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Architecture

BA (Hons)

Undergraduate degree - single honours

Award
BA (Hons) Architecture
School/s
Bath School of Design
Campus or location
Locksbrook Campus
Course length
Three years full time, or four years full time with professional placement year. Part time available.
UCAS codes
Institution Code: B20
Course Code: AR11; or AR12
Campus Code: A,BSU

Entry requirements

We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry to our undergraduate programmes. The main ones are listed under 'Typical offers' in the main column below. For combined courses, please check both subjects. If your qualification is not listed, please email admissions@bathspa.ac.uk with your specific details.

Use architectural design principles to respond to complex social and environmental needs with our innovative Architecture degree.

  • Study an Architecture degree at our RIBA Award-winning Locksbrook Campus building.
  • Work with a range of local, regional, national and international organisations on real-world projects.
  • Create innovative designs that respond to the needs of communities, social initiatives and complex issues such as climate change.

Architects Registration Board logo

Prescribed Architecture course

Take the first step towards becoming an Architect. BA (Hons) Architecture at Bath Spa University is prescribed by the Architects Registration Board (ARB).


Where we live and work shapes who we are – whether we’re in a built or natural environment. On our Architecture degree, you’ll learn about the relationships between conservation, planning and the use and reuse of spaces in response to crucial issues such as climate change, biodiversity loss and supporting fair societies.

How we design, create, reinvent and repurpose our built environment is constantly evolving, and we’ll prepare you to be a responsive, resilient, flexible and imaginative practitioner. You’ll work on projects and live briefs with external collaborators from your first year on the course.

Bath is a World Heritage City that has always been at the cutting edge of architecture; the balance of old and new here is evident in everything from the city’s famous Georgian buildings to the recently redeveloped former Herman Miller factory site that has become Bath Spa University’s state-of-the-art Locksbrook Campus. BA Architecture at Bath Spa teaches you about buildings and materials in relation to their location and within their historic and future contexts.

This course is prescribed by the Architects Registration Board (ARB) for the purpose of entry onto the United Kingdom Register of Architects. Prescription is subject to the conditions of prescription being met and maintained and to periodic review. The qualification is currently prescribed until 31 December 2028. 

As a prescribed course, it forms the undergraduate degree element of the Part 1 qualification towards becoming an architect.  

#2 in the South West and #21 in the UK

for Graduate Prospects "On Track" in Art and Design (Complete University Guide, 2024)

#2 in the South West and #14 in the UK

for Continuation in Art and Design (Complete University Guide, 2024)

University of the Year for Social Inclusion

Sunday Times Good University Guide, 2024


Open Days

Get a taste of life at Bath Spa – come to one of our Open Days.

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What you'll learn

Overview

We encourage you to apply even if you have little experience of space planning or building design. Our Architecture degree will enable you and your fellow students to build on your diverse experiences. Together, you’ll develop skills in the foundations of architecture: design, drawing, making, planning, communication and collaboration.

You’ll learn to use new and emerging technologies, and develop skills in drawing, model-making, design processes and project management. You’ll engage with the materials of our built and natural environments: stone, glass, iron, wood, green landscapes, brick, copper, steel and waterways.

Designing our spaces, buildings, cities and landscapes is a collaborative process across design practices that involves practical and intellectual complexity, creativity and innovation. Through interdisciplinary work-based learning, BA (Hons) Architecture at Bath Spa provides you with theoretical understanding and practical experience, and develops your interpersonal, collaborative and professional skills.

Course structure

Year one
Working on a range of projects, you’ll be introduced to the key practical and conceptual skills of architectural design. You’ll develop a solid foundation in research theories and methodologies to support your design skills as you start to understand and develop your own professional practice. Using our unique and interconnected local and regional environments as a starting point, you’ll also be introduced to the historical and theoretical contexts of architecture in relation to place, space, community, and our collective ethical and sustainability responsibilities to our environment.

Year two
You'll engage with complex, real-world projects and practice-based, peer-to-peer learning to continue to develop your practical, creative and professional skills. You’ll deepen and expand your architectural design knowledge. We’ll help you further develop your practical understanding of, and expertise in, research, project design and project management, and your ability to work collaboratively  an essential skill for all design professionals.

Year three
We’ll help you as you use your own creativity, knowledge and practical skills to successfully realise real-world collaborative and interdisciplinary projects. You’ll consolidate your experiences, expertise and professional practice into a comprehensive portfolio that clearly articulates the skills and professional experience you've developed during your BA Architecture degree.

How will I be assessed?

Our Architecture course is entirely assessed by coursework. You'll be assessed by a variety of methods that may include:

  • Reports
  • Reviews
  • Reflective learning and professional practice pieces
  • Proposal papers for projects
  • Project progress reports
  • Project evaluations
  • Portfolios
  • Presentations
How will I be taught?

We combine academic study with practice-based teaching. You’ll learn through a variety of activities including lectures, seminars, workshops, tutorials, online activity and discussion, work-based learning, research projects and practical real-world projects.

Staff on this course offer access to a wide range of academic and practical expertise in the interconnected disciplines that make up architectural studies. You’ll benefit from one-to-one tutorials, workshops, peer-support and shared learning.

We work with you to ensure that what you learn on the BA Architecture degree translates into effective practice in the workplace, and develops your professional potential.

To find out more about how we teach and how you'll learn, please read our Learning and Teaching Delivery Statement.

Course modules

This course offers or includes the following modules. The modules you take will depend on your pathway or course combination (if applicable) as well as any optional or open modules chosen. Please check the programme document for more information.

Year one (Level 4) modules
  • Design Studio 1 - People, form and space
  • Communication 1 - Observation, surveying and depiction
  • Architectural Technologies 1 
  • Design Studio 2 - Collaborative design 
  • Design Studio 3 - Place 
  • History and Context: Introduction to Material and Visual Culture
Year two (Level 5) modules
  • Design Studio 4 - Scale 
  • Architectural Technologies 2
  • Architectural Practice 1 
  • Design Studio 5 - Collaborative design 
  • Design Studio 6 - Intervention
  • Architecture - Theory and Contemporary Issues
  • Professional Placement Year
Year three (Level 6) modules
  • Design Studio 7 - Climate Positive Design
  • Architectural Practice 2 
  • Visual and Material Culture: Final Study 
  • Design Studio 8 - Final project

Opportunities

Careers

As this is a prescribed Part 1 course, you can use this degree towards your eventual registration qualification as an architect.  

The broad scope of skills developed on this course also prepares you for a range of professional employment opportunities in the wider architecture, design and construction industries, including: 

  • Interior and spatial designer 
  • Industrial designer 
  • Building surveyor 
  • Urban planner 
  • Conservationist 
  • Production designer 
  • Historic buildings inspector 
  • Project designer 
  • Project manager 
  • Graphic designer 
  • Lighting or set designer 
  • Game designer 
  • Architectural photographer.
Global Citizenship

If you’re a full-time undergraduate student starting your first year at Bath Spa University, you can apply for the Certificate in Global Citizenship, which you’ll study alongside your degree.

You’ll gain global awareness and add an international dimension to your student experience, and funding is available. On successful completion of the programme, you’ll be awarded a Certificate in Global Citizenship. This is in addition to your degree; it doesn’t change your degree title or results.

Adobe Creative Campus

Develop a wealth of indispensable digital skills that you can take into your future career. One of only three Adobe Creative Campuses in the UK, we provide all Bath Spa students with access to the full Adobe Creative Suite, giving you the tools to communicate creatively, whatever your course or chosen professional field.   

Facilities and resources

Where the subject is taught

The course is taught at our RIBA Award-winning Locksbrook Campus.

As a BA Architecture student you’ll benefit from access to comprehensive digital workshops and specialist art and design facilities, including:

  • Our student service point at Locksbrook where you can purchase subsidised art and design materials, hire out equipment for free and collect Library resources
  • Access to our well-stocked Library at Newton Park
  • Specialist technical workshops across all of art and design
  • Access to studio space where you can work on projects and refine your practice

Locksbrook campus

Locksbrook Campus is a Grade II listed building designed by Nicholas Grimshaw in 1976. It has now been transformed into an innovative, open plan space, redesigned to meet 21st century environmental standards, with technical workshops surrounded by flexible studio spaces and large social areas.

Locksbrook has received both a RIBA South West Award 2021 and RIBA National Award 2021, recognising and celebrating what an amazingly inspirational space it is to come together to design, make, do, create and learn in.

Study options

Integrated Foundation Year (UCAS code: AR13)

The preliminary and intensive Integrated Foundation in Art and Design is designed to develop your ideas, skills and confidence in readiness for progressing to year one of your degree programme.

Professional Placement Year (UCAS code: AR12)

This year provides you with the opportunity to identify, apply for, and secure professional experience, normally comprising one to three placements over a minimum of nine months. Successful completion of this module will demonstrate your ability to secure and sustain graduate-level employment.

By completing the module, you'll be entitled to the addition of 'with Professional Placement Year' to your degree title.

Before your Professional Placement Year, you'll work to secure your placement, constructing a development plan with your module leader and your placement coordinator from our Careers and Employability team.

On your return to University for your final year, you'll submit your Placement Portfolio, detailing your development on your placement, for assessment.

Please note that the Professional Placement Year does not count towards the year of professional experience required for Part One of the qualifications to become an architect.

Fees

2024 entry
Student Annual tuition fee
UK full time £9,250
UK part time £4,625
International full time £17,585

Professional Placement Year

During the placement year, the fee is reduced to 20% of the full time fee. This applies to UK and EU/International students.

  • UK: £1,850
  • International: £3,517

Interested in applying?

What we look for in potential students

We’re looking for motivated, committed students who wish to push the boundaries of their academic knowledge and get the best possible preparation for their future career. You’ll want to become a socially engaged global citizen, ready to make a difference.

Typical offers

We accept a wide range of qualifications for entry to our undergraduate programmes. The main ones are listed below:

  • A Level – grades BBB-BCC including a Grade B in an Art and Design or related subject.
  • BTEC – Extended Diploma grades from Distinction Distinction Merit (DDM) to Distinction Merit Merit (DMM) in a related subject.
  • T Levels – grade Merit preferred in a relevant subject.
  • International Baccalaureate – a minimum of 32 points are required with a minimum of grade 5 in an Art subject at Higher Level.
  • Access to HE courses – typical offers for applicants with Access to HE will be the Access to HE Diploma or Access to HE Certificate (60 credits, 45 of which must be Level 3, at Merit or higher) together with evidence of experience in Art and Design.

In addition, all applicants will normally be expected to hold a minimum grade C or 4 in GCSE Maths (or equivalent).

If you don’t meet the entry requirements above, we may be able to accept your prior learning or experience from outside of formal education. See our Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL) page to learn more.

English Language Requirements for International and EU Applicants

IELTS 6.0 - for visa nationals, with a minimum score of IELTS 5.5 in each element.

Course enquiries

For further information about BA Architecture or entry requirements, please email us at admissions@bathspa.ac.uk.

How do I apply?

Ready to apply? Click the 'apply now' button in the centre of this page.

Need more guidance? Head to our how to apply webpages.

Interview and portfolio guidance

Applicants who meet the entry criteria will be invited by email to submit a portfolio of creative work for review. We base our offers on the content of the portfolio and your UCAS application. More details will be supplied on invitation. 

Course leader: Ian Parkes
Email: i.parkes2@bathspa.ac.uk

Masthead image: Thermae Bath Spa building by Kristin Doern

Website feedback to web@bathspa.ac.uk