Master of Architecture

Architecture is a creative and exciting design-based profession concerned with virtually all aspects of the built environment. It combines art, science and technology with business, social and environmental concerns. The Master of Architecture is a professional program which prepares graduates for employment as architects. The ethos of the program emphasises the central role of design in the studio. Students can take a research subject which may enable progression to further studies as a PhD candidate.

With over thirty full-time academics and a broad range of leading architectural practitioners, the program has a depth and breadth of teaching and research performance unmatched within the Southeast-Asian and Australasian regions. Graduates will be equipped with the creative and critical thinking skills to push the envelope of architectural change in terms of the design and production of buildings as well as critique of their technical, aesthetic, social and environmental performance.

Professional/International Recognition

This course has been designed to meet the requirements of the professional associations shown below, and for quality assurance will undergo a regular review.

• Royal Australian Institute of Architects
• Architects Registration Board of Victoria
• Commonwealth Association of Architects

Graduates of the Master of Architecture will demonstrate:

Knowledge:
A knowledge of design based on architectural history, theory and contemporary practice.
A knowledge of current practice contexts, including environmental, technological, regulatory and project-delivery systems.
A knowledge of research and design-research methodologies and methods, including empirical and advanced research methods drawn from the sciences and humanities relevant to the discipline of architecture.

Skills:
The cognitive and creative skills to develop and evaluate a design concept that demonstrates the exercise of theoretical reflection, critical choice, imagination and professional responsibility, through the exploration, testing and refinement of different technical and aesthetic alternatives.
The technical and creative skills to produce a design that demonstrates an appreciation of economic factors, environmental issues, social and cultural issues, building systems and materials.
The technical and communication skills to generate design and contractual documentation that clearly conveys information to both specialist and non-specialist audiences and that enables a design project to be realised.

Application of knowledge and skills:
The ability to think strategically at different environmental and urban scales.
The ability to establish and evaluate requirements and priorities in new project situations and contexts.
The ability to work individually and collaboratively to prepare and deliver a design project.
The ability to prepare, structure, schedule, evaluate and deliver a substantial research or design-research project.

300 Point Entry

All student must complete:

237.5 points of core subjects (including the capstone subject: ABPL90169 Design Thesis).
37.5 points of architecture electives.
25 points of multidisciplinary electives.


200 Point Entry

All students must complete:

137.5 points of core subjects (including the capstone subject: ABPL90169 Design Thesis).
37.5 points of architecture electives.
25 points of multidisciplinary electives.

Students entering the Master of Architecture from a cognate discipline with 100 points of advanced standing will undertake the 200 point program

Students entering the Master of Architecture from a non-cognate discipline will undertake the 300 point program.

1. In order to be considered for entry applicants must have completed:

• an undergraduate degree in any discipline with a weighted average mark of at least H3 (65%), or equivalent; and
• a design portfolio in a format as specified by the Selection Committee; and
• a personal statement outlining relevant prior study and work experience, and motivation to undertake the course;

And for students not seeking credit

• one design studio subject and one art/architecture/built environment/design history subject at undergraduate level, or equivalent.

Meeting these requirements does not guarantee selection.

2. In ranking applications, the Selection Committee will consider:

• prior academic performance; and
• the personal statement; and
• the design portfolio.

3. The Selection Committee may seek further information to clarify any aspect of an application in accordance with the Student Application and Selection Procedure

4. Applicants are required to satisfy the university’s English language requirements for postgraduate courses. For those applicants seeking to meet these requirements by one of the standard tests approved by the Academic Board, performance band 6.5 is required.

Note: Applicants with the following may be awarded up to 100 points of credit

• an undergraduate degree with a major in architecture or architectural studies with a weighted average mark of at least H3 (65%), or equivalent.

Additional notes:

(a) Portfolio format for applicants not eligible for credit allowed under the Resolution on Selection.

The design portfolio is assessed digitally and must be saved as one PDF file in landscape format. The file size of the portfolio should not exceed 10 MB, and the number of pages should not exceed 15 pages. Note that as portfolios are evaluated digitally images should be reproduced at a sufficient scale and resolution to be easily readable with limited zooming or scrolling. The Selection Committee will look for evidence that the applicant has worked successfully in a studio learning environment. Any of the range of pedagogical approaches to the teaching of introductory design is appropriate, although the Selection Committee will be particularly interested in the exploration of 3D form and space, and evidence of other creative work

(b) Portfolio format for applicants who are eligible for credit allowed under the Resolution on Selection.

The design portfolio is assessed digitally and must be saved as one PDF file in landscape format. The file size of the portfolio should not exceed 10 MB, and the number of pages should not exceed 15 pages. Note that as portfolios are evaluated digitally images should be reproduced at a sufficient scale and resolution to be easily readable with limited zooming or scrolling. Elaborate formats that reduce the available page space for the design images should be avoided. The design portfolio should focus on design work rather than, for example, life or still-life drawing skills. Portfolios should be drawn largely from the design studio subjects the applicant has completed. Applicants submitting work done in the context of employment should explain their role in the work produced with brief notes. It would be helpful to see a variety of techniques of drawings and images: free hand diagrams, computer images, two-dimensional (plans, sections, elevations) and three-dimensional studies, photographs of physical models.

It is highly recommended that students obtain at least 16 weeks of documented relevant full-time professional work experience, before commencing the final 100 points of the degree.

Guaranteed Transfer into Commonwealth Supported Place

Students with a fee place in this course who complete 100 points of the course with a weighted average mark of at least H2A (75%) and who are eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place will be guaranteed a transfer to a Commonwealth Supported Place for the remainder of the course.

For information about how to apply click here.

The Melbourne School of Design is the graduate school of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning. It offers professional entry programs in Architecture, Construction Management, Landscape Architecture, Property and Urban Planning. It offers specialist development programs in Property Valuation, Planning and Design and in Urban Design.

The Melbourne School of Design welcomes applications from students with disabilities. It is the University and Faculty (Architecture, Building and Planning) policy to take reasonable steps to make reasonable adjustments so as to enable students’ participation in degrees offered by the Melbourne School of Design (MSD).

A candidate for degrees offered in the MSD must have abilities and skills which include the following: observation; communication; motor; conceptual, integrative, and quantitative; and behavioural and social. Adjustments can be provided to minimise the impact of a disability, however, particularly at Masters level, students need to be able to participate in programs in an independent manner and with regard to their safety and the safety of others.

(i) Observation: Candidates must be able to read text, diagrams, maps, drawings and numerical data. Candidates should be able to observe details at a number of scales and to record useful observations of environmental contexts.

(ii) Communication: Candidates should be able to communicate with fellow students, professional and academic staff, members of relevant professions and the public. Candidates must be able to communicate effectively and sensitively. Communication includes not only speech but also reading and writing, presenting one's own work in front of a large group, receiving and responding to feedback about one's own work in a public setting. Assessment in studio subjects will involve 'crits' where students present their own work in front of a large group, where they will receive and respond to feedback about their work in a public setting. Crits are an integral part of working in the industry and are an inherent requirement of the course.

(iii) Motor: Candidates should have sufficient motor function to elicit information from environmental contexts. Off campus investigations may include visits to construction sites, urban, rural and/or remote environments. Candidates should have sufficient motor ability to prepare documentation of analytic texts, drawings and models of findings and for the reparation of proposals for environmental interventions via digital or other means. Candidates should have the ability to actively participate in appropriate site and/or design studio-based activities.

(iv) Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative and Quantitative Abilities: These abilities include measurement, calculation, reasoning, analysis, synthesis and, importantly, the ability to interpret results of such work. Problem resolution, the critical skill demanded of graduates, requires all of these intellectual abilities. In addition, given the disciplines pursued in the SD, candidates should be able to comprehend three-dimensional relationships and to understand the spatial relationships in environmental structures of a wide range of scales – from smaller than the individual through individual buildings and urban spaces to large geographic areas. Further, graduate study entails learning to master one’s own abilities and skills and to deploy them strategically. This requires further developing skills in both reflective and reflexive thinking and being able to practice these skills.

(v) Behavioural and Social Attributes: A candidate must possess behavioural and social attributes that enable them to participate in a complex learning environment. Students are required to take responsibility for their own participation and learning. They also contribute to the learning of other students in collaborative learning environments, demonstrating interpersonal skills and an understanding of the needs of other students. Assessment may include the outcomes of tasks completed in collaboration with other students. Assessment in studio subjects will involve 'crits' where students present their own work in front of a large group, where they will receive and respond to feedback about their work in a public setting. Crits are an integral part of working in the industry and are an inherent requirement of the course.

Students who feel a disability will prevent them from meeting the above academic requirements are encouraged to contact the Disability Liaison Unit.

The main focus of the Master of Architecture is architectural design and practice. The degree provides graduates with:

Design skills that will contribute to the improvement of our built environment;

• A grounding in the rich lessons of architectural history, theory and technology enabling them to develop innovative architecture, relevant to time and place, people and culture;
• The skills to manage an architectural practice and work within teams; and
• The ability to use resources, materials and technologies to produce responsible and sustainable architecture.

The Master of Architecture program is recognised and accredited by the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA), the Architects Accreditation Council of Australia (AACA) and the Architects Registration Board of Victoria (ARBV).

The Master of Architecture has been specifically designed around the University of Melbourne postgraduate coursework graduate attributes and the requirements of professional associations. The Master of Architecture will incorporate research-led teaching, problem-based collaborative learning, professional engagement, and a diverse mature cohort. Graduates of the Master of Architecture will have high-level professional and intellectual capabilities enabling them to demonstrate leadership, a commitment to life-long learning, and professional integrity.

Students in this program may be eligible to undertake final subject assessment if they:

• are in the final semester of their enrolment (not the last 50 points of the course); and
• fail* a single subject worth up to 12.5 points with a final result of 40 - 49%.

* receive an N or NH grade, except where that NH grade was awarded due to failure to participate in a component of assessment