BASIC STRUCTURE – BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE
The total credit requirement for the degree of Bachelor of Architecture is 207 credits. A regular student should take about 15 credits per semester. Depending on the student's academic standing and the advisor's recommendation a student may take a maximum of 21 credits per semester. Considering a reasonable and even distribution of credits the length of study for the degree is recommended to be 5 years (15 semesters).
COURSES AND CREDIT DISTRIBUTION
The distribution of courses and credits of Bachelor of Architecture (207 credits) are as follows:
Architectural subjects (incl. electives) |
46 courses |
149 credits |
Non Architectural subjects |
26 courses |
55 credits |
Practical Training |
01 course |
3 credits |
Total |
73 courses |
207 credits |
COURSES AND CREDITS IN ARCHITECTURAL SUBJECTS
The following are the core areas in which courses are offered:
Design and Communications and Lecture Courses in the following streams |
Architecture / Planning |
History of Architecture |
Building Science / Services |
Environmental Sciences |
Humanities & Social Sciences |
These are supported by elective courses offered at various stages.
Architectural subjects
The main components of the architectural education are the design studios; related studio subjects are working drawings, landscape and interior design. To support them are the studio courses in communications that include courses in graphic and digital media. In the final semesters, Seminar courses are offered to complement design studio work. The design studios carry a substantial amount of credit hours so that the emphasis remains in design.
The course wise distributions of credits in architectural subjects are as follows:
Core Courses
Areas |
No. of Courses |
Credit Hours |
Studio courses |
|
|
Design Studios |
10 |
81 |
Studios related to Design |
4 |
6.5 |
Communications Studios |
|
|
Graphic |
3 |
6 |
Digital |
3 |
4.5 |
Written |
2 |
3 |
Total in Studio Courses |
22 |
101 |
Lecture courses |
|
|
History of Art and Architecture |
7 |
14 |
Urban Design / Development |
3 |
6 |
Building Sciences/Services |
5 |
10 |
Environmental Sciences |
3 |
6 |
Electives |
5 |
10 |
Others (research methods) |
1 |
2 |
Total in Lecture Courses |
24 |
48 |
Total in Architectural subjects |
46 |
149 |
Credits in Studio Courses
Unlike the taught courses, in the studio courses of the B. Arch program credits earned do not correspond to the contact hours/week.
In the design studio courses the credits earned for the ARC101 (Design I) is 4.5 and the corresponding contact hours/week is 9. In the design studio courses that follow this gap is narrowed and in the final design studio ARC502 (Design X) the contact hours are 15 and the corresponding credits earned is 12. In other studio courses related to design such as ARC311 (Working Drawings I), ARC413 (Estimation) etc. the credits earned are almost always half of the contact hours/week (1.5 credits for 3 hours/week). The studio courses require one-to-one contact between the teacher and the student and usually there is more than one teacher per studio and it is only on occasions (project briefing, reviews etc.) that the teacher addresses the whole class (unlike the case in lecture courses).
Electives
A student is required to complete 10 credits in elective courses. Of the number of elective courses on offer students may choose from a list of 13 courses from the second year of studies onwards. The rest 5 are higher-level courses and may only be taken from the fifth semester onwards.
COURSES AND CREDITS IN NON ARCHITECTURAL SUBJECTS
Non-Architectural subjects
The course wise distribution of credits in non-architectural subjects are as follows:
Areas |
No. of Courses |
Credit Hours |
Humanities |
|
|
English/Bangla |
3 |
7.5 |
Sociology/social history |
3 |
8 |
Psychology |
1 |
2 |
Philosophy |
1 |
2 |
Economics |
1 |
2 |
Planning/Urbanism |
2 |
4 |
Sciences |
|
|
Basic Computing |
1 |
1.5 |
Physics |
1 |
2 |
Mathematics |
1 |
2 |
Environmental Sciences |
1 |
2 |
Civil Engineering |
7 |
14 |
Electrical Engineering |
1 |
2 |
Mechanical Engineering |
1 |
2 |
Accounting |
1 |
2 |
Management |
1 |
2 |
Total in Non-Architectural subjects |
26 courses |
55 credits |
Practical Training
As a requirement of the degree of Bachelor of Architecture, a student is required to complete a semester of practical training in an architectural office in Bangladesh or abroad. In all cases, the supervising architect must be a registered member architect of the professional institute of the country of practice, other than exceptional cases approved by the department. Students will have to maintain a daily log of their professional activities signed by the supervising architect. Grading of the course will be based on the supervising architect's confidential report, compilation of daily logs and an interview by a board consisting of teachers of the department.
In special circumstances in the country where the students cannot attend an architectural office regularly, the practical training may be offered by the department as a semester-long series of weekly discourses.
Course Details |
||
Design |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC101 Design I |
4.5 |
9 |
ARC102 Design II |
4.5 |
9 |
ARC201 Design III |
6 |
9 |
ARC202 Design IV |
6 |
9 |
ARC301 Design V |
8 |
12 |
ARC302 Design VI |
8 |
12 |
ARC401 Design VII |
10 |
15 |
ARC402 Design VIII |
10 |
15 |
ARC501 Design IX |
12 |
15 |
ARC502/ARC503 Design X |
12 |
15 |
Related to Design |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC311 Working Drawings I |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC312 Working Drawings II |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC411 Interior Design |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC412 Landscape Design |
2 |
3 |
Communications |
||
Graphic |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC111 Graphic Communication I |
3 |
6 |
ARC112 Graphic Communication II |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC413 Estimation |
1.5 |
2 |
Digital |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC113 Computer Aided Design |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC214 Computer Graphics |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC315 Digital Visualization |
1.5 |
3 |
Written |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC511 Seminar I |
1.5 |
3 |
ARC512 Seminar II |
1.5 |
3 |
Lecture Courses |
||
History of Art and Architecture |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC121 Introduction to Architecture |
2 |
2 |
ARC122 History of Art and Architecture I |
2 |
2 |
ARC123 History of Art and Architecture II |
2 |
2 |
ARC224 History of Art and Architecture III |
2 |
2 |
ARC225 History of Art and Architecture IV |
2 |
2 |
ARC326 History of Art and Architecture V |
2 |
2 |
ARC327 History of Bengal Art and Architecture |
2 |
2 |
Planning/Urban Design |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC331 Urban Design |
2 |
2 |
ARC431 Rural Architecture |
2 |
2 |
ARC432 Housing and Development |
2 |
2 |
Building Sciences/Services |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC241 Construction I |
2 |
2 |
ARC242 Construction II |
2 |
2 |
ARC343 Technology and Construction |
2 |
2 |
ARC441 Specifications |
2 |
2 |
ARC541 Professional Practice |
2 |
2 |
Environmental Sciences |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC251 Design with Climate |
2 |
2 |
ARC252 Lighting and Acoustic Design |
2 |
2 |
ARC452 Design for the Environment |
2 |
2 |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
|
ARC522 Research Methods |
2 |
2 |
Elective Courses (Any 5 courses to be taken) |
||
Studio Courses |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC291 Sculpture |
2 |
3 |
ARC292 Painting |
2 |
3 |
ARC293 Music Appreciation |
2 |
3 |
ARC294 Photography |
2 |
3 |
Lecture Courses |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC391 Rural Housing |
2 |
2 |
ARC392 Tropical Architecture |
2 |
2 |
ARC393 Building for Disasters |
2 |
2 |
ARC394 Contemporary South Asian Arch. |
2 |
2 |
ARC491 Architectural Conservation |
2 |
2 |
ARC492 The City in Development |
2 |
2 |
ARC493 Contemporary Architecture Thought |
2 |
2 |
ARC494 Ecology and Sustainable Development |
2 |
2 |
ARC495 Computers in Architecture |
2 |
2 |
NON-ARCHITECTURAL COURSES |
||
Humanities/English/Bangla |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ENG091 Foundation Course |
0 |
|
ENG101 English |
3 |
|
ENG203 Communication Skills |
1.5 |
3 |
BNG103 Bangla Language and Literature |
3 |
|
Sociology / Social History |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
HUM103 Ethics and Culture |
3 |
3 |
EMB101 Emergence of Bangladesh |
3 |
3 |
ANT103 Society and Development |
2 |
2 |
Philosophy |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
PHI521 Philosophy & Architecture |
2 |
2 |
Psychology |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
PSY421 Psychology for Architects |
2 |
2 |
Economics |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ECO104 Introduction to Economics |
2 |
2 |
Planning / Urbanism |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC231 Concepts in Planning |
2 |
2 |
ARC232 Urbanism |
2 |
2 |
Sciences |
||
Basic Computing |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
CSE103 Introduction to Computing |
1.5 |
3 |
Physics |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
PHY102 Fundamentals of Physics |
2 |
2 |
Mathematics |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
MAT104 Mathematics |
2 |
2 |
Environmental Sciences |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ENV101 Introduction to Environmental Sciences |
2 |
2 |
Civil Engineering |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
CEE211 Structure I |
2 |
2 |
CEE212 Structure II |
2 |
2 |
CEE213 Plumbing |
2 |
2 |
CEE311 Structure III |
2 |
2 |
CEE312 Structure IV |
2 |
2 |
CEE411 Structure V |
2 |
2 |
CEE412 Structure VI |
2 |
2 |
Mechanical Engineering |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
MEE344 Mechanical Services |
2 |
2 |
Electrical Engineering |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
EEE345 Electrical Services |
2 |
2 |
Accounting |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ACT511 Accounting |
2 |
2 |
Management |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
MGT511 Construction Management |
2 |
2 |
Practical Training |
Credits |
Hrs/Week |
ARC300 Practical Training |
3 |
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