Two people high up on a castle wall doing semaphore with white flags while in the foreground someone is directing them and operating a video camera

Architecture, Landscape and Environment - MSc

MSc

1 year (Full time); 2 years (Part time)

Full-time; Part-time

Outline

The MSc Architecture, Landscape, and Environment offers you the opportunity to advance your studies in the dynamic teaching and learning environment of Edinburgh College of Art.

As an Architecture, Landscape and Environment MSc student, you will explore and work with an expanded understanding of critical theories and practices at the forefront of contemporary environmental and societal challenges, delivered by an experienced group of research-led senior staff at the University of Edinburgh.

Interdisciplinary in nature, this programme offers a unique opportunity to explore the interconnected histories and theories of the built environment and landscape in relation to pressing environmental concerns.

The programme is not design-based but follows a generalist structure. It offers a flexible framework that supports student-led choices, enabling you to shape your own learning experience. This approach allows you to explore and develop a broad range of specialised and experimental methods relevant to situated, spatial, and site-related theory and practice.

You will join a programme that achieved 100% overall student satisfaction in the 2024/25 Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey. Teaching and Learning was rated at 100%, while other areas, including Engagement, Skills Development, Support, Learning Resources (online and on-campus) and Community Building, all scored above 90%.

To find out more about this course, visit our Degree Finder: Architecture, Landscape and Environment.

Hear from our staff and students

Careers

As an advanced postgraduate programme, the MSc Architecture, Landscape, and Environment will provide you with a strong foundation to further your career path in your chosen disciplinary areas, with an expanded understanding of critical theories and practices relevant to contemporary environmental and societal challenges.

The programme offers you the necessary critical skills to pursue a diverse career in areas such as:

spatial and design practices
the creative arts
policy (for example, heritage management)
advocacy in third sector organisations (such as international NGOs and charities related to climate emergency, landscape conservation or cultural landscapes)
cultural organisations
museums and global media

The programme may also support you if you want to advance to doctoral-level research.

Why you should choose this programme

1

Adopt an ethos of situated knowledge and experimental engagement with the historical and contemporary landscape and built environment.

2

Engage with transdisciplinary research, architectural and landscape theories and practices with environmental concerns.

3

Select optional courses that will provide you with significant scope to build your own pathway of specialist learning.

4

Develop your critical thinking skills, collaborate and co-produce knowledge in a supportive learning environment.

5

Learn through the exploration of sites as diverse as, for example, an archive, a city, a building and/or a digital platform.

How to apply and entry requirements

If you'd like to study on a postgraduate programme at Edinburgh College of Art, you must apply through EUCLID, our online application system. You can find out how to do this on the University of Edinburgh website, where you'll also be able to:

See detailed entrance requirements for each programme on the Degree Finder
Get information on what to expect after you apply
Find out about study modes, start dates and fees
Find out if, and how, you need to submit a portfolio, showreel or research proposal
Find out where to go for further advice and guidance.

Apply now

Get in touch

Edinburgh College of Art Postgraduate Admissions

futurestudents@ed.ac.uk
+44 (0)131 650 4086

Field trips

Being in the field is key to the MSc Architecture, Landscape and Environment. We use an expanded notion of the 'field' where you can learn through the exploration of sites as diverse as, for example:

an archive
a city
a building
a digital platform.

On this programme, the site is a pedagogical tool to engage you with sociocultural debates, a theoretical context, social and political issues, an institutional framework, a community or social event and/or a historical condition. Field trips are also an important opportunity to strengthen the sense of community in the programme.

Campus facilities

As one of Europe's cultural capitals, Edinburgh offers an inspiring environment to live and study in, while being a short distance from many of Scotland’s dramatic landscapes.

While on the programme, you will spend your time between a dedicated seminar space in Minto House, the ECA Lauriston Campus and University of Edinburgh facilities (including exceptional workshops and libraries), and the landscapes you will focus on for your coursework.

Lauriston campus redevelopment

ECA are excited to be undertaking a capital redevelopment of ECA’s Lauriston Campus over the next 3 years, from April 2024 – April 2027.

The project aims to maximise the use of existing space, improve accessibility, and create a vibrant campus that fosters collaboration and innovation.

The project involves refurbishing and repurposing various spaces across the Lauriston campus, including technical facilities, student and teaching spaces, and the relocation of the Reid School of Music from Alison House to the Lauriston Campus. New social spaces, seminar rooms, and studios are being created to accommodate our growing community.

You can find more about the project at the below link:

Building work starts at ECA’s Lauriston Campus | Edinburgh College of Art