outlook, focusing on emerging and developing theory, best practice, and case studies in Europe, the US and the UK, this course seeks to understand the Irish urban condition and to create innovative and place-specific solutions for development and improvement.
This masters programme is open to a wide range of topical pursuits which are arrived at between the student and their supervisor(s). Areas of current research include Sustainable Building Design and Performance, History and Theory of Architecture and Architectural Design.
Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD)
The UCD School of Architecture supports a range of research fields at the PhD level including Urban and Building Conservation & Heritage, Sustainable Building Design & Performance and in History and Theory of Architecture.
Each field represents an active are of research in the school and is supported by expert staff and an interdisciplinary research culture and incorporates substantial knowledge from related fields. Further, it is supported by a university committed to excellence in research. Students undertaking their PhD’s at UCD also have access to a vast resource from which they can draw.
For further information, please contact us at architecturegrad@ucd.ie
Research at UCD School of Architecture
The UCD School of Architecture supports a comparative range of research fields including Urban and Building Conservation & Heritage, Sustainable Building Design & Performance, History and Theory of Architecture and Architectural Design. Its staff, as individuals and as groups and members of several UCD Research Institutes, are research-active across these themes and support both Research Masters and Doctoral programmes.
Urban and Building Conservation & Heritage
For some twenty-five years the school has been research active in advancing the knowledge base in building and urban conservation and heritage. It has seen a growing awareness of the cultural, social and economic importance of conserving the built heritage of buildings and urban areas. There is now an expectation that the care of historic buildings will meet the highest international standards requiring specialist knowledge and skills and the collaboration of a range of disciplines supported by an appropriate research framework.
Sustainable Building Design & Performance
Since 1975 the UCD Energy Research Group has pursued a broad agenda through research, outreach and collaboration with industry, dissemination and education. It has specialised in the energy and environmental performance of buildings with an emphasis on passive design and in support of healthy indoor environments. The group is an integral part of the UCD School of Architecture. To learn more, go to the UCD Energy Research Group website.
History and Theory of Architecture
The school has a strong reputation in the area of history and theory, spanning both specifically Irish themes and broader issues. More recently, theoretical explorations have become more prominent, with the visual representation of landscapes and urban spaces being a significant theme.
Architectural Design
Building on its reputation for excellence in design teaching and on the achievements of its staff and students, the school has more recently begun to develop research by, through and for design. To date, this has included the documentation and dissemination of critical practice through exhibition and publication, the analysis of design processes and products under social science and humanities research paradigms, as well as research into materials and construction techniques.