Key information
Our two-year Master of Architecture (MArch) programme will enhance your appreciation of architecture as a design-led discipline, providing enlightenment on the latest technological advances and application of innovative solutions to current global challenges within the built environment.
- Level
- Postgraduate Taught
- Delivery type
- Full Time
- Degree qualification
- MArch
- Mode of delivery
- On-Campus
- Duration
- 2 years
- Location
- Edinburgh
- Start date
- September
Our Master of Architecture (MArch) Part 2 will enhance your appreciation of architecture as a design-led discipline, providing enlightenment on the latest technological advances and innovative sustainable solutions to current and future societal challenges within the built environment industry. Taught within state-of-the-art facilities for designing, the programme will be of interest to individuals possessing the Architect Registration Board (ARB) part 1 and offers the opportunity to develop appropriate solutions to a range of global challenges. This degree will complete your educational journey as an architect, and you’ll graduate suitably prepared to work professionally in the dynamic built environment industry.
During your studies you’ll:
- conceive, resolve and execute sustainable architectural designs of varying scale and complexity, underpinned by creativity,
- evaluate the physical, cultural and societal context within the process of place-making,
- integrate aesthetic, compositional, spatial and functional principles to produce technically sound and environmentally sustainable projects,
- critically analyse and research cultural, environmental and social values to produce effective and user-centred architectural outputs,
- demonstrate climate literacy and ethical approaches to increase wellbeing through the design of innovative and energy-efficient buildings,
- identify, evaluate and integrate appropriate materials, technologies, systems and construction processes for design proposals,
- demonstrate knowledge of the legal frameworks necessary to protect current and future communities,
- write, communicate and evaluate business plans and project outputs,
- appraise architectural propositions individually and as part of a team.
Your student experience
Your learning will be informed by the expertise of our research-active architects, architectural engineers, civil and structural engineers, construction professionals, industry-leaders, and academics.
96% of Heriot-Watt University's engineering research was classed as world-leading in the REF 2021 review, which ranked us 1st in Scotland and 3rd in the UK for engineering research through a joint submission with the University of Edinburgh.
Our Master of Architecture programme is directly informed by the world class research carried out by Heriot-Watt’s Institute for Sustainable Built Environment (ISBE) which sits within the School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society (EGIS). EGIS is one of the United Kingdom’s leading institutions for multidisciplinary research and teaching in areas critical to economic development and societal equity. The institute’s academic team conduct high-value and high-impact research on fields covering sustainability, digital innovation, design, and management of the built environment.
This School is also part of the Centre of Excellence in Sustainable Building Design, a leading body recognised by the Royal Academy of Engineering. The Centre is one of only four such centres established at United Kingdom universities that jointly form a national network to demonstrate and exchange best practice in teaching and research for the sustainable built environment.
Go Global
With Go Global, Heriot-Watt's global student programme, you can carry your studies to new places and experience new cultures, expanding your horizons on the way. You'll discover what it means to be a true global citizen and emerge prepared for wherever your career journey will take you.
Inter-Campus Transfer
Course content
September Intake - Edinburgh
Mandatory September
- Urban Design for Health and Wellbeing
- Design Project 1
- Urban Design Theory
Mandatory January
- Sustainable and Intelligent Buildings
- Design Project 2
- Research Methods
Fees and funding
| Status | Full Time |
|---|---|
| UK | £9,535 |
| International | £20,536 |
- Status: Your residency status is usually defined as the country where you have been ordinarily resident for the three years before the start of your course.
- International: 'International' includes applicants from European Union countries who do not hold Pre-Settled or Settled status in UK. (This does not include students from the Republic of Ireland - see above).
Additional information
Fees are payable for each year of this two year MArch degree.
For eligibility of funding, please see your relevant funding body.
Scholarships and bursaries
Master of Architecture Merit Award
International students receive a tuition fee discount of £3,000 in year 1 and £3,000 in year 2 of this two year MSc.
Entry requirements
We have standard entry requirements for all of our courses that you will have to meet.
You should hold a minimum of a 2:2 honours degree and have an excellent portfolio. Relevant industry experience will also be considered. Student selection will be made through a multi-layered process and you may be invited to attend an interview either virtually or in person. This programme attracts students in possession of the ARB and/or RIBA Part 1 but it is not necessary to have this to apply for the programme.
We welcome applications from international students and accept qualifications from around the world. Please refer to the entry requirements for your country for more details.
Why Heriot-Watt
We're the top university in Scotland for graduate outcomes which means that more of our graduates are employed or in postgraduate education than any other institution in the country and we ranked 5th in the UK.
We're also rated number one in the UK for CEO or MD roles, meaning more of our graduates go on to become CEOs or MDs than any other university in the whole of the UK. On top of that, we have beautiful campuses, across the globe, so you'll get a truly international education. Our Edinburgh Campus is home to Oriam, Scotland's National Sports Performance Centre combined with plenty of wellbeing resources, prioritising fitness and mental health for all students. Our Global Research Institutes look at solving real world issues such as climate change and saving our oceans as well as working on the next medical technological breakthrough and the future of AI and robots.
Student life
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