Architecture

Architecture is one of the most appealing and promising fields of study in today's world. It combines art and science, creative design and advanced technology, attracting not only those passionate about construction and design but also offering abundant career opportunities. However, to succeed in this field, students need to have a passion for art, creativity, and strong logical thinking.

Major Introduction

The objective of the architecture major is to engage in architectural design creation to build a good spatial environment for users. Architecture is a highly comprehensive discipline, combining the characteristics of both science and art, as well as engineering and humanities.

The study of architecture typically includes two main aspects: technology and art. Architectural technology primarily addresses the stability and safety of the building structure, the comfort and energy efficiency of the indoor environment, and other related issues.

Training Objectives

This major is a comprehensive discipline that involves fields of science, engineering, literature, and art. It integrates science and art, engineering and humanities.
The goal of this program is to cultivate high-quality architectural talents who are in line with national construction needs, have a deep understanding of the frontier of the discipline, possess international competitiveness, and have the potential for interdisciplinary innovation.

Graduation Requirements

Through studying the architecture major, students will see significant development in the following areas:

1. Aesthetics: The ability to recognize, experience, and appreciate beauty, improve personal aesthetic literacy, master the basic rules of morphological beauty and expression methods, and create a sense of beauty through architectural design.

2. Thinking: Developing both image thinking and logical thinking, learning to think about the relationships between the city, architecture, environment, and people from multiple perspectives, and adopting a comprehensive and systematic approach to understanding and analyzing things.

3. Expression: Mastering the basic skills of visualizing thoughts and expressing ideas to others in various ways, including drawing, modeling, writing, and oral presentation, as well as learning to communicate and interact with different groups of people.

4. Practice: Includes hands-on model making, physical construction, site research, user interviews, etc., as well as gradually enhancing architectural design skills, starting with simple designs and working up to more complex, comprehensive projects.

Core Courses

The core courses of the architecture major are mainly "architectural design" courses, which start in the first year and continue throughout every semester. The curriculum follows a progressive approach, divided into the basic training stage, the deepening and improvement stage, and the professional expansion and integrated practice stage. 

Students will learn to establish basic concepts of architectural space, understand the key elements of architectural design, and study architectural design theories and methods, along with training in basic architectural design expression skills. 

The design objects range from simple, small-scale buildings to complex, large-scale structures, including residential buildings, educational buildings, cultural buildings, transportation buildings, and urban area designs. In the final year, the graduation design focuses on large-scale, complex, and integrated design projects. 

Through progressive training stages and diverse teaching methods, students will master architectural design methods and improve their professional skills.

Research Directions of the Architecture Major

The architecture major includes fundamental knowledge in architectural design theory and methods, architectural history and theory, architectural technology, urban planning, and landscape design, as well as drawing, modeling, and integrated expression skills. 

In architectural design, everything from functional requirements to aesthetic demands, from cultural connotations to behavioral psychology, from structural layout to material selection, equipment configuration, and even economic cost and market demand, needs to be studied. Architectural design is not based solely on imagination; inspiration can come from history, culture, society, nature, urban environments, and more. Thus, the knowledge covered by the architecture major is vast.

Degrees Awarded

The program offers two types of study duration: five years and four years.

1. Five-year duration: Courses are designed according to a five-year undergraduate program, with credits distributed over this period. The maximum duration for undergraduate study is the program duration plus two years. Degree awarded: Bachelor of Architecture.

2. Four-year duration: Courses are designed according to a four-year undergraduate program, with credits distributed over this period. The maximum duration for undergraduate study is the program duration plus two years. Degree awarded: Bachelor of Engineering.

Career Development

Graduates can work in architectural design, urban planning, construction management, real estate development, architectural research, and other fields.
Common career paths include architect, urban planner, construction project manager, and architectural technical consultant. Additionally, graduates can choose to pursue a master’s or doctoral degree for further academic development.

Related Majors

• Urban Planning

• Civil Engineering

• Environmental Design

• Interior Design

• Landscape Architecture

Ranking of Architecture Schools

Here are some well-known architecture schools domestically and internationally:

• Tsinghua University (China)

• Southeast University (China)

• Tongji University (China)

• Harvard University (USA)

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA)

• University College London (UK)

The above information provides a comprehensive introduction to the undergraduate architecture major, aiming to help students interested in the architecture industry understand the characteristics and development directions of the field.