MSc Architecture and the Sustainable Environment

The MSc in Architecture and Sustainable Environment (MASE) is a taught course aimed at professionals and academics world-wide with an interest in sustainability in the built environment, including architects, engineers, geographers, surveyors, historians and urban designers.

The MSc is offered by Centre for Architecture and Sustainable Environment, one of three research centres in the Kent School of Architecture and Planning (KSAP) that promotes a cross-disciplinary approach to research in the field of sustainability in the built environment, bridging the traditional boundaries between the arts and the sciences, research and practice.

The course content ranges from the development of the design skills and the technical and scientific understanding required to develop sustainable solutions for new and existing buildings, the analysis of historic buildings and past environment technologies, to a critical exploration of the historical and cultural context of sustainability and environmental design.

The course, which can be studied full-time or part-time, offers an academically rigorous and intellectually challenging learning environment, which aims to enhance career development within the field for professionals and academics. The over-arching aim of the programme is to provide participants with a systematic understanding of core and advanced areas of sustainable design through a combination of taught courses, research assignments and project work. Students will be asked to conduct rigorous technical and historical research and to explore the practical application of their findings in the context of design and technology.

Course structure

The programme is aimed at professionals and academics with an interest in sustainability in the built environment, including architects, engineers, geographers, surveyors, historians and urban designers. The MSc promotes a cross-disciplinary approach to research in the field of sustainability in the built environment, bridging the traditional boundaries between architecture and the sciences, research and practice.

The course content ranges from the development of the technical and scientific understanding required to develop sustainable design solutions for new and existing buildings, the analysis of past environment technologies, to a critical exploration of the context of sustainability and environmental design.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. 

• AR827 - Principles of Environmental Design
• AR828 - Rediscovery - Understanding Historic Buildings and Past Environmental Technologies
• AR829 - Monitoring and Modelling of Environmental Performance
• AR830 - Sustainable Design Project
• AR899 - Dissertation: Architecture and the Sustainable Environment

Assessment

Assessment is mostly based on coursework, with presentations, case-study analyses, design proposals, essays and the dissertation.

Programme aims

This programme aims to:

• enable students to develop systematic understanding of the effect of the built environment on the environmental performance and energy consumption of buildings, while optimising comfortable conditions for the occupants
• develop your understanding of the sustainability drivers for the built environment
• develop your in-depth knowledge of the theoretical principles of low carbon design
• develop the ability to analyse the environmental behaviour of historic structures and the efficiency of past environmental technologies, using modern scientific methods
• promote creativity in the integration of sustainable solutions in the built environment at different scales
• enable you to develop skills for physical monitoring and digital modelling of the environmental and energy performance of buildings
• provide you with the ability to work in multidisciplinary design teams
• promote and support independent research skills.
• enable you to develop the skills required for both autonomous practice and team-working.
• support you, so that you can fulfil your full potential in the programme.

Research areas

Research Centres

KSAP incorporates the Centre for Research in European Architecture (CREAte), which focuses on research in architectural humanities and design, the Centre for Architecture and the Sustainable Environment (CASE), which promotes research in the field of sustainable architecture, and the new Digital Architecture Research Centre (DARC), which researches the use of digital technologies in architecture and the built environment.

Find out how to apply here.

Visit the MSc Architecture and the Sustainable Environment page on the University of Kent website for more details!