Bachelor & Integrated Master in Architecture

The Programme offers a Bachelor Degree (BArch) in Architecture after four years of full-time studies (240 ECTS), and an Integrated Master in Architecture (Integrated Master) after five years of full time studies (300 ECTS). The courses cover all aspects of Architectural Education, such as aesthetics, society, technology, construction, economy, development of critical thinking, innovation, history, theory. The educational framework rests firmly on the active participation of the students, throughout all stages and aspects of the educational process.

PROGRAMME INFORMATION

4 +1 YEARS

240 + 60 ECTS

ENGLISH OR GREEK

FULL TIME

AWARDED BY NEAPOLIS UNIVERSITY

OBJECTIVE OF THE BACHELOR & INTEGRATED MASTER IN ARCHITECTURE

The Programme in Architecture offers a Bachelor’s Degree after four years of full-time studies and the Integrated Master in Architecture after five years of full-time studies.

The Programme in Architecture acknowledges the significant social role and responsibility of architectural practice for the study and development of space, both public and private. In this respect, each student is considered as a distinct personality, freely open to a system of values and abilities, concerning their aesthetic development, imagination, intuition, ethos and consistency. At the same time it provokes and activates students’ involvement and continuous participation in a reflective process that transforms their thinking, and incorporates a critical approach in their creative evolution. Furthermore, it explores and utilises the heterogeneity of its highly qualified teaching faculty, as an educational tool, in order to formulate and establish a wide field of multiple approaches to architecture. Through systematic research in all aspects of architecture, and within the overall framework of university education, it combines the broader humanistic values, with the development of the necessary theoretical and technical skills for the professional life of its students.

Methodologically, the Programme explores architectural design by systematically promoting a teaching system, adaptable to the characteristics and interests of each individual student. This essentially experimental process equipes students with both a unique comprehension of architecture, as well as the necessary means and skills of personal expression both during their studies, and upon their graduation.

Far from being a static system, the Programme in Architecture, is a dynamic framework, open to the internationally developing architectural dialogue. By addressing both the local and global substance of Architecture, it aspires to act as an intellectual and cultural hub for the city of Pafos, building on the one hand on its own organization and activities, as well as by developing strong synergies with the city, its people and its institutions. At the same time, it gradually, but systematically, establishes connections with its wider context in Cyprus, the Mediterranean, and globally, through student and teacher exchanges, research programmes, exhibitions, workshops and conferences, but also through the thematics of its courses.

CAREER PROSPECTS

The Bachelor and Integrated Master in Architecture fulfil the academic and professional requirements set by, a) The EU Directive 85/384/EC for architects and the new Directive 2005/36/EC about the recognition of the Professional Qualifications (which is a law of the EU and binds its members since 2007). b) The recommendations of UIA (Union International of Architects) about the skills architects must have to practice as architects. c) The local market of Cyprus and the conditions of accession to the profession as they are indicated by the Technical Chamber of Cyprus.

Based on the above referred institutional regulations, the Programme offers a Bachelor of Architecture after four years of study, and an  Integrated Master  in Architecture, after an additional year of study. The Bachelor of Architecture degree does not lead to professional accreditation. To get that, students need to complete an Integrated Master in Architecture degree, after one more year of studies in order to become eligible for professional accreditation.

Upon completion of the 5-year programme, graduates of Architecture must acquire a minimum one year of professional practice and fulfil the requirements set by the Cyprus Technical Chamber in order to become registered architects in Cyprus with full professional accreditation.

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COURSE DESCRIPION & RESEARCH

Course Descripion

Thematic Axis and Structure

The main Thematic Axis of the Courses is the concept of Space as the organic constituent of Architecture.

The BArch and Integrated Master are unified as a five-year-programme in Architecture, structured into eight and ten semesters respectively. During this period, students are expected to formulate a specialization according to their personal interests, which will be mapped in the selection of an elective studio (9th semester) and the subject of their Diploma Design Thesis. On completion of this cycle, students are awarded the Integrated Master degree. The program requires examinations to be taken at the end of each teaching period. It is a very intensive course and students undertake a substantial amount of private study and project work. The Programme of the Department of Architecture, Land and Environmental Sciences covers all topics needed for the education of an architect. Students enrolled must complete the requirements of the following thematic areas.

The Architecture Studio (AS)

With the concept of space as the central issue, the structure of the programme aims to highlight the Studio environment as the main field of knowledge on architectural design. To fulfil this goal, each semester is devoted to a major Studio with a specific subject, with other courses interrelated. The Studio teaching faculty are supported by the active participation of faculty of other courses. The teaching hours for each major studio are 9 hours per week (with the possibility to be divided in 2 days, with 4 or 5 hours each). The Architecture Studio is at the heart of the programme, with theoretical, technical and contextual studies underpinning and informing design. The Studios respond to contemporary events and issues. Each studio approaches architecture from a different specialized position, including Architectural Design, Urbanism, Landscape, the Historic City, Bioclimatic Architecture and Sustainable Development, Humanities and Environmental Sciences. The Architecture Studios are structured to help students develop an integrated and interdisciplinary approach to design. Studios are supported by courses in Theory and History, Technology and Means of Spatial Visualization. The Architecture Studios are paired with courses that develop technical skills, expand students’ working knowledge of material and constructive methods and explore design theory and history. Studios further develop students’ collaborative abilities. The Architecture Studios are organized in small research groups and is the primary integrative performance arena for architectural studies, within which the results of studies in other areas of the curriculum are made manifest. Students carry out analytical, synthetic and critical judgment exercises throughout each semester as they conduct research and develop design proposals.

Building Technology (BT)

The Building Technology courses cover all the requirements of the materiality of the building. Its aim is to give students the possibility to think about construction when they design the architectural form, to be able to select and use materials and methods of construction in a creative and informed manner. Furthermore, students acquire knowledge on environmental issues, and the principles of sustainability and energy-conscious design. Technology is taught as a tactile and inventive subject, where the workshop, studio and lecture space are interwoven places for its development and understanding. Over the first three years, Building Technology courses increasingly stress the interactive nature of design and the place of technical realization in the process. The fourth year (semesters 7 and 8) design studio is the peak of the process. The technical component is taught through lectures, seminars, visits to worksites and design exercises. The technology component is taught through lectures, seminars, laboratory work and discussion with practitioners. Professional Practice is supported by lecture series. All students are expected to make a written submission at the end of each series.

History (HI)

History courses extend from the prehistoric period to contemporary architecture. With the social substance of spatial formations as their central axis, these courses are structured in the form of three different but interconnected levels. The first refers to the actual informational material, which is further widened by the comparative study of different periods, attempting to study the methodological problem of chronological definition. In the second, the role of pre-existing architectural constructions, in contemporary social reality is studied. The main issue has to do with the understanding of these remnants, as documents not only of the past but constituents of the present. In the third level, the remnants of the past are studied as objects which while being documents of the period of their production, at the same time they are contemporary objects of autonomous aesthetic value.

Theory (TH)

Architecture theory courses are considered as an educational field of high importance. They constitute a field which:

  1. Plays a decisive role for the wider cognitive background of the students, against uncontrolled empiricism.
  2. Develops the problematics on issues relating architecture with Philosophy and Science, with the social substance of built space, and with humanities studies.
  3. Offers the methodological and cognitive framework, for the appreciation of architectural products, as forms of architectural theories.
  4. Advances the abstract thinking of students.

Spatial Visualization (SV)

This subject area is Media and refers to all means and tools of visualization an architect may employ in order to create spatial forms and communicate them to people. It covers all possible means of design as sound,speech, sketch, colour, painting, model, photography, digital means, collage, video etc. The courses are those of Fine Arts, geometrical and digital means. Computer-aided design and allied digital media comprise a significant contemporary medium of expression, the exploration of which transforms both the practice of design and the environment it creates. The teaching of this module runs through the contemporary techniques of Representation and Visualization of Space, with an emphasis on digital means in the design and production of the built space. It also tends to broaden the scope of these applications to all possible forms of expression (sound, speech, picture, sketch, sculpture, drawing, digital means, etc). Students are expected to find a field of self-expression in architectural creation but also a tool of their own world discovery.

Professional Practice

The course of Professional Practice provides an introduction to the professional and commercial factors that shape the environment. Further professional input is provided by the design tutors who can bring their knowledge and experience to the design studios. The teaching method is mainly lectures and visits to worksites and architects’ offices. The subject-matter is the students’ familiarisation with the organisation of an architectural project, the organisation and management of the worksite, the institutional framework that controls the profession of the architect in Cyprus and other countries of the European Union.

In addition to the Professional Practice Course, students have the opportunity, through “placement” to work in an architectural office for a certain number of hours per week in the 9th Semester, in order to get a first hand experience of the way an architects practice operates.

Elective courses (EE)

The elective courses constitute an open system both in respect of its content, as well as its educational methodology. These courses respond to every student’s specific interests, while at the same time, they study new ideas and approaches to design, they widen the theoretical background of the students, they introduce innovative techniques, proposals and research areas. They upgrade the students’ aesthetic cultural background.

Degree Requirements

The Bachelor of Architecture is a full-time four-year course that comprises a total of 240 ECTS units. The units are distributed evenly to 8 semesters, 30 ECTS units each. The Integrated Master in Architecture is an additional full-time one-year course that consists of 60 ECTS units. The duration of each semester is 13 weeks. 

Bachelor of Architecture

The Bachelor of Architecture is a four-year course that provides students with the skills and knowledge necessary to practice in the architectural profession and to be successful in the design of the built environment. The main aim of the Bachelor of Architecture programme is to provide students with a thorough foundation of the many aspects that make up the discipline of architecture and equip them with knowledge, critical thinking, and cognitive independence for successful careers. The course places a high priority on the integration of theory and practice and balances the aesthetic with the functional and the humanistic with technological aspects of the profession. The programme is centred on a series of design studios for all four years, and it covers a wide spectrum of topics in history and theory of architecture, advanced architectural design, restoration and preservation, environmental design, technology, means of representation, humanities and cultural issues, environmental sciences, management and professional studies.

Integrated Master in Architecture

The Integrated Master in the Architecture programme, is an additional one-year course,  focused, to a professional degree which qualifies graduates to pursue licensure with the Cyprus Technical Chamber as registered architects. The programme allows students to select a particular area of specialisation such as Advanced Architectural Design, Landscape Urbanism, Bioclimatic Architecture and Sustainable Development, Conservation-Rehabilitation of Historic Buildings and sites. Students get training in research by completing a studio-based design thesis. The goal of a programme structured such as this, is the education and not the instruction of the architect. Learning methods include lectures, seminars, studio, tutorials, project work and independent study. Each semester is structured around the main component of the programme, namely the design studio, and complemented by courses on history and theory, technology, management and professional studies.

Research

Living Laboratory

NUP aims to develop research activities in the areas of architecture and environmental design, within the framework of the local and the wider Mediterranean cultures, in collaboration with local authorities, international organizations, European programmes and research institutes. Together with the other Schools of the University, the School of Architecture, Engineering, Land and Environmental Sciences is in a unique position to apply interdisciplinary research methods and practices. With this perspective in sight, the Department of Architecture targets the development of the students’ research skills, in order to involve them both as students and as graduates in the field of research. Students are encouraged to work with the faculty on research projects and in collaboration with research institutes. State-of-the-art computer labs, well-equipped laboratories and lecture rooms provide students with the necessary tools to acquire in-depth and specialized knowledge about their various research projects. Throughout their architectural studies, students are immersed in a research-oriented milieu that uses the district of Pafos and the new University campus of NUP as a living laboratory, in which they may apply their skills in field observation and analysis, data collection and processing, live and laboratory experimentation, research and invention. The design studios use as their case studies local and regional issues, building interventions and the upgrading of living conditions, in the spirit of promoting the well-being of the community and its natural and man-made environment.

Workshops

Additionally, NUP intends to establish several workshops with the local authorities, professional organizations and architectural companies, high schools and other local and international Universities. Students are encouraged to get involved in real projects and enter architectural student competitions. The main objectives of the living laboratory and the workshops are to provide architectural students with hands-on experience, allow them to formulate associations with the professional community and encourage them to actively contribute to research and further development of the architectural profession in Cyprus

PROGRAMME STRUCTURE

SEMESTER 1

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS101ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 1: The fundamentals of architecture: Elements and Forms.Compulsory10
ENGR 150TECHNICAL REPORTS (Common with Civil Engineering)Compulsory3
ARCH BT101BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 1: Structural Systems ICompulsory3
ARCH SR101SEMINAR: Space-Communication-ArchitectureCompulsory3
ARCH SV101SPATIAL VISUALIZATION 1: Architectural/Technical Drawing, (Common with Civil Engineering)Compulsory6
ARCH SV102SPATIAL VISUALIZATION 2: Free-hand DrawingCompulsory5

SEMESTER 2

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS102ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 2: The fundamentals of architecture: Elements and FormsCompulsory10
ARCH HI101HISTORY 2: History of Architecture and Art (Antiquity)Compulsory5
ARCH BT102BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 2: Construction Components, Marterials and Methods of ConstructionsCompulsory6
ARCH BT103BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 3: Structural Systems IICompulsory3
ARCH SV104SPATIAL VISUALIZATION 4: Advanced Drawing Techniques and ModelmakingCompulsory3
ENGR 140Computer Aided Design Compulsory3

SEMESTER 3

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS203ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 3Compulsory10
ARCH BT205BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 5: Reiforced Concrete StructuresCompulsory3
ARCH TS201TECHNOLOGY STUDIO 1: Construction SystemsCompulsory6
ARCH BT204BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 4: Building ServicesCompulsory3
ARCH SV207SPATIAL VISUALIZATION 7: Digital DesignCompulsory3
ARCH HI202HISTORY 2: History of Architecture and Art (2nd-18th c.)Compulsory5

SEMESTER 4

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS204ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 4: Urban DesignCompulsory10
ARCH AS205ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 5Compulsory6
ARCH HI203HISTORY 3: History of Architecture and Art (19th-20th c.)Compulsory5
ARCH BT206BUILDING TECHNOLOGY 6: Building PhysicsCompulsory3
ARCH SV208Computational Design Compulsory6

SEMESTER 5

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS306ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 6: Restoration and Reuse of Historic BuildingsCompulsory10
ARCH TH302THEORY 2: Theory of Conservation - RestorationCompulsory5
ARCH SR301SEMINAR 1: Object and SpaceCompulsory3
ARCH TS302TECHNOLOGY STUDIO 2: Lightweight Structures (metal and wood)Compulsory6
REAL 100Principles of Real Estate: (Taught by Real Estate)Compulsory6

SEMESTER 6

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS307ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 7: Sustainable ArchitectureCompulsory10
ARCH TH303THEORY 1: Theory of Bioclimatic Design and SustainabilityCompulsory5
ARCH AS308ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 8: Landscape ArchitectureCompulsory6
ARCH SV306SPATIL VISUALIZATION 6: Photography-Cinema-Set Design Compulsory3
REAL 302Real Estate Evaluation (Taught by Real Estate)Compulsory6

SEMESTER 7

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS409ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 9Compulsory6
ARCH AS410ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 10: Urban PlanningCompulsory10
ARCH SR403SEMINAR 3: Urban Planning and Sustainable DevelopmentCompulsory5
ARCH SR402SEMINAR 3: Open Urban Spaces and Place-makingElective3
ARCH TS403 TECHNOLOGY STUDIO 3: Advanced Structural SystemsCompulsory6

SEMESTER 8

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS411ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 11Compulsory10
ARCH DIsDissertationCompulsory8
ARCH SR407SEMINAR 4: Research Methods for ArchitectureCompulsory6
ARCH TH401THEORY 3: Architecture and PlaceCompulsory3
ARCH SR406SEMINAR 4: Aspects of Spatial LanguageCompulsory3

SEMESTER 9

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH AS512ARCHITECTURE STUDIO 12: Introduction to Design Thesis StudioCompulsory10
ARCH SR501SEMINAR 5: The Morphology of Theatrical SpaceCompulsory3
ARCH SR505SEMINAR 6: Space and the Architecture of TimeCompulsory3
ARCH SR514PLACEMENT or Open Elective from other Schools or ARCH EE509(Space and the Architecture of the Void)Elective6
ARCH TH503THEORY 4: Theory of ArchitectureCompulsory3
ARCH SR506SEMINAR 7: Professional PracticeCompulsory5

SEMESTER 10

CodeCourse titleCourse typeECTS
ARCH DThDiploma Design ThesisCompulsory24
ARCH SR508SEMINAR 7: Architectural Design SeminarCompulsory3
ARCH SR509SEMINAR 9: Space and the Architecture of the VoidCompulsory3

DISCLAIMER

The University reserves its right to define the electives offered on an academic year basis.

The programme structure may change without prior notice, as a result of quality assurance procedures or/and programme recertification.

APPLY FOR THIS PROGRAMME

Register your interest and one of our admissions consultants will contact you with guidance and additional information.

FACULTY & STAFF OF THE PROGRAMME

Solon Xenopoulos

Professor of Architecture

Dean, School of Architecture, Land and Environmental Sciences

Coordinator of the Bachelor & Diploma in Architecture and MSc in Environmental Impact Assessment and Sustainability Management (EIASM)

Solon Xenopoulos is an Architect, qualified at the School of Architecture of the National Technical University of Athens (1966) with Postgraduate Studies at the Bartlett School of Architecture and Planning, University College, London...

John Bellos

Associate Professor of Structural Design and Construction Technology

Head of the Department of Engineering

Coordinator of the BSc in Civil Engineering

Dr. John Bellos is an Associate Professor of Structural Design and Construction Technology at Neapolis University Pafos (since 2018), Coordinator of the Civil Engineering Programme (since 2017) and Head of the Department of Civil Engineering (since 2018).....

Ioannis A. Pissourios

Associate Professor of Urban Planning

Ioannis Pissourios holds a Diploma of Architecture (Dipl Eng) and an MSc in Geography and Cartography. He also holds a Ph.D. in Urban Planning and pursued Post-Doctorate Research in Urban Planning...
Constantinos Vassiliades

Constantinos Vassiliades

Assistant Professor in Architectural Technology and Energy

Dr. Constantinos Vassiliades studied with a scholarship at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, where in 2012 got the Diploma of Architect Engineer with an excellent performance and was awarded as the best graduate. In 2018 he completed his Doctoral Dissertation...

Thomas Dimopoulos

Assistant Professor in Real Estate

Coordinator of the BSc in Real Estate Valuation and Development

Thomas Dimopoulos holds a PhD from the Department of Civil Engineering & Geomatics of Cyprus University of Technology, an M.Eng. in Rural and Surveying Engineering from the Engineering School of Aristotle University of Thessalonica, and a MSc in Real Estate from Oxford Brookes University...

Angeliki Sivitanidou

Lecturer of Architecture

Angeliki Sivitanidou (1978) is a Lecturer at the School of Architecture, Engineering, Land and Environmental Sciences. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (USA) with a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Architecture...

Evanthia Dova

Assistant Professor of Architectural and Urban Design

Evanthia Dova graduated from the School of Architecture, Faculty of Engineering of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh) with distinction (1998) and holds a Master of Architecture (MArch II) from the Yale University School of Architecture (2000)...

Natia Anastasi

Lecturer in Engineering Materials

Natia Anastasi holds a Ph.D. in Organometallic Chemistry from Yale University and has completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, where she explored aspects of environmental chemistry.
Christina Pieri

Christina Pieri

Lecturer in Heritage Management

Christina is a lecturer in Architecture with her BArch and MArch studies undertaken in the UK, where she has also gained her practical experience....

Chrystala Psathiti

Lecturer in Architectural Design/ Theory

Chrystala Psathiti holds a Diploma in Architecture from the University of Cyprus and an MSc in Spatial Design: Architecture & Cities from the Bartlett, UCL London and a PhD Candidate at the University of Cyprus, funded by the National Scholarship Foundation and Youth Board Cyprus.....

Eleni Hadjinikolaou

Special Teaching Staff

Eleni Hadjinicolaou is an architect, with undergraduate studies, MA degree in Architecture from the National Technical University of Athens (N.T.U.A.) (1974-1979), and postgraduate studies, MSc in Advanced Architectural Studies...
A contemporary, new Programme of Architecture, open to society and the international academic field, which participates in the international architectural dialogue, under continuous dynamic transformation

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