Architecture (with Foundation Year) BArch (Hons)

Exploring Design (20 credit points)

• Study renowned designs and designers while developing research abilities related to Making and Materials and Drawing and Seeing modules.
• You will create a Professional Development Plan (PDP) for self-assessment and mid-year course review. Assessment includes workbook exercises, a poster presentation, and a visual essay, with opportunities for formative feedback to guide your development.

Drawing and Seeing (20 credit points)

• In this module, you will immerse yourself in the creation and use of sketchbooks, a vital tool for designers and architects. Through dedicated drawing sessions and creative exercises, you will enhance your freehand drawing skills and use your sketchbook as a means of creative thinking.
• You will engage in a series of prescribed drawing activities, receiving formative feedback through 1:1 sketchbook reviews and weekly "show and tell" sessions. By the end of the module, you will confidently understand the value of sketchbooks and be ready to use this skill moving forward in your studies.

Materials and Making (20 credit points)

• In this module you will explore the properties, textures, cost, durability, and sustainability of various materials. Engage in hands-on activities to understand basic fabrication techniques and make informed material choices for your design projects.

Future Living (20 credit points)

• Gain practical experience through hands-on drawing and making exercises, working collaboratively on initial design proposals, and completing a portfolio to showcase your creative solutions and teamwork skills.
• You will learn to identify and adapt to design constraints by creating a small living space within a re-purposed shipping container. Explore celebrated micro-home examples and utilize constraints to drive your innovative solutions.

Client, Object, Space (40 credit points)

• Work with industry clients on real-world or simulated design briefs, using your foundational skills to address challenges and create drawings, models, and a final poster and presentation. Weekly tasks guide you with clear, short-term goals and help you develop your ideas step-by-step.
• Build confidence in visual presentations and critiques, preparing you for undergraduate studies. Gain valuable insights into industry practices by exploring materials, fabrication methods, and collaboration, giving you a comprehensive understanding of how the industry operates.

In Year Two, you'll establish foundations in architectural design, communication and representation, contextual studies, technology and environment. You'll develop your creative ability to design in a variety of spatial, cultural and temporal contexts through project work and learn about the mechanisms associated with building production.

Design Studio (60 credits)

• This module will introduce you to small-scale design project work, exploring the three-dimensional qualities of space.
• You'll look at the range of factors that influence architectural design, and develop the skills to critically appraise design proposals.
• Some of the projects included in this module are set within the context of specific cultural communities and social groups, enabling you to put together design proposals that respond to social, cultural and aesthetic needs.

Technology and Environment in Architecture 1 (20 credits)

• This module will introduce you to a range of technical, practical and environmental principles involved in the making of small-scale architecture.
• You'll look at the structural, load-bearing capabilities and performance qualities of materials in order to understand the suitability of different construction materials. The module will focus on passive environmental strategies to achieve thermal, ventilation, sound, and light control in buildings through design and construction. You'll also look at sustainable design and consider health and safety in construction.
• The module will provide a framework for understanding the environmental impact of buildings within the UK, along with an awareness of the impact of design within other contexts. You'll learn about UK regulations, environmental considerations, and sustainability – knowledge to help underpin successful architectural design.

Architecture in Context 1 (20 credits)

• This module looks at how wider social issues, such as politics, the economy and technology influence architecture, both throughout history and in current times.
• You'll learn to recognise and engage with architectural responses to these influences by studying a variety of historical and cultural themes within an architectural framework.

Architectural Communication and Representation (20 credits)

• This lecture and studio-based module will introduce you to a range of visualisation techniques using traditional and digital media. You'll learn how to convey your design ideas using 2D and 3D methods and techniques, including orthographic drawing by hand, using digital media, model making, and presentation.
• You'll learn about the professional conventions and standards used for the communication of a design idea, from inception through to construction.

Your Year Three studies will enable you to integrate your understanding of cultural contexts, technology and environment, and awareness of approaches in allied professions. Your studio projects are interlinked with your other design modules to ensure a truly inter-disciplinary approach.

Integrated Design Studio (60 credits)

• Building and on the skills you'll have developed in Year One, this module offers a variety of different projects relating to medium-scale buildings and spaces.
• To demonstrate your growing knowledge of materials and design principles, you'll be challenged to develop creative responses to a variety of different urban, physical, technical, economic, social, ethical and cultural settings.
• You'll work on your ideas from conception through to modelling, developing an understanding of the consequences of design decisions, culminating in a presentation of your designs through visual, verbal, written or electronic presentations.

Technology and Environment in Architecture 2 (20 credits)

• This module will develop your understanding and knowledge to allow you to make technical recommendations, communicating effectively with clients and stakeholders throughout the design process.
• You'll develop your knowledge of the appropriate construction process and technical design options for a variety of medium-sized building types, enabling you to choose appropriate solutions to satisfy a variety of aspects affecting an architectural project, such as building services, environmental control systems, buildings materials, environmental sustainability, financial constraints and both human and legal demands.
• You'll develop a critical understanding of environmental and sustainable impacts of decisions and develop an awareness of construction processes and workmanship.

Architecture in Context 2 (20 credits)

• The module aims to develop your understanding of contemporary and emerging debates in architecture, the arts and urban design – both locally and globally.
• You'll explore issues of cultural diversity and the impact this has on the built environment, identifying the needs, perceptions and values of specific cultural communities.

Interdisciplinary Design Studies (20 credits)

• This module will widen your understanding of design, looking at a range of creative disciplines beyond building construction and various digital representation techniques.
• The module aims to situate your understanding of architecture as a collaborative discipline and building your understanding of how humans apprehend and interact with space.

In your Final Year, you'll further develop the creative abilities associated with a holistic approach to architectural design and thought. You'll critically examine a range of related areas, including ethical positions on technological decision-making in the context of global sustainability, human habitation in a multi-cultural world, and engagement with contemporary architectural challenges.

Professional Practice (20 credits)

• This module will specifically prepare you for your graduate career, focusing on key skills, qualities and attributes that employers will expect from an architecture graduate.
• These include professionalism and ethics, personal organisation and time management, practice management, entrepreneurship, and business management. You'll be fully prepared in all elements of project management, from procurement to health and safety, and from presentation skills to understanding statutory regulations.

Comprehensive Design Studio (60 credits)

• Building on your developments in Year Two, this module will focus on larger-scale or more complex projects, designed to extend your ability to demonstrate awareness of context, external factors and constraints, as well as your ability to communicate your ideas in different forms.
• You'll be stretched to design in a variety of different situations, ranging from urban design to smaller exploratory projects, responding creatively to thematic challenges.

Architecture in Context 3 (20 credits)

• You'll build on your understanding of architectural theory by undertaking an individual piece of extended research, enriching your understanding of architecture's potential as a useful and meaningful cultural activity.
• Your chosen topic will focus on key issues or major contemporary debates in architectural thought, exploring historical, cultural or philosophical contexts through which architecture may be analysed, criticised, debated and understood. Your research project will be self-directed, with support from your academic team.

Technology and Environment in Architecture 3 (20 credits)

• This module will further your ability to incorporate technical innovation in your designs, through the development of acoustic, lighting, structural and material studies.
• You'll be set projects within a studio environment and tasked with investigating material possibilities by designing and building physical and digital models in simulated conditions. You'll use your findings to define and justify your technical and tectonic design proposals, with a consideration of UK regulations, cost, environmental and sustainable factors, fire safety, and the lifespan of materials.

Degree Show exhibition

In your final year, you'll be invited to display your work as part of NTU's Degree Shows. The events are an opportunity for all Final Year students studying ADBE's design-based courses to showcase their work to our network of industry professionals and prospective employers, invited specifically for this purpose.