Presentation
This master’s degree program aims to provide educational goals that address the multiplicity and complexity of issues related to the design and construction of architecture in urban and territorial contexts on a global scale. The contemporary national and international situation demands young architects who are capable of skillfully engaging in the qualification processes of places: individuals who possess artistic-expressive abilities, technical preparation, and high levels of ethical and scientific awareness are increasingly needed.
According to our shared perspective, designing for construction means constantly relating 'form' and 'content', responding with artistic rationality and technical creativity to the randomness and arbitrariness of settlement phenomena. Designing to give character to new open spaces, buildings, infrastructure, and neighborhoods involves continuous dialogue with existing architecture in the area. The built heritage must be preserved, adapted, or redesigned, always opening new perspectives, with a forward-looking approach grounded in the knowledge of reality and history.
Our master’s degree program prepares students for the profession by offering the opportunity to study and understand the relationships between places, architecture, structures, and technology; by delving into problems and seeking coherent and appropriate solutions.
Structure
The training of new architects combines participation in single-discipline courses with the experience gained in design studios, which are central to the development of dialogue between various specialized disciplines. Over the course of a semester, single-discipline courses allow students to cultivate and develop theoretical knowledge and critical skills. During these courses, professors discuss different disciplines, opening up original and innovative study perspectives.
The design studios have different educational goals and durations: those in the first year are semester-long, while the second-year studio is year-long. Students primarily work in the classroom, where, alongside professors from various disciplines (architectural design, conservation, structures, technology, systems design), they can experiment and learn through discussion, in-depth study, and practical project application. Activities also include lectures, workshops, seminars, and the invitation of external guests, providing opportunities for the entire degree program.
In the second-year studios, students – based on their free choice – begin and complete their thesis, which is conceived as a complete architectural project, developed from the preliminary phase, at the urban scale, to the executive scale, either individually or in small groups. Over two years, students have the opportunity to examine different themes: from new construction to restoration, to the adaptation and reuse of existing architectural complexes; from topics related to housing and collective institutions to those typical of urban and territorial infrastructure design. All experiences allow for transversal addressing of issues related to the relationship with the environment, sustainability, and the choice of construction technologies and systems aimed at energy savings. Constant attention is given to skills in the field of construction robustness, in their normal operation and concerning severe natural events such as earthquakes.
Learning
The wide range of disciplines and subjects offered allows for experimenting with different forms of learning: in terms of timing, methods, tools, and objectives. All professors of the courses and studios aim for constant engagement with students and the construction of a broad cultural horizon. The complexity of the overall framework corresponds to different methods for evaluating and self-assessing the level of learning. At the end of single-discipline courses, individual exams always involve a face-to-face interview with the professor. To consider the progressive learning of knowledge, some in-progress tests may be conducted at the professor’s discretion.
During the design studios, professors and students engage in continuous revisions. Formal, collegial, and multidisciplinary assessments aim to verify the level of maturity and awareness in conducting the project. Simultaneously, they allow each student to demonstrate their abilities in relation to group activity and develop the attitude to respect the timing and methods of the program established by the studio. In these instances, learning also involves the ability to revise one's positions for the best project outcome. The working tools of the studios include various forms of graphic representation (freehand sketches, technical drawings, study models, 3D models), structural modeling, numerical calculation, writing, and BIM.
At the conclusion of the studio experience, there is always an exam that includes the presentation and discussion of the project using appropriate communication techniques.
Autonomy of Judgment
In the studio, students are periodically called upon to discuss the appropriateness of design choices and demonstrate critical abilities regarding the solutions adopted. In doing so, they acquire competence in refining their autonomy: demonstrating analytical, comprehension, and evaluation skills, and similarly addressing the potential social impacts of architectural projects developed in groups or individually. In the courses, students engage with specific fields of study based on a shared program within an overall framework. Overall, over two years, the educational offering provides the opportunity to identify and choose useful readings, compare different opinions and theories, manage information, and cultivate technical and artistic intuition skills.
Communication Skills
Based on the specific disciplinary areas and according to their own inclinations, students develop and refine various analytical, expository, and communication skills. During the two years, they have the opportunity to learn, understand, and reinterpret the mindset and specialized language of different worlds: those of the legislative framework, regulatory systems, calculation, literature, and criticism.
In the studios, students work on projects individually or in small groups. Through analysis and discussions about design choices within the groups, between groups, and with the faculty in its entirety, students develop the ability to elaborate and express their ideas, communicate the different parts of the project, and synthetically represent the architectural project. The graphic expression of projects is related to students' personal inclinations and the artistic and technical content of the projects, ranging from freehand sketches to cardboard models to 3D modeling and BIM.