Master of Architecture and Urban Design

Overview

The Master of Architecture and Urban Design builds upon the expanding area of study involving the design and management of urban form and the public realm alongside architecture’s role in contributing to the urban experience. The Master of Architecture and Urban Design focuses on designing for healthy city futures by embracing creative and speculative design thinking; cross-disciplinarity; alongside engagement with people, data and advanced technologies.
Cities are growing at an unprecedented rate with over fifty per cent of the world’s population now living in cities. This mass urbanisation presents urgent challenges, such as accommodating dense populations, responding to climate change, public health, housing affordability, urban mobility, and growing spatial complexity. These challenges cannot be addressed using traditional silos using twentieth century architectural and urban planning methods – new multi-dimensional approaches are needed by professionals that embrace three-dimensional space, big data along with change over time, temperature, humidity, sun and shade, air quality, land-use, safety, alongside economic, environmental, social and cultural aspects of the city. There is a growing need for design professionals that are skilled at working at a range of scales – from the individual building scale through to whole cities and regions.

Aims and objectives

Students who successfully complete this course will be able to apply specialised knowledge in Architecture and Urban Design to demonstrate discipline specific knowledge, skills and attributes. Specifically, graduates will be able to:

• critically reflect on and apply knowledge of contemporary urban design theory and practice demonstrating comprehension of international and local planning theory and history, planning law and statutory planning, urban economics, sustainability, land use and urban design, and strategic planning

• apply analytical design research methods with an understanding of sourcing credible, relevant data to investigate, analyse and synthesise complex information, problems, concepts and theories and apply these to the broader social, economic and environmental urban processes

• apply creative spatial thinking and innovation approaches in a range of settings and scales while critically presenting design ideas and research results to explain, interpret and evaluate the impact of a specific complex architecture and urban design solution 

• communicate clearly and concisely using a range of media to present, explain, document and interpret design propositions, methodologies, conclusions, professional decisions and urban analysis to diverse audiences

• apply technical design modelling, construction knowledge, fabrication and planning skills to research, analyse, design, and evaluate plans, policies, strategies and guidelines, land uses allocations, resources and manage implementation processes

• apply a high standard of professional ethics and managerial knowledge in a variety of environments, meeting conduct and ethical behaviour standards relevant to a variety of circumstances

• undertake independent scholarship demonstrating the capacity to plan and execute a research-based urban design project and properly use a vocabulary of urban design paradigms and case studies to contextualise their proposition.  

• use professional and managerial knowledge to evaluate architectural, urban design and planning practice in a critical and ethical framework

Course Learning Outcomes are based jointly on the Australian Institute of Architects (AIA) Education Committee;s Policy on Tertiary Education of Architects – Standards for Programs in Architecture (2009) as well as the core capabilities and competencies set out by the Planning Institute of Australia.

Professional recognition

The Master of Architecture and Urban Design is accredited with the Architects Accreditation Council of Australia (AACA)..

Graduate skills

The Swinburne Graduate Attributes signify that Swinburne intends that its teaching courses assist all its graduates to be:

• capable in their chosen professional, vocational or study areas

• entrepreneurial in contributing to innovation and development within their business, workplace or community

• effective and ethical in work and community situations 

• adaptable and able to manage change

• aware of local and international environments in which they will be contributing.

Maximum Academic Credit

The maximum level of credit that can be granted is 100 credit points (normally eight units) from an accredited course.