The School of Architecture will have a unique curriculum based upon four related subjects:

Design Studio

Culture (including histories, material culture)

Technology (including ecology, sustainability, structures)

Professional Practice (including work-terms for credit)

Design Studio

 

 See what one of the First-year Design Studio classes completed this fall:

 

 

The spine of every architecture program is the Design Studio, which will follow an intended sequence that is drawn from building in a Northern Canadian context:

Year 1: Place

Year 2: Landscape

Year 3: Northern Building Studio

Year 4: Comprehensive Design

Bachelor of Architectural Studies (BAS) awarded

Year 5: Craft & Community (choice of graduate studio)

Year 6: Thesis Research and Design (individual design)

Master of Architecture (MArch) awarded

 

Unique aspects of the School of Architecture

The School will conduct many of its design studio projects in communities that invite us to explore real issues. This will focus on hands-on learning, through Design-Build and Community-Design projects that will make the School become known in the wider architectural community.

 

The School will offer a co-operative educational model where students first work in related industries on paid work-terms, followed by a 4 month work-term in an architecture office in the undergraduate program and a longer 8 month work-term  during the graduate program in architecture offices locally, nationally, and internationally. The mix of industry and architecture co-op terms will be unique to our program. Integrating education and professional practice for academic credit produces stronger young architects who are exposed to theory and practice in measured ways.

 

The School will place particular emphasis on the Francophone student experience through having a Francophone design studio group each year, electives and internships in French, etc. Regarding the FMNI student experience; there will be First Nations Art courses, an Elder in residence, Aboriginal faculty, and a curriculum that addresses contemporary Aboriginal culture.  The idea is to create synergy among diverse cultural groups, not cultural silos. Special positions such as an artist in residence and an elder in residence are about mentoring students throughout the program as an integral part of their education.

For a summary report on our workshop with the FNMI community, please click SPACE CREATES KIN-NECTIONS

For a summary report on our workshop with the Francophone community, please click DIALOGUE FRANCOPHONE

 

The School will be downtown, and therefore will have direct links with other downtown businesses and related services in food, housing, supplies, etc. Connecting the School to the LU campus is critical, and this will begin with first year students taking general electives on campus. Our buildings and events will draw campus students to the downtown as well on a regular basis.

 

The School will aim to have consistent and sustained environmental practices within the daily life of the School, starting with the building design.