The Design Studio at HU

 

The design studio is a cornerstone and a center of most architectural engineering curricula. It is a working space, where students practice design projects under the supervision of design instructor professors. The students work on semester-length projects. They respond to complex and open-ended assignments. In the architectural design studio, students are meant to “learn by doing” in a “design-critique-redesign cycle”. This critique cycle takes two shapes; formal discussion as in review or before juries, and informal discussion as in instructor-student critique or one-to-one critique.
The design studio is a place for multidisciplinary teaching and learning because of the diversity of design issues that are considered in design studio courses. In the architectural design studio, students are encouraged to design from a holistic view, introduce multiple design perspectives, create new design concepts and ideas, present and define their design ideas, and learn new design techniques and skills.
The design studio is more than a place to study and teach; it is a place for engaging in social interactions, building relationships, and exchanging design knowledge, ideas, and views. Different design stages require different design knowledge. The communication inside the design studio develops shared meaning, memories, knowledge, and information, and aids in planning activities, tasks, and methodologies.
In the architectural design studio, students are required to submit an educational design proposal for the same design program, including visual media such as sketches, technical drawings, perspectives, and models to illustrate the educational design project. Education in the design studio values leadership skills, individual creativity, and the understanding of problems and the ability to solve them as presented in the practice of architecture. The architectural engineering department’s mandate is for each student to understand architecture as a creative, productive, innovative, and responsible practice.
Design education at Architectural Department encourages critical discourse based on collaboration, creativity, and learning through making. A healthy learning culture engenders an environment where students and faculty come together to ask questions, make proposals, and innovate through today’s knowledge to address tomorrow’s challenges. The learning culture supports and develops respect for the diverse backgrounds and approaches to design of faculty and students. 

 

 

The Architectural Department at HU has a national reputation for a learning culture that promotes creative and collaborative engagement, deep learning approach, sensitivity to the broad context of environmental design decisions, and a comprehensive approach to design exploration that integrates a wide range of subject areas that relate to architectural design. Our learning culture prepares students to address the real challenges that emerge from environmental, social and, cultural conditions.