Outline
This programme is for highly motivated students who wish to:
- Further their skills in the research-led spatial, programmatic, material, structural and environmental articulation of architectural design.
- Engage with the contemporary city and the associated flows of information, energy and resources.
- Critically position their practice in relation to contemporary theoretical discourses, modes of inquiry and representation.
- Develop situated and careful forms of architectural knowledge and production that are speculative, creative, low-carbon, regenerative, and inclusive.
The two-year Master of Architecture (RIBA Part 2/ARB) accredited programme offers a unique studio-based and research-led learning experience. You will have the opportunity to develop designs that engage with complex urban settings, innovative material systems, and critical forms of inquiry and representation, elaborating nuanced responses to the pressing environmental, socioeconomic, and political questions facing architectural practice in the 21st century.
Based in one of the most beautiful and architecturally significant cities in the world, the RIBA Part 2 and ARB validated Master of Architecture programme at the Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA) combines creative inquiry and academic rigour with a deep sense of professional responsibility. We empower our students to imagine and prototype forms of spatial practice that are low-carbon, situated, inclusive and regenerative.
The Master of Architecture is delivered through a diverse set of elective design studios, each focusing on a specific urban setting or geographical area, and on a set of thematic concerns.
We offer complementary courses in theory, technology, and professional practice to engage with different facets of contemporary architectural discourse, and to develop core professional competencies. Uniquely, the programme offers two curricular pathways, allowing students to complete either a one or two-year design-studio thesis, prioritising either breadth or depth of enquiry.
Programme structure
The design studio is the heart of the MArch curriculum, and accounts for 160 credits of the programme. You will have the opportunity to explore different design approaches and develop your own specialism by choosing from a range of design studio options.
Each studio is led by a dedicated academic staff member whose expertise and research agenda frame the themes of investigation, and typically involves:
- a field trip to sites of national or international interest, or
- an in-depth and hands-on multi-day workshop with invited experts.
Many studios engage in elements of collaborative work, fostering creative and social exchanges among peers.
The MArch design studios operate through one of two curricular pathways, which you will choose when you arrive in Edinburgh.
Modular Pathway
You will develop two independent year-long design studio projects, completing a highly resolved thesis while also developing a portfolio typified by breadth of enquiry.
Modular studios are open to both 1st and 2nd year students, and offer opportunities for peer learning between cohorts.
Integrated Pathway
You will develop one design thesis project over the two years of the MArch programme, engaging with a wide range of architectural scales from the urban strategy to the construction detail, in a comprehensive project.
View examples of work completed in previous MArch studios
Compulsory courses
In addition to following the modular or integrated pathway, you will complete 80 credits in the form of four compulsory non-studio courses.
Architectural Technology Research
Architectural Technology Research (ATR) supports you in innovative and creative research projects linking material and environmental approaches to the climate emergency. It encourages practical and exploratory studies in technical themes of relevance to your selected studio and design project, working towards their seamless integration.
ATR is a 20-credit course, and it runs throughout Semester 1 with a series of lectures on contemporary architectural technology and environmental issues.
Studies in Contemporary Architectural Theory
Structured through a series of thematic theory seminars, Studies in Contemporary Architectural Theory (SCAT) develops an in-depth knowledge of contemporary architectural discourses, drawing on historical and interdisciplinary texts as necessary. You will follow one strand of particular interest or concern to you.
You will work in thematically organised groups, led by staff with specific expertise in the material. This allows for more active student participation, fosters the nuanced interpretation and debate of issues, and promotes a multi-perspectival approach.
SCAT is a 20-credit course, and it runs throughout Semester 2.
Architectural Management, Practice and Law
In the second year of the MArch programme, the 20-credit course Architectural Management, Practice and Law explores the urgencies affecting architectural practice, and introduces students to the political, ethical and social context within which architects work.
Through a series of lectures, workshops and drawing-based studies, it invites you to research and critically reflect upon three priorities for contemporary practice identified by the RIBA:
- Health and Life Safety
- Ethics and Social Purpose
- Climate
Architectural Design Thesis Report
Through a series of lectures, workshops and tutorials, Architectural Design Thesis Report (ADTR) supports you in producing a comprehensive thesis document that argues for and critically appraises the architectural design projects developed over the course of the last one year (modular pathway) or two years (integrated pathway) of MArch study.
Taken in the final semester of the programme, the course also asks you to demonstrate and reflect upon how key professional competencies (contextual and architectural knowledge; design; research and evaluation; management, practice and leadership; professionalism and ethics) have been addressed and integrated in your design work, in these projects and across the programme.
ADTR is a 20-credit course, and it runs throughout Semester 4.
Accreditation
Architects Registration Board/Royal Institute of British Architects.
The programme has Architects Registration Board (ARB) accreditation and its master’s level qualification fulfils the academic requirements necessary to become eligible to join the Architects Register and practice as an Architect in the UK. The programme was re-accredited in August 2026.
The programme has also Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) validation. RIBA validation was achieved in 2011 and again in 2017 and 2022.
More about the Architects Registration Board
The programme has successfully transitioned from the outgoing Criteria and prescription framework to the new ARB Standards and Competency Outcomes for Architects.
