In UK, RIBA (Royal Institution for British Architects) licenses architects for professional practice and for that, the RIBA part I, II, III exams have to be cleared. Many universities, recognized by RIBA, provide degrees which exempt the students from Part I and Part II exams, such as the Manchester School of Architecture, that provides B.A. (Honours) and B.Arch. PG. course for exempting Part I and II respectively. However Part III exams are a must to practice architecture vocationally.The undergraduate course is usually called a sandwich course which includes a 3 year B.A. or B.Sc. course along with a year of practice and finally,a 2 year B.Arch.course followed by the RIBA exams. This whole process includes learning in design studio, CAD methods, history of architecture, construction, structures, material technology, Environment design and also urban studies.
Similarly, the famous AA School of Architecture that creates sensitivity towards space, forms, surroundings and also encourages students to find these elements in busy areas of London. The second stage, the AA intermediate, prepares students of second and third year for RIBA Part I and is a ten unit program in three sections teaching History and Theory(HTS),Technical studies (construction, environmental design, new technology) and finally media studies which inculcates various forms and techniques of presentation dabbling in mediums such as video, photography, printmaking, figurative drawing,film and digital media. The third stage or the AA Diploma has a duration of two years during which a student is prepared for the RIBA part II exam.This stage is a 16 unit long program which is centered around design projects.The course study includes History and Theory Studies which further leads to submission of the HTS thesis. The technical studies deal with advanced structural design, energy and environment strategies, construction engineering, material performance, land engineering, geotechnics and virtual environment. The media studies deal with the previously mentioned media as well as model making and computing. At the end of this course, a submission for future practice is
expected that examines the role of an architect in relation to client, user and various members of the
building team. This submission also explores realization of architectural projects in diverse cultural and
economic context. For this very purpose, world famous architects, structural engineers, construction engineers are roped in to consult and teach. No wonder this school boasts of ex faculty like Zaha Hadid and ex students like Geoffrey Bawa. Besides regular courses, short term summer and winter schools are also conducted where not only architecture students but also architects, graduates and even common people, can participate. Such schools usually have theme based on the current scenario and the social impact of the place where the school is being held and thus group projects are organized for productive contribution to the theme.The duration of such schools can be anything between nine days to fifteen weeks.
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