Architecture with Integrated Foundation Year

Architecture is about more than buildings - it’s about shaping communities, responding to environmental challenges, and creating spaces that improve people’s lives. On this architecture degree, you’ll develop a broad, multidisciplinary skillset grounded in design, critical thinking, technology, and culture, giving you the knowledge and confidence to make a meaningful impact on the built environment.

Why study this degree?
1. Study on a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Part 1 validated course, gaining the skills needed to advance towards becoming an architect
2. Work alongside industry professionals through studio design projects, collaborative workshops and external networks
3. Study in our dynamic campus on the Greenwich Peninsula, with access to cutting-edge digital and physical facilities
4. Collaborate with local stakeholders and communities, using design as a tool for real-world problem-solving
5. Channel your creative interests through a range of practical design projects that develop your individual voice

Architecture courses at Ravensbourne University London are built around shared studios, where you learn alongside students across architecture, landscape, design engineering and interiors - while also going deep within your own specialism. This reflects how the industry actually works: collaboratively, across disciplines, with a focus on real-world outcomes.

Integrated Foundation Year
The Integrated Foundation Year is a chance to ask big questions, explore remarkable architectural projects, and develop the skills you need to thrive on one of our spatial design courses. You’ll be part of a dynamic cluster, learning and collaborating with peers across our built environment courses in a creative studio environment.

Modules include:
• Design, Media and Representation I



• Introduction to Professional Context: Spatial Practices



• Exploring: Culture and Context



• Design, Media and Representation II



• Introduction to Professional Context: Cross-Disciplinary Practices



• Influencing: Culture and Context



After you have completed your Integrated Foundation Year, you will study the following:

Year 1
Your first year grounds you in the fundamentals of architectural representation - through drawing, making, and working with your hands. Studio life is at the centre of everything, as you learn to collect ideas, create with intention, and collaborate with others. Underpinning it all: history, theory, technology, and the professional skills that shape a life in architecture.

Modules may include:
• Rave Beginnings



• Design Studio I: Thinking and Making Structures



• Professional Practice: Role, Identity and Responsibility



• Research Studio I: Place, Memory and Making



• Design Studio II: Form and Structure



Year 2
The second year extends the programme into urban contexts, with a focus on the spaces between buildings. Students explore how historical and theoretical forces shape cities, engage with branded environments and community participation, and develop sustainable approaches within their design practice.

Modules may include:
• Research Studio II: Mapping the City



• Design Studio III: Urban Intervention



• Critical Reconstruction



• Design Studio IV: Urban Proposition



• Professional Practice: Live Practice



Year 3
Your final year is where your personal and professional voice fully emerges. You'll undertake an industry-led competition brief, pursue independent research, and build professional and entrepreneurial skills - culminating in a portfolio that prepares you for practice.

Modules may include:
• Integrated Collaborative Practice



• Research Studio III: Research by Practice



• Final Major Project I: Project Proposition



• Professional Practice: Situating your Practice



• Final Major Project II: Project Delivery



All modules are subject to revalidation.

Do you want to study in a top 3 student city in the world?* Unleash your creativity at Ravensbourne University London.

Located in London's Design District, Ravensbourne sits opposite the O2, next to Greenwich, and at the heart of the city's cutting-edge creative community. With London's impressive skyline and iconic river just opposite, you're bound to find inspiration all around.

Ravensbourne courses cover Architecture, Business, Computing and Games, Design, Fashion and Film, TV and Media. You'll experience live industry briefs and learn from those who are already excelling in their chosen industries, giving you connections and career confidence from the very start. You'll also have the opportunity to work alongside other specialisms as you will when you enter the workplace.

With spaces available through Clearing, you can join a unique community of makers and innovators this September.

* (QS Best Student Cities 2026)