The MPhil in Architecture and Urban Design (Projective Cities) is a 20-month, interdisciplinary research and design programme that examines multi-scalar questions arising at the intersection of architecture, urban design and planning. The programme is dedicated to a systematic analysis of, design experimentation for, theoretical speculation on, and critical writing about the contemporary city. Student projects combine new design and traditional forms of research, while challenging existing disciplinary boundaries and contributing to emerging spatial design practice and knowledge. The programme recognises hereby the need for a new practice-led research training, as architectural and urban design practice is increasingly research-led, demanding from graduates a new multidisciplinary knowledge.
Projective Cities proposes architectural design as a precondition to the conception, realisation, and subversion of urban plans.
Projective Cities recognises architecture and the city as a collective form of knowledge shaped by cultural, social, political, and economic contexts.
Projective Cities has been highly successful in preparing its graduates for diverse careers in academia and practice, with graduate destinations including PhD programmes, academic or research careers and joining leading design offices.
Projective Cities is a critical forum to engage with questions of governance and development in the context of global challenges of urbanisation. Its objective is to respond to current urban, environmental and social crises by rethinking the agency of spatial design and development within specific political, economic, social and cultural contexts.
Projective Cities prepares its candidates for independent research through a framework of rigorous design and research methodologies. The first year of the programme is taught, introducing students to research methods, academic writing, architectural and urban histories and theories, advanced analytical techniques and computational design in preparation for a substantial dissertation project. At the end of the first year, students submit a research proposal. This is developed in the second year, leading to an integrated design and written dissertation.
Projective Cities seeks candidates with a desire to develop substantial and original research. It seeks exceptional thinkers, gifted designers and critical writers with an interest in the future of our cities.
