Master's degree in Architectural Design Ecology in the Digital Age

Vallès School of Architecture (ETSAV)

The master’s degree in Architectural Design Ecology in the Digital Age (master's degree website) aims to offer advanced training in the field of projects in which there is an unstable balance between local urban ecologies, advanced technology and cultural discourse. This master's degree is designed to train architects and architectural thinkers in new methodologies for architectural design that allow them to develop a systemic and ecological perspective from the architectural scale. Students are introduced to cutting-edge digital design techniques, and projects are developed through digital and physical prototypes that systematically relate to the city.

General details

Duration and start date: 1 academic year, 60 ECTS credits. Starting September
Timetable and delivery: Face-to-face
Fees and grants: Approximate fees for the master’s degree, excluding other costs (does not include non-teaching academic fees and issuing of the degree certificate):
€1,660 (€6,331 for non-EU residents).
More information about fees and payment options
More information about grants and loans
Language of instruction: English
Information on language use in the classroom and students’ language rights.
Location: Vallès School of Architecture (Sant Cugat del Vallès)
Official degree: Recorded in the Ministry of Education's degree register

Admission

General requirements: Academic requirements for admission to master's degrees
Specific requirements: Given that the master's degree is taught entirely in English, certification of English Level B2 in the CEFR is required.
Places: 30
Pre-enrolment: Pre-enrolment period open.
Expected deadline: 30/06/2025.
How to pre-enrol
Enrolment: How to enrol
Legalisation of foreign documents: All documents issued in non-EU countries must be legalised and bear the corresponding apostille.

Curriculum

First semester

Advanced Architectural Design Techniques I 5
Architectural Design Ecology I 5
Introduction to Architectural Design-Based Research I 3
Studio I 12

Second semester

Advanced Architectural Design Techniques II 5
Architectural Design Ecology II 5
Introduction to Architectural Design-Based Research II 3
Master's Thesis 10
Studio II 12

CompulsoryECTS
OptionalECTS
ProjectECTS

Professional opportunities

Professional opportunities

Building construction design.
Public space design.
Urban and spatial planning.
Interior design and design of furniture and objects.
Design of temporary structures, exhibitions and theatre sets.
Graphic design.
Teaching and research.
Design and digital communication.
Architecture criticism and curatorship.
Model making.

Competencies

Generic competencies

Generic competencies are the skills that graduates acquire regardless of the specific course or field of study. The generic competencies established by the UPC are capacity for innovation and entrepreneurship, sustainability and social commitment, knowledge of a foreign language (preferably English), teamwork and proper use of information resources.

Specific competencies

Design a systematic methodology for architectural research in the field of architectural design, with appropriate and particular relevance to a question stated with clarity and academic integrity.

Communicate design intuitions to specialists in the field and the general public, based on using new advanced manufacturing and modelling technologies in the process of conceiving, developing, evaluating, implementing and constructing the architectural design.
Reformulate notions of architectural design in an ecological and systemic key with a transformative look at architecture in relation to the environment in which it is developed, taking into account democratic principles and values and sustainable development objectives.
Integrate criticism and architectural design so that they feed into each other and in an iterative manner.
Work as a member of an interdisciplinary team, as just another member or in a management role, who can contribute to projects pragmatically and with a sense of responsibility and make commitments that take into account the resources that are available.
Manage the acquisition, organisation, analysis and visualisation of data and information in the area of specialisation and critically assess the results.
Develop the ability to evaluate inequalities based on sex and gender to design solutions that resolve them.
Integrate the values of sustainability and understand the complexity of systems, with the aim of undertaking or promoting actions that restore and maintain the health of ecosystems and generating visions of sustainable futures.
Identify and analyse problems that require making autonomous, informed and reasoned decisions in order to act with social responsibility following ethical values and principles.