At the core of an architectural education is the design studio, during which students are immersed in hands-on, project-based courses where they build visual literacy, learn design skills, test ideas, and receive continuous, personal feedback on their work from studio faculty.

During Design Studio, students hone design and technical expertise while employing advanced tools and technologies in the development of projects which fuse together concepts of space, aesthetics, architectural theory, and materiality, among others.

SCI-Arc’s M.Arch 1 curriculum is structured around Design Studio. Students will enroll in one design studio course each semester while in the program.

Through a required four-semester sequence of design studios, M.Arch 1 students acquire both a robust set of architectural techniques and sensibilities as well as the ability to cultivate ideas about space, aesthetics, theoretical frameworks, and strategies for production. Advanced digital design technologies are used in all studios, allowing students access to new forms of abstraction, representation, and visual communication.

Students continue on to two semesters of Vertical Studios, which match small, combined groups of students from SCI-Arc’s undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate programs with faculty and visiting architects leading design projects that explore a wide variety of focuses and interests.

In their final semester of Design Studio, students complete the production of a thesis project, which addresses a position in relation to contemporary architectural discourse.

SCI-Arc’s studio faculty is primarily comprised of practicing architects, who provide a window into the lives of the profession, as well as opportunities for professional internships and employment outside the school.

During studio hours, SCI-Arc faculty meet with students individually and in groups to discuss the progression of their design projects. Through these collaborative discussions, students learn to engage in an open exchange of ideas with faculty and fellow students, building the life-long relationships that will serve them throughout their careers.