STUDY
Institution code: | S82 |
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UCAS code: | K100 |
Start date: | September 2025 |
Duration: | Three years full-time |
Location: | Ipswich |
Typical Offer: | 112 UCAS tariff points (or above), BBC (A-Level), DMM (BTEC), Merit (T Level) |
Institution code: | S82 |
---|---|
UCAS code: | K100 |
Start date: | September 2025 |
Duration: | Three years full-time |
---|---|
Location: | Ipswich |
Typical Offer: | 112 UCAS tariff points (or above), BBC (A-Level), DMM (BTEC), Merit (T Level) |
Overview
Professional Accreditation
Our BA (Hons) Architecture is prescribed with the Architects Registration Board (ARB) as Part 1 and the course received the RIBA Candidate Status in 2021. Successful completion of our full-time, three-year undergraduate degree carries exemption from the ARB Part 1, which is the first stage in qualifying as an architect. Only those who complete all three parts of the ARB/RIBA requirements, will be able to register as an architect in practice in the UK.
Further information about the University's relationship with the ARB is available in the PSRB register.
Our Vision Statement
The BA (Hons) Architecture at Suffolk is a forward-thinking, interdisciplinary programme of study. With us you learn Architecture as a driver for global and situated culture, underpinned by three principles: ecologies, pedagogies and technics. You will study how to design buildings, spaces, and urbanities, resilient and adaptive to rapid environmental, social and economic change. With your architecture, you will address people’s needs and modes of life on a macro to micro scale by means of critical and creative practice.
You will be taught by qualified Architects educated to the highest level, trained in a variety of contexts they will enrich your student experience with diverse cultural and professional references. With us, you will engage in world-leading events and current discussions about the future of architecture.
Our Studio Culture
Our course is supported by the local branch of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA Suffolk). Each year, we select a number of architects and specialists from practice to contribute to, and deliver, design projects for our agile studio, and advise and mentor students in practice.
This year our programme is supported by the practices below among others:
Course Modules
Our undergraduate programmes are delivered as 'block and blend', more information can be found on Why Suffolk? You can also watch our Block and Blend video.
Downloadable information regarding all University of Suffolk courses, including Key Facts, Course Aims, Course Structure and Assessment, is available in the Definitive Course Record.
This module introduces fundamental principles and theories that frame architecture from a contextual point of view. It provides definitions and analysis of key terms such as: representation, language, form, function, grid, rhythm, perspective, scale, proportion, gender, memory as well as meanings of space, place and site. The module covers selected historical periods of art and architecture, contextual systems of thinking in art and design and the work of selected authors in international art, architecture and design scenes.
This module establishes the basics of the visual language of architectural design as creative art and familiarise students with a wide range of media and methods. The module focuses on the conceptualisation, fabrication and presentation of ideas that use the image and the model as two complementary elements that often overlap and identify with each other. It does so from a creative and artistic perspective.
This module creates the basis for the technical understanding and knowledge of materials, structures and systems. It focuses on the practical application of principles and conventions architecture and introduces project management and the relevant construction regulatory framework. Furthermore, the module explores the language of architectural design in 2D and 3D through the use of analogue tools and computing skills for digital production with a focus on drafting, and detailing.
This is the core architectural design studio module. It focuses on the fundamental principles of architectural design creation, defined as operation, condition and merging. The module initiates knowledge and understanding of the key principles and terms of architectural design as formal and spatial articulation. It introduces user and site as context in the making of architecture and familiarise students with the key processes of projects by working against briefs, using precedents and core concepts.
This is the history and theory and research methods module. It focuses on the most influential thought of critical theory and its application in practice through research. It draws upon concepts and contexts drawn from the arts, humanities and sciences. It create a platform for discovery, investigation, and interpretation of theoretical issues and approaches of philosophical and contextual nature and promotes interdisciplinary thinking.
This is the technical knowledge, construction and management module. It provides advanced knowledge and understanding of structures, materials and building performance, underpinned by sustainability principles. It expands upon building services and regulations as well as methods that frame environmental design. It thoughtfully combines the above with training in Building Information Modelling (BIM) principles as well as project management.
This uniquely designed module brings together a wide range of disciplines that study the city, and through a critical and creative perspective it will explore architecture and the urban environment as framed by specific sociocultural and political contexts. Focusing on heritage and curatorial practices, students train in activities related to participatory design and conservation, creative regeneration, activism and site-specificity. This module promotes specialised interdisciplinary knowledge and understanding of the urban environment.
This is the core architectural design studio module. It focuses on issues of integration and regeneration looking at the micro and macro scale of architecture as intervention and object, to include cultural and financial parameters. The module presents architecture as making insightful gestures that apply to objects, spaces, and environments of complex nature. It moreover addresses the role of the architect in a team, and their direct connection with the materiality, the process, and the completion of work as built product.
This the theory and history module that focuses on the development and production of an academic research essay (dissertation) in response to a series of lectures and seminars on space and place. The research process is guided closely by a specialist supervisor and is enhanced by scholarly discussions on specialised topics related to architecture, art and design. The final outcome, the dissertation, is presented in an open student-led symposium.
This module positions the graduates in the profession and offers understanding of the ethos and role of architects in practice. Students position themselves as upcoming architecture professionals and reflect upon the ethos and social responsibility of the architect within a project and the society. This module provides the necessary knowledge around construction, the relevant processes and regulations as well as the role of the architect in such.
This is the core design studio module which defines the award of Bachelor with Honours in Architecture. It is much more rigorous than Design Synthesis 1 and 2 and facilitates a self-initiated project underpinned by social and environmental agendas and/or innovative construction systems. It promotes architecture as multifaceted practice with a scope for change making and offers opportunities for specialisation and gaining expertise for life in practice or further study.
WHY SUFFOLK
2nd in the UK for Career Prospects
WUSCA 20243rd in the UK for spend on academic services
Complete University Guide 20254th in the UK for Teaching Satisfaction
Guardian University Guide 2024Entry Requirements
Career Opportunities
This course prepares you for industry based on the latest criteria and expectations. The skills we teach essential within the industry and are transferable to other contexts. Upon successful completion and relevant graduate placement/training, you may work in roles such as:
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Architectural assistants, architectural designers and technicians.
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Artists, visualisers, and illustrators.
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Tutors and teachers in architecture, design technology, and art and design.
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Urban designers, officers in planning and the local authorities.
This course also fully prepares you for postgraduate study in Architecture, Architectural Design, Urban Design, Construction Management, Engineering, and most art and design specialisms. Our graduates work in practices such as Foster + Partners, KLH, NJ Architects, and as freelance professionals.
ARB (Part 1) prescribed with Candidate status for RIBA validation.
Facilities and Resources
As a student, you will benefit from allocated architecture studios with high calibre IT and AV equipment, including PC workstations, interactive screen and sketch and pin-up walls. We have designed the interior of the studios specifically for our course:
- Architecture studios
- Wood, plaster and metal workshops
- Dedicated PC and Apple suites
You will have access to the latest technology for your coursework, including laser-cutting (arts workshop), 3D scanning and 3D printing in a business-oriented lab. You will have free access to The Architect's Film Club, established in partnership with RIBA Suffolk, and the opportunity to complete study visits abroad with the course and independently via our international partner Schools, including the world-renowned Architecture and Built Environment Department at TU Delft, and the School of Architecture at the National technical University of Athens.
Unibuddy: Chat to our Students and Staff
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