The Urban Design and Housing program enables students who have already completed their professional M.Arch. degree (or equivalent) to develop specialised skills for contemporary practice in housing, urban design, and the management of human settlements. It is open to students with a professional degree in Architecture, although applicants with a studio-based degree in a related field (landscape architecture, urban planning, environmental design) can be considered for admission in certain cases. All courses and studio projects are conducted in English; knowledge of French is useful in the bilingual context of Montreal but it is not a requirement. Successful applicants must meet the general requirements of the post-professional M.Arch. program as outlined here.
Program structure and courses
The post-professional M.Arch. Urban Design and Housing option involves a 12-month, 45-credit program of study, organised into three consecutive terms of coursework. Intensive seminars held during the first two terms focus on contemporary theory and research methods in urban design and housing. Students take ARCH 603 Urban Design and Housing Studio as an applied synthesis of the material discussed in the two core seminars. Nine credits of complementary coursework round out the Fall and Winter terms along with ARCH 623 Project Preparation, in which students develop the strategy for a major independent project (ARCH 632 Urban Design and Housing Research Report) to be completed in the Summer term.
Please note that we are currently revising the curriculum; minor changes will take effect in the 2015-16 academic year, and these will be announced on this page early in 2015.
REQUIRED CORE COURSES
ARCH 602
Housing Seminar
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Advanced studies in housing: general preoccupations, theoretical antecedents, epistemological foundations, and practical techniques pertinent to contemporary theory and practice.
Offered by: Architecture
- (2-1-6)
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken URBD 602.
- Corequisite(s): ARCH 604
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 603
Urban Design & Housing Studio
6 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Comprehensive project in urban design and housing drawing on contemporary theory and practice.
Offered by: Architecture
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 604
Urban Design Seminar
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Advanced concepts and methods used in urban design, focusing on epistemological debates, practical techniques, and philosophical concerns that shape contemporary theory and practice in the field.
Offered by: Architecture
- (1-2-6)
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken URBP 604.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 623
Project Preparation
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Guided background preparation for the project.
Offered by: Architecture
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 627
Research Methods
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Survey of research methods relevant to architecture. Introduction to research ethics; differentiating between primary and secondary methods; contrasting macro- and micro-social approaches; setting research questions; undertaking literature scans; reviewing empirical findings by others; designing instruments and tools for primary research; conducting field research; presenting findings.
Offered by: Architecture
- (2-1-6)
- Restriction: Open only to students enrolled in the M.Arch. (Professional), M.Arch. (Post-professional) and Ph.D. in Architecture programs.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 632
UD&H Research Report
15 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: An individual research report addressing interdisciplinary concerns in Urban Design and Housing.
Offered by: Architecture
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
COMPLEMENTARY COURSES
Group A : Students must complete 6 to 9 credits from among the following courses.
ARCH 514
Community Design Workshop
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Context-focused community-based architectural projects undertaken in collaboration with external partners. Exploration of challenges, needs, and opportunities in architectural and urban-design interventions on real sites through interdisciplinary and cross-sectorial collaboration.
Offered by: Architecture
- (1-4-4)
- Restriction(s): Not open to students who have taken or are taking URBP 514.
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 517
Sustainable Residential Dev
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Design strategies of sustainable residential environments at the community and the unit levels. Historic references, siting principles, high density, healthy developments, green homes, urban renewal, circulation and parking, open spaces and implementation approaches.
Offered by: Architecture
ARCH 520
Montreal: Urban Morphology
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Historical, geographical, demographical, and regional evolution of the metropolis of Montreal. Topics include: important quartiers, the Montreal urban grid, industrialization, reform movements, geographical diversity, urban culture, local building techniques and materials. Basic concepts of urban morphology and their relationships to the contemporary urban context will be explored.
Offered by: Architecture
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 521
Structure of Cities
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Nature, pattern and life of modern cities. Urban networks, special areas, problems and prospects.
Offered by: Architecture
- (2-0-7)
- Prerequisite: ARCH 202 or permission of instructor
- Given alternate years, alternating with ARCH 520
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 562
Innovative Homes & Communities
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Innovative design concepts for sustainable homes and communities to include adaptability; net-zero energy; micro units; recycling; plug and play; green roofs; aging in place and live-work.
Offered by: Architecture
- (3-0-6)
- Prerequisite: ARCH 201
- Restriction: Not open to students who have taken ARCH 631.
ARCH 564
Design for Development
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Designing for sustainable development to meet broad developmental goals. Innovative design approaches, strategies and projects to address these objectives via economic empowerment, food security, gender equity, health, sanitation,
climate-change preparedness, and shelter-sector engagements.
Offered by: Architecture
- (2-0-7)
- Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
ARCH 566
Cultural Landscapes Seminar
3 Credits
Offered in the:
- Fall
- Winter
- Summer
Architecture: Overview of cultural landscapes studies, methodologies, and resources. Comparative studies of the connection between people, place, and artifact systems through a critical examination of architecture, regional context, and material culture. Examination of precedents for the interpretation of cultural landscapes by architects, ethnologists, anthropologists, folklorists, historians, writers, filmmakers, photographers, and artists.
Offered by: Architecture
- Terms
- This course is not scheduled for the 2024 academic year
- Instructors
- There are no professors associated with this course for the 2024 academic year
Group B : Students can complete 0 to 3 credits from any courses at the 500 level or higher, approved by an adviser.