WELCOME TO

THE DEPARTMENT OF
ARCHITECTURE

CHIEDZA MANYEPAChairperson

The Department has a clear commitment to the fundamental qualities which create a healthy, efficient, beautiful and life-enhancing built environment: good design, sound buildings, efficient management and social responsibility. These qualities underlie all courses in all our programmes. The Department is dedicated to the academic formation, creative and intellectual development, and professional preparation of each individual student, so empowering them to shoulder their future responsibilities, whether as practicing professionals, academics, administrators, researchers or citizens, with confidence, sound judgment, secure knowledge, and sensitivity to the needs of the community and of the environment.

ADMISSSION AND ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

To be admitted to the Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours degree, a candidate must meet the following requirements:

Passes in at least 5 subjects at ‘O’ level at Grade C or better inclusive of English Language and Mathematics and at least THREE of which should be in the following subjects, or their recognized equivalents:

ART
CRAFT & DESIGN
BUILDING STUDIES
TECHNICAL DRAWING
ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
GEOGRAPHY
HISTORY GENERAL SCIENCE
PHYSICS WITH CHEMISTRY

For applicants to the Bachelor of Architectural Studies (Honours) degree programme :

a pass at ‘A’ level or its equivalent in MATHEMATICS or PHYSICS or ART, and two other Subjects at ‘A’ level among the list of approved subjects for admission purposes are required.
Other qualifications may be considered by the Senate on the recommendation of the Department and Faculty concerned.
Normally, for such qualifications the University shall require proof of relevant experience and may require applicants to pass a qualifying examination to decide on their eligibility for admission.
Applicants for admission to the Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours Degree Programme may be required to attend for a special interview and/or to submit a portfolio of work.

Our Programmes

Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours Degree

These qualities underlie all courses in all our programmes. The department is dedicated to the academic formation, creative and intellectual development, and professional preparation of each individual student, so empowering them to shoulder their future responsibilities, whether as practising professionals, academics, administrators, researchers or citizens, with confidence, sound judgment, secure knowledge, and sensitivity to the needs of the community and of the environment.

Architecture is not a subject taught at high school, and for many, the meaning and essence of architecture is probably still something of a mystery. The Bachelor‘s degree program in Architectural Studies is concerned with the whole of the built environment: architects are creators of the built environment, and custodians also. The responsibilities of such a dual role requires that the course curriculum in architecture gives future architects not only the skills to design buildings and plan for urban development in the modern world, but also a deep understanding of people’s need for housing; and for buildings for a very wide range of functions and purposes.

So the course is a heavy one, a demanding one; it requires students who are both literate and numerate and blessed with an artistic sensitivity and creativity. It requires students who can understand the complex technological processes of the modern construction industry and master the skills of computer-aided architectural design and information technology. And it requires students who are willing and able to collaborate with those of other related professional and academic disciplines in the realization of complex integrated development projects.

To assist students to acquire such skills and capabilities, a wide range of courses and resources are made available to students of architecture. These provide the means whereby students may most effectively develop their natural talents and potential, and maximize their capabilities in chosen areas of specialization, in a programme which offers students alternative areas of specialist study through elective courses.

The Design Studio Course is central to the programme of study for each year, for it is through the integrated activity of architectural and environmental design that the student is enable to apply the accumulating body of knowledge that is acquired throughout the course in a holistic manner, and to demonstrate his or her competence as a creator and as a custodian of the environment.

STRUCTURE OF THE PROGRAMME

The Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours Programme is a five-year design-oriented programme structured to integrate the basic elements of architecture (construction, structure, function, form and space) with the professional requirements of architectural practice responsive to the changing needs of society in the contemporary world.5 years.

EXAMINATION AND MARKING SCHEMES

DRAWING EQUIPMENT AND MATERIALS for use in the Design Studio

Technical drawing pen Set – 0.25, 0.35, 0.50, 0.70mm (Rotring, Staedtler or Faber Castell)
Scale Rulers
Set Squares Adjustable and fixed (45 dg. and 60 dg)
Parallel motion (for attachment to drawing board)
Clutch Pencils (0.5mm & 2mm)
Leads H, HB, 2B
Pencil 3B, 4B, 6B
Drawing Ink. (black)
Erasers
Lettering Stencils 0.25 mm, 0.35 mm, 0.5
Measuring Tape - 3m *
Rotring Compass Set
Paper: Tracing, Cartridge, Bond, Butcher
A1/Size/AO Size Portfolios and/or Rolling Tube
A4 or A5 size sketchbook or sketchpad
Set of water colour paints and brushes
Set of coloured pencils or felt pens
Pocket calculator
Model making materials (glue, etc as advised by Design Studio staff)
Stanley Knife

Stationery for Theoretical Courses

Course files
A4 Pads of ruled paper

All students need to provide themselves with the above equipment and materials. The Department will provide Drawing Boards and Tee-squares for use in the Design Studio. Students are encouraged to have their own drawing boards and Tee-Square and/or Parallel motion set for use at home/lodging.

Master Of Architecture Degree

This programme is a professional degree qualifying the graduate to further themselves into the various steps of professional accreditation. The programme consists of continuous assessment on issues that pertain to building design, building science, professional practice, environmental design, building technology, sustainability, urban theory, architectural conservation and other areas covered in the elective courses. The thesis design report which is supposed to be relevant to the field of architecture solving current local and global challenges brings together what has been covered in all courses completed in the duration of the programme and becomes the final requirement for the degree. Exploration of graphic presentation techniques, written work and physical models is of importance during its course. Students are provided with an intense and immersive experience in architecture with a series of exercises of increased complexity that allow for investigative, exploratory and analytical design.

Structure of The Degree Programme

The programme is a ONE YEAR OR TWO SEMESTERS Degree Programme on a full- time basis which consists of a design thesis taught courses required for a candidate to be later eligible to sit for professional practice examinations. The programme also runs on a Part-time basis over three blocks (18 months) Degree Programme on a part-time basis.

ADMISSION/ ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

To be admitted to the Masters of Architecture Degree Programme, a candidate must meet the following requirements:

Candidates must be holders, for at least a Lower Second Class (2.2) of the Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours Degree from NUST; candidates with a Pass Class (3) should have a minimum of twelve months appropriate work experience after graduation.
Or Alternatively candidates must hold a first degree in Architectural Studies awarded after a four year programme of study from a recognize university plus a minimum of twelve months appropriate work experience after graduation.
Candidates with a first degree in Architectural Studies awarded after a three year programme of studies will be required to register for and be successfully examined in Part IV and V of the NUST Bachelor of Architectural Studies Honours programme prior to admission to this programme.
Fluency in English or any other language for the exchange of knowledge in the African environment will be an added advantage.

Degree Classification
Distinction: 70% and above
Merit : 60%-69%
Pass : 50%-59%
Fail : 49% and below