Architecture

In recent decades, a growing interest in material cultures and the sociology of space has elevated the status of architecture in sociological discussions. This seminar examines how different architectural forms take part in a range of different social practices. To what extent are they part of social practices, support or suppress them? The course adopts a simple scheme of spatial directions to discuss forms of enclosure (prisons), verticality (skyscrapers), liminality (borders), flows (logistics), etc.

This course examines the evolution of design over the last century, drawing on the prominent theoretical frameworks, practices and perspectives that have influenced and shaped the discipline. It covers the shift from traditional production-based practices to human-centred design and more recent thinking around decolonised and post-anthropogenic futures.

The course relates the abstract field of architecture with the built works of prominent architects who explain, firsthand, the details of their design and the corresponding construction process. It discusses the connection between the preliminary architectural idea and the resulting space, as well as the relationship between construction detail and process in order to understand the various stages and strategies required to create a building.

The International Internship course develops vital business skills employers are actively seeking in job candidates. This course is comprised of two parts: an internship, and a hybrid academic seminar. Students are placed in an internship within a sector related to their professional ambitions. The hybrid academic seminar, conducted both online and in-person, analyzes and evaluates the workplace culture and the daily working environment students experience. The course is divided into eight career readiness competency modules as set out by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), which guide the course’s learning objectives. During the academic seminar, students reflect weekly on their internship experience within the context of their host culture by comparing and contrasting their experiences with their global internship placement with that of their home culture. Students reflect on their experiences in their internship, the role they have played in the evolution of their experience in their internship placement, and the experiences of their peers in their internship placements. Students develop a greater awareness of their strengths relative to the career readiness competencies, the subtleties and complexities of integrating into a cross-cultural work environment, and how to build and maintain a career search portfolio.