I was just wondering what are peoples thoughts are on the following schools
KADK- The Royal Danish Academy
IAAC- Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia
UofT- University of Toronto
Also does anyone know if it’s possible to come back to work in Canada after going to IAAC or KADK?
Thank you,
Ant
body of work
Mar 8, 16 2:12 pm
IAAC will not let you become licensed in Canada after the Masters without further education. Seems like a brilliant school, but after digging around I crossed it off my list for practical reasons.
UofT is where I did my undergrad and I would highly recommend the school. Overall, the faculty is pretty good and the school is very ambitious. They are moving into a new building this year and Toronto is a great city to live/study in.
think.arch
Mar 12, 16 3:26 pm
IAAC and KADK are both great schools and yes you can come back and work in Canada after completing your degree. You can work in any architecture office with any degree if they hire you. I think the real question here is whether or not these degrees can directly lead to professional licensure in Canada. The easy answer is no, not in the same way an M.Arch degree from Canada would.
The first thing to consider is are the degrees your applying too in Europe equivalent to the M.Arch degree? That is to say will the degrees from IAAC or KADK certify you for licensure in their respective countries? Many people make this mistake and choose postgraduate degrees in architecture that do not have any bearing for getting your licence. These postgraduate degrees are usually called something like Masters in "insert buzz word" Architecture and are generally a year or shorter. If you go to Europe make sure the degree your getting is an M.Arch or equivalent not a MSc.
Second if you have an international degree (or Canadian degree) and are looking to become licensed you would have to get it certified by the CACB (Canadian Architectural Certification Board). Canadian degrees are certified right after you graduate because the CACB also accredits Canadian schools. For international degrees I believe you have to apply to get your degree certified and most likely take equivalency courses before you can begin the licensing process.
I would check out the CACB website (www.cacb.ca/en/home) and contact them to see what the process is for international degrees. Be specific in asking if there are equivalency courses, how many, and what kind of courses. I did this when I was applying to M.Arch programs and they were helpful in explaining the process.
I hope this doesn't discourage you from applying/going to IAAC or KADK, like I said before they are both great schools. Just make sure you do your research, know what degree your getting and how it changes your road to becoming an architect in Canadian.
If you decide on staying in Canada a great resource is the ACSA data on Canadian Schools (http://www.acsa-arch.org/resources/data-resources/canadian-schools). Its a great starting point for comparison before going to the schools individual websites for more in-depth information.
MinimalCrazy
Mar 13, 16 3:57 am
Depends, are you set on returning to canada to work for sure, or are you open to working abroad such as the U.S?
Also depends on the #of years each program takes, are you in adv standing for uoft?
Dr.X
Mar 13, 16 5:04 pm
I completed my undergrad in architecture at UofT and received a BA so I didn't get advanced standing.
I wouldn't mind working abroad but I do eventually want to return to Canada, I just don't want to cut the possibility of getting licensed so early.
body of work
Mar 15, 16 11:08 am
I know for a fact IAAC will give you a really hard time with the CABC. I emailed them a while ago when I was considering IAAC as my top pic school and they said it wouldn't qualify. In other words, you'd have to wait for significant professional experience to make up for it or take an extra course or something to get licensed. In the firm I work at about only 25% of the employees are licensed, but I see recently graduated Masters students automatically turned down if they didn't graduate from a school that will put them in the license stream. It's hard to get a job, you'll need the option for license if you're seeking a classic architecture mid size/large firm in Canada, but if you're into more liberal stuff then screw it.
body of work
Mar 15, 16 11:10 am
Anton is this you? lol
Non Sequitur
Mar 15, 16 11:48 am
wait... since when does UofT offer an architecture undergrad degree? Ha... well, I guess your BA does not matter as long as your M.arch qualifies and on that note, to the OP, make sure your degree will be accepted by the CACB before committing. There are very good reasons why the Canadian licensing board does not accept all foreign degrees.
Karen Kang
Mar 17, 16 5:36 pm
Did you already receive the acceptance letter from U of T? I'm still waiting for the decision to arrive...
MinimalCrazy
Mar 17, 16 10:37 pm
KADK is an interesting school but I don't know how the licensing is when you come back to Canada.
@Karen Kang, have you checked if the email landed in junk folder? Sometimes they fall into that folder. Many people have been accepted already for both normal & advanced standing as they sent their acceptances over the last few weeks. Waterloo as well.
Stephanie Braconnier
Mar 18, 16 6:16 pm
My partner and I both attended KA in Copenhagen and no problems getting certified by CACB from Department 2. Keep track of your courses. You pay a fee to CACB to get them to examine your courses but they accepted ours without any additional courses required. Could be different depending on your study department, though, especially as they have some new ones in the English masters that aren't directly architecture related.
You can join the Danish Architect's Association directly after graduation and will be considered an architect in Denmark (and if you want to do international competitions, this comes in really handy to have your registration immediately!) It's pretty cheap to pay the foreigner's membership fee - about $500/ year depending on the exchange rate.
Dr.X
Mar 21, 16 2:36 pm
@body of work, yes it's me.. lol and you are?
@karen Kang, yes UofT and UBC sent out results last week
body of work
Mar 21, 16 3:38 pm
It's Jess the old AVSSU pres, feeling like a creepo haha
Hello,
I was just wondering what are peoples thoughts are on the following schools
Also does anyone know if it’s possible to come back to work in Canada after going to IAAC or KADK?
Thank you,
Ant
IAAC will not let you become licensed in Canada after the Masters without further education. Seems like a brilliant school, but after digging around I crossed it off my list for practical reasons.
UofT is where I did my undergrad and I would highly recommend the school. Overall, the faculty is pretty good and the school is very ambitious. They are moving into a new building this year and Toronto is a great city to live/study in.
IAAC and KADK are both great schools and yes you can come back and work in Canada after completing your degree. You can work in any architecture office with any degree if they hire you. I think the real question here is whether or not these degrees can directly lead to professional licensure in Canada. The easy answer is no, not in the same way an M.Arch degree from Canada would.
The first thing to consider is are the degrees your applying too in Europe equivalent to the M.Arch degree? That is to say will the degrees from IAAC or KADK certify you for licensure in their respective countries? Many people make this mistake and choose postgraduate degrees in architecture that do not have any bearing for getting your licence. These postgraduate degrees are usually called something like Masters in "insert buzz word" Architecture and are generally a year or shorter. If you go to Europe make sure the degree your getting is an M.Arch or equivalent not a MSc.
Second if you have an international degree (or Canadian degree) and are looking to become licensed you would have to get it certified by the CACB (Canadian Architectural Certification Board). Canadian degrees are certified right after you graduate because the CACB also accredits Canadian schools. For international degrees I believe you have to apply to get your degree certified and most likely take equivalency courses before you can begin the licensing process.
I would check out the CACB website (www.cacb.ca/en/home) and contact them to see what the process is for international degrees. Be specific in asking if there are equivalency courses, how many, and what kind of courses. I did this when I was applying to M.Arch programs and they were helpful in explaining the process.
I hope this doesn't discourage you from applying/going to IAAC or KADK, like I said before they are both great schools. Just make sure you do your research, know what degree your getting and how it changes your road to becoming an architect in Canadian.
If you decide on staying in Canada a great resource is the ACSA data on Canadian Schools (http://www.acsa-arch.org/resources/data-resources/canadian-schools). Its a great starting point for comparison before going to the schools individual websites for more in-depth information.
Depends, are you set on returning to canada to work for sure, or are you open to working abroad such as the U.S?
Also depends on the #of years each program takes, are you in adv standing for uoft?
I completed my undergrad in architecture at UofT and received a BA so I didn't get advanced standing.
I wouldn't mind working abroad but I do eventually want to return to Canada, I just don't want to cut the possibility of getting licensed so early.
I know for a fact IAAC will give you a really hard time with the CABC. I emailed them a while ago when I was considering IAAC as my top pic school and they said it wouldn't qualify. In other words, you'd have to wait for significant professional experience to make up for it or take an extra course or something to get licensed. In the firm I work at about only 25% of the employees are licensed, but I see recently graduated Masters students automatically turned down if they didn't graduate from a school that will put them in the license stream. It's hard to get a job, you'll need the option for license if you're seeking a classic architecture mid size/large firm in Canada, but if you're into more liberal stuff then screw it.
Anton is this you? lol
wait... since when does UofT offer an architecture undergrad degree? Ha... well, I guess your BA does not matter as long as your M.arch qualifies and on that note, to the OP, make sure your degree will be accepted by the CACB before committing. There are very good reasons why the Canadian licensing board does not accept all foreign degrees.
Did you already receive the acceptance letter from U of T? I'm still waiting for the decision to arrive...
KADK is an interesting school but I don't know how the licensing is when you come back to Canada.
@Karen Kang, have you checked if the email landed in junk folder? Sometimes they fall into that folder. Many people have been accepted already for both normal & advanced standing as they sent their acceptances over the last few weeks. Waterloo as well.
My partner and I both attended KA in Copenhagen and no problems getting certified by CACB from Department 2. Keep track of your courses. You pay a fee to CACB to get them to examine your courses but they accepted ours without any additional courses required. Could be different depending on your study department, though, especially as they have some new ones in the English masters that aren't directly architecture related.
You can join the Danish Architect's Association directly after graduation and will be considered an architect in Denmark (and if you want to do international competitions, this comes in really handy to have your registration immediately!) It's pretty cheap to pay the foreigner's membership fee - about $500/ year depending on the exchange rate.
@body of work, yes it's me.. lol and you are?
@karen Kang, yes UofT and UBC sent out results last week
It's Jess the old AVSSU pres, feeling like a creepo haha