1. You get to have an impact on climate change
Did you know that we are the only university in the UK that offers a course that combines environmental studies and architecture? The course incorporates the creative side of architecture design and science to inform a new generation of architects who are environmentally aware.
Through real-world assignments, students will develop technical and analytical skills to evaluate design options, calculate building performance and take into consideration the environmental benefits of their projects. For example, most recently, final year students have been asked to analyse data to understand the environmental conditions in London in 2050 and develop designs that mitigate against some of the future climate change challenges.
2. You’ll have access to wider career paths
While this course allows students to go on to practice as architects, it also gives them the option to become environmental designers or environmental consultants. Having wider career options means you’re not restricted to just one profession. In this course, you’ll benefit from a varied culture that broadens traditional architectural horizons and, as a result, you’ll get to develop your professional creativity in multiple fields. Our graduates have gone to work for prestigious practices such as Grimshaw Architects, Wilkinson Eyre and Foster + Partners. Some have also chosen to set up their independent practices.
3. You’ll have an opportunity to work with real data
You will learn to collect and interpret data in the context of architecture and climate change. We take pride in training our students to obtain valuable skills in utilising and analysing data to make informed decisions. These skills can, for example, be applied to design building structures to tackle and reduce their impact on climate change.
Most recently, our third year students have been collecting environmental data in the Royal Docks in East London, where establishments such as the Thames Barrier and London City Airport have been affecting the local neighbourhood. The students are now working with real data to design public buildings that can actively and performatively mitigate against issues such as air and noise pollution, waste and flooding.
4. You’ll benefit from our unique ways of teaching
Our diverse teaching staff consists of academics, industry practitioners, researchers, environmental consultants, and theoreticians. They all have unique perspectives that, together, offer you a comprehensive understanding of architecture and its impact on the environment and the society we live in.
Teaching staff with a theoretical and academic focus help students to build a broad and diverse knowledge base. It allows them to see environmental design as an endeavour, not only anchored in practice, but set within a wider scientific, social, cultural and political context. For example, students will learn about doughnut economies as a sustainable model of urban development, under which they can consider their design practice.
5. You’ll get to work in our outstanding facilities
Our architecture studios are created to cultivate creativity and to help students to have a safe and innovative workspace where they can develop their projects. We recognise that students spend a lot of time in studios working together on assignments, so we made sure to create an inspiring space for collaboration. The studios are positioned at the top of the Marylebone campus, with views right across central London.
For example, our Fabrication Laboratory, provides an innovative learning environment for digital fabrication. We host various architecture workshops there as it’s equipped with flexible computer-controlled tools, covering a wide range of scales, materials and processes. It also has useful tools such as 3D printers and laser cutters available for students.
Header image: Annabelle Morel-Jean (Architecture and Environmental Design BSc) – The Urban Growth Centre (2023)
About Westminster
As one of the most diverse universities in the UK, we are a global university with London energy, with more than 19,000 students from 169 countries.
Find out more about our Architecture and Environmental Design BSc.
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