MArch Architecture
Queen's University Belfast
Key Information
Campus location
Belfast, United Kingdom
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
GBP 23,150 / per year *
Application deadline
Request info
Earliest start date
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* International fee
Introduction
An exciting, creative Master’s degree with accreditation from the ARB and RIBA, for students with a first degree in architecture who wish to progress their studies to final qualification as a practising architect.
Course content
Your focus will be to investigate the relationships between critical practise, design and research in the making of architectural proposals. The work produced throughout this two year Master’s is a collaborative effort between you, our academics and practising architects.
Our studio is divided up into five thematic studio groups, each led by a pair of tutors. Each of the groups also features an external ‘consultant’ who will contribute to teaching throughout the year.
This course encourages lateral thinking, problem-solving, creativity and engagement with issues in a self-critical process. But it is also broad in its engagement. It will address issues as diverse as our survival on the planet and local engagement with culture and craft - the making of anything from an entire city to a door handle.
What will excite you?
You’ll be engaging with real projects and real clients locally, and embarking on worldwide field trips – plus our Erasmus scheme gives you the chance to study at a European university. Our students have gone to places such as Munich, Barcelona, Istanbul and Croatia.
The environment
You will be based in Belfast, a compelling city for exploring socially engaged urbanism.
You’ll enjoy a healthy staff to student ratio, good studios, where you’ll each have your own space, excellent workshops and technicians.
Please note:
Applications for this course received after 30th June 2021 may not be accepted. In addition, a deposit will be required to secure a place.
Architecture Highlights
Professional Accreditations
- Architects’ Registration Board (ARB) recognised Part 2 degree - Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) recognised Part 2 degree.
Student Experience
- The programme is an active participant in Erasmus with links to established schools of architecture in Europe. MArch I includes a compulsory, self-funded field trip, usually to a mainland European city.
Admissions
Curriculum
Course Structure
The focus of the MArch is to investigate and develop the relationships between critical practise, design and research through the making of unique and challenging architectural propositions.
The studio is divided up into thematic groups which collectively encompass a broad range of approaches to architectural design. The groups reflect the expertise and preoccupations of the tutors and consultants involved. Accordingly, the briefs developed and the work produced to become a collaborative investigation between practitioners, students and academics into some of the spatial issues affecting the production of the built environment, both on this island and elsewhere.
Students are offered a choice of group at the beginning of MArch I and then again at the beginning of MArch II, their thesis year. It is imagined that they will choose a different group each year to make the most of the breadth and depth offered by the studio system. Choices are also offered for humanities and technologies dissertations.
The four semesters of the Master's programme are thought of as a single entity, within which diverse challenges allow the student to identify core strengths and to develop these through open discussion with a strong emphasis on self-directed study and ambitious agendas.
Modules
Year 1
- M.Arch Studio 1 (30 CATS)
- M.Arch Studio 2 (30 CATS)
- Architectural Research: Humanities
- Dissertation (30 CATS) (project work)
- Architectural Research: Technology
- Dissertation (30 CATS) (project work)
Year 2
- M.Arch Studio 3 (30 CATS)
- M.Arch Studio 4 (30 CATS)
- Thesis Research (30 CATS)
- Professional Skills (30 CATS)
Teaching Times
Morning / Afternoon / Evening. The programme contains a compulsory trip in MArch I.
Learning and Teaching
Assessment
Assessments associated with the course are outlined below:
- Project design work
- Critical design reviews
- Representation
- Research
- Essays
- 6,000-10,000 word dissertation
- Reports
Gallery
Scholarships and Funding
How do I fund my study?
The Department for the Economy will provide a tuition fee loan of up to £6,500 per NI / EU student for postgraduate study.
A postgraduate loans system in the UK offers government-backed student loans of up to £11,836 for taught and research Masters's courses in all subject areas. Criteria, eligibility, repayment, and application information are available on the UK government website.
International Students
Career Opportunities
Completion of the MArch constitutes Part II of the RIBA/ARB criteria leading to eligibility to sit Part III, the Professional Examination, and registration as an architect in the UK.
Where you might be in five years?
Anywhere in the world, in one of many different disciplines.
Our graduates have ended up designing skyscrapers in Hong Kong and the Middle East, emergency housing for refugees in Africa, film sets for Hollywood productions and computer games, as well as working as urban planners worldwide, teaching in universities or becoming artists and photographers.
Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills
In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills. For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more. So not only do you graduate with a degree recognized from a world-leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall. We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.
Program Tuition Fee
English Language Requirements
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