Modern China is facing a new era of urbanisation, presenting exciting opportunities for an architectural education at the forefront of architectural discourse and with an international outlook. Against the backdrop of fast-paced modernisation, the Department of Architecture at XJTLU engages with the challenges and contradictions of architecture in China in an open-minded and forward thinking manner.

Our students benefit from the experiences of our highly international academic staff, who seek answers to the questions facing both local and international architecture today. In the Department of Architecture we teach creativity, critical thinking, engagement and experimentation. We inspire our students to explore both the art and science of architecture. Critical and creative awareness means that our students should be able to drive forward new models of architectural practice in the art and science of building, with ideas not necessarily imported directly from the western canon.

Students acquire a solid background in theory of architecture, techne and technology, in science and aesthetic endeavours, to be able to forge new avenues for the practice of architecture in East and West.

Mission and Vision

The strategic focus of the department is the critical subject. Through this we aim to redefine and refocus a global, modern model of architectural education, set in China. We are keen to sensitively relate, engage and challenge architectural design issues though the fast-changing socio-cultural prism of China, Jiangsu Province, Suzhou and the more local Suzhou Industrial Park, in which our University is based.

The department is establishing itself as a centre of excellence in architectural education, design and research and a leading architectural voice in China.

Accreditation 

Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University was the first Chinese university to gain unconditional Part 1 accreditation from the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) for the BEng Architecture degree, officially marking the programme as on a par with other architecture schools around the world. 

In their accreditation report, the RIBA board commended the Department of Architecture for "creating a distinctive environment in which students learn from an international and Chinese context with an ambition to produce a new type of graduate, with an emphasis on human-centred architecture, for the emerging global context." The RIBA also praised the programme as an "alternative model for Chinese architecture education," adding that the department's aim of "challenging both Western and Chinese educational paradigms for architecture was an ambitious goal."

Despite only being set up in 2011, the BEng Architecture programme has rapidly become one of China's most prestigious architecture courses, with students recruited from the top five percent in China's university entrance examinations.

The Master of Architectural Design MArchDes programme likewise delivers all the learning outcomes as defined by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The programme gained international validation from the RIBA in February 2018.

BEng(Hons) Architecture - RIBA Part 1

The four-year full-time BEng Architecture aims to provide a comprehensive foundation in architecture. Students are guided to develop an understanding of the centricity of human needs and desires to architectural design tasks, and to develop creative and responsible responses by taking into account the social, cultural, ecological, economic as well as technological contexts within which architecture is situated.

The BEng Architecture programme at XJTLU has become the first programme of its kind at a Chinese university to receive validation by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), thus demonstrating XJTLU’s commitment to providing world-class, internationally recognised education to students from China and abroad.

Architecture graduates find excellent opportunities for professional employment and for further education both locally and internationally in architecture and its related disciplines as well as in other creative industries. Most of our graduates continue their studies in international Master programmes, either directly or after a year out in practice. Around 20% of our graduates have received offers for further studies from universities ranked at the very top in the field, such as the University of Pennsylvania, the Bartlett at the University College London, the University of Sydney, the Politecnico di Milano, and the National University of Singapore. Our graduates also have been working for acclaimed international and Chinese practices such as David Chipperfield, Tong Ming Studio, Neri & Hu, Farrells, and Arup.

Yearbooks showcasing the works of our Bachelor students are available as electronic magazines.

Master of Architectural Design MArchDes - RIBA Part 2 

The Master of Architectural Design (RIBA Part 2) at XJTLU is a two-year, full-time professional programme, preparing students for an international career in architecture, creating bridges between Eastern and Western culture. Understanding mobility as one of the core conditions of global modernity, the programme prepares international students for a career related to China, as well as domestic students for both national and international careers. The Master of Architectural Design focuses on architectural design studios as well as on humanistic and technical modules in preparation for both professional practice and PhD-level studies. It offers an international perspective, while at the same time enabling students to address the demands of rapid modernisation in China, and takes its local context as a driver for developing studio design briefs and frameworks leading to the edge of current debates.

Understanding mobility as one of the core conditions of global modernity, the programme attracts international students preparing for a career related to China, as well as domestic students preparing for both national and international careers. The programme focuses on architectural design studio as well as on humanistic and technical modules in preparation of either professional practice or PhD-level studies.

The Master of Architectural Design addresses the learning outcomes as defined by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) at Part 2 level, which is the second out of three stages in the formal educational process required to register as a professional architect in the United Kingdom. After successfully completing two RIBA visits, RIBA Part 2 international validation was granted in February 2018. 

Graduates of the Master of Architectural Design will receive an international Masters degree from the University of Liverpool that is recognised by the Chinese Ministry of Education and validated by the Royal Institute of British Architects at Part 2 level. Additional periods of work in practice and exams might be required depending on local regulations before being able to register as liberal architect and become a member of the professional bodies.

PhD

XJTLU offers generous scholarships at the PhD level. The Department of Architecture welcomes proposals for its research-based PhD programme. Potential candidates are invited to contact the Department or potential supervisors to discuss their research ideas. The PhD programme at the Department of Architecture offers an opportunity for a link to the Department's three research platforms:

- History, Theory and Heritage

- Computational Design and Fabrication

- Urban Ecologies

Interrelated and not exclusive, these three areas of expertise cover a wide range of interests. More than rigid research groups, they support the formation of open research platforms; they also link the Department of Architecture to other departments and research institutes at XJTLU to other Chinese and international universities, and to professional figures outside academia.

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Department of Architecture - Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University

111 Ren’ai Road • SIP Higher Education Town

215123 Suzhou, China

Website: http://www.xjtlu.edu.cn/en/dep...

General Enquiries: architecture@xjtlu.edu.cn