A student examining an architectural model
BA (Hons) Available in Clearing

Architecture

Help shape the world we live in and learn how to succeed in architectural practice.

Start date
September 2025
Location
Chelmsford
Duration
3 years
UCAS course code
K100

Start date
September 2025
Location
Chelmsford
Duration
4 years with foundation
UCAS course code
K190

Start date
September 2025
Location
Chelmsford
Duration
4 years with placement
UCAS course code
K101
2nd

in the UK for graduate median earnings 3 years after graduation.

Source: LEO 2025

Gain the theoretical, technical and design skills you need to create spaces that are innovative, meaningful and purposeful, as well as sustainable.

You’ll practise developing design concepts, experimenting with different media, and representing your ideas through drawings and physical and digital models.

You’ll also benefit from site visits and our connections with national and international architects, designers, artists, historians, and theorists, learning about up-to-the-minute themes and challenges in architecture.

Architects Registration Board (ARB) and Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)

Our Architecture degree is prescribed (Part 1) by the ARB and has been awarded RIBA Part 1 Full Status, unconditionally. When you complete our course you'll fulfil the first part of the three-part process to become a registered architect in the UK, and be exempt from the ARB and RIBA Part 1 examination.

Architects Registration Board (ARB) logo RIBA Validated Course in Architecture logo
Why ARU?

  • Study a course accredited by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and Part 1 prescribed by the Architects Registration Board (ARB)

  • Join a course where more students graduate in Architecture than from any other university in the East of England (LEO 2025)

  • Experience an optional European field trip each year to cities such as Lisbon, Venice, Rome and Vienna

  • Bring the world of work to life through Live Briefs, developed with employers to give you exposure to ‘real world’ problem-solving

  • Take part in workshops, guest lecture series, practitioners' events and our End of Year Show

  • Learn to draw, make models, and use software and digital techniques in our dedicated studios

Logo: THE Awards 2023
 

Study at an award-winning university

We were named Times Higher Education University of the Year 2023. We've also been awarded a Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework – a reflection of the outstanding education we offer our students.

Careers

The journey into architecture has been incredibly varied, from life drawings and model-making to technical construction and calculations. It has been a great experience.

Megan, BA (Hons) Architecture student and founder of the ARU Architecture Society

By studying architecture at ARU, you’ll gain creative and practical skills, such as computer-aided design, which will help you stand out from the crowd.

Our architecture, building and planning graduates earn more than the sector average: £4,000 more a year than the sector average 15 months after graduation.

Every summer we host our End of Year Show, the perfect opportunity to showcase your work to employers.

Teaching and modules

Thanks to hands-on activities and a vibrant student experience, you’ll engage with architecture's dynamic world and learn how to become a brilliant architect!

Dr Maria Vogiatzaki, Head of the School of Architecture and Planning

We’ll start by exploring architectural practice and considering how conceptual, abstract ideas become functioning, usable buildings.

You’ll learn about the materials, methods and structural evaluations involved in construction, as well as the history and theory of architecture.

You’ll also develop your practical skills, and learn to express and communicate ideas in different ways.

In Year 2, you’ll continue to hone these skills through a series of architectural briefs and projects of varying complexity.

Finally, you’ll examine current issues and trends in architecture – with a particular focus on ethics – and complete a major project that brings together everything you’ve learned.

Student experience

  • Close-up of an architectural model, overlaid with the subtitle 'your future in motion.'

    Discover more reasons to study Architecture at ARU in this short video.

  • A sheet of metal in a laser powder bed machine, in the process of having a number of round discs with holes in the middle cut from it

    Dr Martin McMahon, Royal Society Entrepreneur in Residence at ARU, showcases our metal 3D printer – the only one of its kind in the East of England – and discusses the benefits of additive manufacturing.

  • Architectural model of a bridge, with other models and drawings in the background

    Give your imagination free rein. Master different media, tools and skills as you create original pieces of work.

  • Two students examining a cardboard architectural model together

    Strengthen your creative work – and your teamworking skills – through peer-to-peer learning in our studios.

  • Cardboard architectural models on display, with architectural drawings on the wall behind them

    Let your work grow, change and take shape as ideas emerge.

  • A group of people looking at an exhibition of architectural models and designs

    Take pride in your creations: showcase your work to professionals through final reviews and end-of-year exhibitions.

  • About 20 Architecture students standing in front of Barcelona Cathedral

    Apply for one of our Turing Programme summer scholarships to work in Barcelona or study in Venice for four weeks.

  • A group photo of Architecture students with the O2 (formerly Millennium Dome) in the background

    Experience architecture in situ on national and international field trips.

  • Hands of students pointing at a map laid out on a table

    Our course prepares you for a career in architectural practice through Live Briefs – real-world projects designed and developed with employers.

  • Close-up of an architectural model, overlaid with the subtitle 'your future in motion.'
  • A sheet of metal in a laser powder bed machine, in the process of having a number of round discs with holes in the middle cut from it
  • Architectural model of a bridge, with other models and drawings in the background
  • Two students examining a cardboard architectural model together
  • Cardboard architectural models on display, with architectural drawings on the wall behind them
  • A group of people looking at an exhibition of architectural models and designs
  • About 20 Architecture students standing in front of Barcelona Cathedral
  • A group photo of Architecture students with the O2 (formerly Millennium Dome) in the background
  • Hands of students pointing at a map laid out on a table
  • Close-up of an architectural model, overlaid with the subtitle 'your future in motion.'
  • A sheet of metal in a laser powder bed machine, in the process of having a number of round discs with holes in the middle cut from it
  • Architectural model of a bridge, with other models and drawings in the background
  • Two students examining a cardboard architectural model together
  • Cardboard architectural models on display, with architectural drawings on the wall behind them
  • A group of people looking at an exhibition of architectural models and designs
  • About 20 Architecture students standing in front of Barcelona Cathedral
  • A group photo of Architecture students with the O2 (formerly Millennium Dome) in the background
  • Hands of students pointing at a map laid out on a table

Modules are subject to change and availability, and may vary by location. If you have the choice of optional modules, these are indicated with a *.

Year 1
  • Design Studio A1 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Essential Skills (Architecture) (15 credits)
  • Technology A1 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Cultural Context A: Histories and Theories of Architecture (Architecture) (15 credits)
  • Design Studio A2 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Into ARU
Year 2
  • Design Studio B1 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Technology B1 (Architecture) (15 credits)
  • Design Studio B2 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Cultural Context B Histories and Theories of Architecture (Architecture) (15 credits)
  • Technology B2 (Architecture) (15 credits)
  • Ruskin Module (15 credits)
Year 3
  • Major Integrated Design Project Phase 1 (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Cultural Context C Dissertation (Architecture) (30 credits)
  • Major Integrated Design Project Phase 2 (Architecture) (45 credits)
  • Professionalism, Values and Ethics (Architecture) (15 credits)
Module details

To prepare you for university study, you can take a foundation year at the start of this course. Find out more about foundation years.

Year 1
  • Interactive Learning Skills and Communication
  • Information and Communication Technology
  • Creative Workshops 1
  • Approach to Design
  • Critical and Contextual Studies
  • Creative Workshops 2
  • Specialist Project
  • Engineering Design
Module details

You can choose to take an optional placement year as part of this course. Placements typically happen in Year 3, and your course will take four years overall. Find out more about placement years.

Placement year
  • Work Placement School of Engineering and the Built Environment (120 credits)
Module details

Read profiles of teaching and research staff on this course.

Facilities

You’ll be based in our School of Architecture and Planning, with use of:

  • model-making studios
  • industry-standard software for computer-aided design work
  • construction and surveying equipment
  • a fully equipped workshop with cutting-edge digital fabrication machinery and skilled staff
  • specialist 3D printers that are available to all students.

All our architecture students can take part in team activities such as designing and building structures on campus.

Being just 35 minutes from London by train allows for numerous short study and site visits and workshops.

Take a guided tour and meet our students.

Entry requirements

Fees and funding

Apply for Architecture

Clearing places available

UK students, apply through Clearing for a September 2025 start

Apply through Clearing

Apply by phone

UK students, call our Clearing line

01245 686868

UK students

Apply through UCAS for 2026

Apply through UCAS

International students

Apply direct

Apply online
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