Your complete guide to a PhD in Architecture

Everything you need to know about studying a PhD in Architecture

part of Arts, Design & Architecture

What is Architecture?

Architecture is the art and science of designing and creating physical structures and spaces. It stands at the intersection of creativity, history, engineering, and social sciences. As a student in Architecture you will learn about shaping the environment to accommodate human needs while merging aesthetics, functionality, and environment.

Architecture Specialisations

A vast domain, Architecture offers many specialisations. Some of the key areas include:

  • Urban Design: The art of designing entire cities or town layouts.
  • Landscape Architecture: Crafting outdoor spaces, balancing aesthetics and function.
  • Sustainable Architecture: Designing with ecological and sustainable principles at the forefront.
  • Interior Architecture: Tailoring the interior of a space for optimal aesthetics and functionality.
  • Architectural Technology: Integrating modern technology into building designs.

If you are considering a Master’s in Architecture, you will have the opportunity to explore these or other niche areas in-depth. Notably, the most common specialisation in Architecture is Sustainable Architecture, reflecting the growing demand for eco-friendly designs.

What will you learn during an Architecture programme?

Embarking on an Architecture degree will provide you with a rich set of skills and knowledge. You will:

  • Understand the history of architectural styles and their cultural significance.
  • Master the art of drafting and digital design tools.
  • Grasp structural principles and material science.
  • Develop a keen eye for aesthetics and space functionality.

Noteworthy courses to expect:

  • Architectural History: A journey through the evolution of architectural styles.
  • Building Science: Understanding the technicalities of building materials and systems.
  • Digital Design: Mastering software tools for architectural designs.
  • Structural Mechanics: Grasping the principles of supporting various architectural designs.
  • Studio Design: Hands-on design projects to hone your skills.

Architecture is a perfect blend of creativity and practicality. The skills you can get from Architecture courses are versatile, finding applications in various domains like urban planning, real estate, and even digital game design or the movie industry.

Skills required for a degree in Architecture

To excel in Architecture, one should possess creativity, a strong visualisation ability, and an analytical mindset. Good interpersonal skills are vital for understanding client needs and working in teams. For prospective students, the Architecture degree requirements might also include a portfolio showcasing any prior design work.

What can you do with an Architecture degree?

The world of architecture offers many rewarding careers, such as:

  • Residential Architect: Designing private homes tailored to client specifications.
  • Commercial Architect: Creating structures for business purposes, like offices or malls.
  • Conservation Architect: Preserving and restoring historic structures.
  • Urban Planner: Shaping the development of towns or cities.
  • Interior Designer: Perfecting the inside of spaces for both form and function.

Reflecting on the jobs you can get with an Architecture degree, it's clear that the scope isn't limited to just building design. For those contemplating what you can do after an Architecture degree, remember that this field touches nearly every aspect of our built environment. Given the ever-growing demand for well-designed spaces, especially with the tilt towards sustainable practices, it's no wonder many believe that a career after the most common specialisation in Architecture is well worth the investment.

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View all PhDs in Architecture. Keep in mind you can also study an online PhDs in Architecture.

Interesting programmes for you

Best Universities for Architecture on PhDPortal

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Universities Location TopUniversities Ranking (2018)
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Cambridge, United States 1
UCL London, United Kingdom 2
Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) Delft, Netherlands 3
University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, United States 4
ETH Zurich - Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zürich, Switzerland 5
Harvard University Cambridge, United States 7
University of Cambridge Cambridge, United Kingdom 8
National University of Singapore Singapore, Singapore 9
The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, Hong Kong (SAR) 10
Tsinghua University Beijing, China 11
Columbia University New York City, United States 12
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Los Angeles, United States 13
Politecnico di Milano Milano, Italy 14
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hong Kong, Hong Kong (SAR) 15
University of Sydney Sydney, Australia 15
The University of Tokyo Tokyo, Japan 17
Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, United States 18
Melbourne Business School Melbourne, Australia 19
Tongji University Shanghai, China 20
Cornell University Ithaca, United States 21
University of New South Wales Sydney, Australia 22
KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, Sweden 23
Stanford University Stanford, United States 23
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne Lausanne, Switzerland 25
Polytechnic University of Catalonia Esplugues de Llobregat, Spain 26
University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada 27
RMIT University Melbourne, Australia 28
Princeton University Princeton, United States 29
Technical University of Munich München, Germany 29
University of Sheffield Sheffield, United Kingdom 31
University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, United States 32
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Urbana, United States 33
Seoul National University Anyang, South Korea 34
University of Sao Paulo São Paulo, Brazil 35
University of Reading Reading, United Kingdom 36
University of Salford Salford, United Kingdom 36
Kyoto University Kyoto, Japan 37
Pontifical Catholic University of Chile Villa Presidente Frei, Ñuñoa, Santiago, Chile, Chile 37
Cardiff University Cardiff, United Kingdom 39
University of Toronto Pickering, Canada 39
University of Texas at Austin Austin, United States 41
TU Berlin Berlin, Germany 42
University of Michigan Ann Arbor, United States 43
KU Leuven Brussels, Belgium 44
University of Newcastle Newcastle, Australia 45
Politecnico di Torino Turin, Italy 46
Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) Eindhoven, Netherlands 47
Loughborough University Loughborough, United Kingdom 47
University of Queensland Saint Lucia, Australia 49
Universidad Politécnica de Madrid Madrid, Spain 50
Yale University New Haven, United States 50
Bologna Business School Bologna, Italy 101
Chulalongkorn University Bangkok, Thailand 101
Czech Technical University (CTU) Malá Strana, Czech Republic 101
Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul Porto Alegre, Brazil 101
Ghent University Ledeberg, Belgium 101
Harbin Institute of Technology Harbin, China 101
Hokkaido University Sapporo, Japan 101
Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago, United States 101
Indian Institute of Technology Madras Perungudi, India 101
Istanbul Technical University Istanbul, Turkey 101
Korea University Seoul, South Korea 101
Kyung Hee University Seoul, South Korea 101
Kyushu University Fukuoka, Japan 101
Laval University Québec, Canada 101
METU Middle East Technical University Ankara, Turkey 101
Michigan State University East Lansing, United States 101
Nanjing University Nanjing, China 101
National Cheng Kung University Tainan, Taiwan 101
National Technical University of Athens Athens, Greece 101
Newcastle University Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom 101
Polytechnic University of Valencia Valencia, Spain 101
Rice University Houston, United States 101
Southeast University Nanjing, China 101
Technion - Israel Institute of Technology Haifa, Israel 101
The University of Western Australia Perth, Australia 101
Tohoku University Sendai-shi, Japan 101
TU Dresden Dresden, Germany 101
UNICAMP - University of Campinas Campinas, Brazil 101
National University of Colombia Bogotá, Colombia 101
Iuav University of Venice Venice, Italy 101
UCLouvain Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium 101
MARA Technological University Seremban, Malaysia 101
University College Dublin Dublin, Ireland 101
University of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, Argentina 101
University of Copenhagen Copenhagen, Denmark 101
University of Florida Gainesville, United States 101
University of Glasgow Glasgow, United Kingdom 101
University of Minnesota Minneapolis, United States 101
University of Montreal Montréal, Canada 101
University of Naples Federico II Naples, Italy 101
University of Nottingham Nottingham, United Kingdom 101
University of Technology Sydney Sydney, Australia 101
University of the Andes Bogotá, Colombia 101
University of Westminster London, United Kingdom 101
University of Wisconsin Madison Madison, United States 101
University Putra Malaysia Kampong Baharu Balakong, Malaysia 101
Vienna University of Technology Vienna, Austria 101
VILNIUS TECH Vilnius, Lithuania 101
Waseda University Shinjuku, Japan 101
Aarhus University Aarhus, Denmark 151
Brown University Providence, United States 151
Cairo University Cairo, Egypt 151
Chongqing University Chongqing, China 151
Chung-Ang University Seoul, South Korea 151
Concordia University Montréal Montreal West, Canada 151
Dalian University of Technology Dalian, China 151
Darmstadt University of Technology Darmstadt, Germany 151
Deakin University  Burwood, Australia 151
Fudan University Shanghai, China 151
King Saud University Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 151
Nagoya University Nagoya, Japan 151
National Chiao Tung University Hsinchu, Taiwan 151
National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (Taiwan Tech) Taipei, Taiwan 151
North Carolina State University Raleigh, United States 151
Northumbria University Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom 151
The Ohio State University Upper Arlington, United States 151
Osaka University Osaka-shi, Japan 151
Pusan National University Yangsan, South Korea 151
Queen's University Belfast Belfast, United Kingdom 151
Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands 151
South China University of Technology Guangzhou, China 151
Stockholm University Stockholm, Sweden 151
Syracuse University Syracuse, United States 151
The City University of New York New York City, United States 151
Ulster University Coleraine, United Kingdom 151
Universidade Nova de Lisboa Lisbon, Portugal 151
Panthéon-Sorbonne University Paris, France 151
University of Aberdeen Aberdeen, United Kingdom 151
University of Adelaide Adelaide, Australia 151
The University of Arizona Tucson, United States 151
University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, United States 151
University of Colorado at Boulder Boulder, United States 151
University of Dundee Dundee, United Kingdom 151
University of Florence Florence, Italy 151
University of Gothenburg Göteborg, Sweden 151
University of Maryland College Park, United States 151
University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, United States 151
University of Miami Coral Gables, United States 151
University of Navarra Pamplona, Spain 151
University of Pretoria Pretoria, South Africa 151
Roma Tre University Roma, Italy 151
University of Seoul Seoul, South Korea 151
University of Strathclyde Glasgow, United Kingdom 151
University of Tehran, Kish International Campus Kish, Iran 151
University of Twente (UT) Enschede, Netherlands 151
University of Virginia Charlottesville, United States 151
Victoria University of Wellington Wellington, New Zealand 151
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Amsterdam, Netherlands 151
Wageningen University and Research Wageningen, Netherlands 151
Aalborg University Aalborg, Denmark 51
Aalto University Helsinki, Finland 51
Arizona State University Tempe, United States 51
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, United States 51
Chalmers University of Technology Göteborg, Sweden 51
City University of Hong Kong Kowloon, Hong Kong (SAR) 51
Curtin University Perth, Australia 51
Griffith University Nathan, Australia 51
Hanyang University Seoul, South Korea 51
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) Karlsruhe, Germany 51
Lund University Lund, Sweden 51
McGill University Montréal, Canada 51
Monash University Clayton, Australia 51
National Autonomous University of Mexico Coyoacán, Mexico 51
New York University New York City, United States 51
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Trondheim, Norway 51
Oxford Brookes University Oxford, United Kingdom 51
Pennsylvania State University State College, United States 51
Queensland University of Technology Brisbane, Australia 51
RWTH Aachen University Aachen, Germany 51
Sapienza University of Rome Roma, Italy 51
Shanghai Jiao Tong University Shanghai, China 51
Sungkyunkwan University Seoul, South Korea 51
Texas A&M University College Station, United States 51
The Chinese University of Hong Kong Shatin, Hong Kong (SAR) 51
The University of Edinburgh Edinburgh, United Kingdom 51
Tianjin University Tianjin, China 51
TU Dortmund University Dortmund, Germany 51
University Kebangsaan Malaysia Semenyih, Malaysia 51
University Sains Malaysia George Town, Malaysia 51
University Teknologi Malaysia Sekudai, Malaysia 51
University of Auckland Auckland, New Zealand 51
University of Bath Bath, United Kingdom 51
University of Cape Town Cape Town, South Africa 51
University of Chile Lo Prado, Chile 51
University of Lisbon Lisbon, Portugal 51
University of Liverpool Liverpool, United Kingdom 51
University of Malaya Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 51
University of Porto Porto, Portugal 51
University of South Australia Adelaide, Australia 51
University of Southern California Los Angeles, United States 51
University of Stuttgart Stuttgart, Germany 51
University of Washington Seattle, United States 51
University of Waterloo Waterloo, Canada 51
Virginia Tech Blacksburg, United States 51
Yonsei University Seoul, South Korea 51
Zhejiang University Hangzhou, China 51
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Specialisations within the field of Arts, Design & Architecture

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