RIBA Part 3

Alastair Blyth, Wilfred Achille, Susanne Bauer, and Stephen Brookhouse

Wilfred Achille is Co-Course Leader.  Wilfred completed a major study on Broadwater Farm, Tottenham after the eighties riots.  Founder of Mode 1 Architects specialising in estate remodelling projects and urban regeneration, he is developing new Turn-key solution business models for architectural practice.

Alastair Blyth is Assistant Head of School and Co-Course Leader.  He spent ten years in the Directorate for Education and Skills at the OECD developing a research programme on learning environments.  Publications include books on Briefing (Routledge, 2001, 2010); and education environments (OECD 2009, 2012).  He collaborates with architectural practices in Sydney and Mexico on school building projects, and is part of an international project investigating Innovative Learning Environments and Student Engagement run by the University of Melbourne.

Susanne Bauer is Senior Lecturer in the Professional Practice in Architecture and the Architectural History and Theory courses. She has practiced in offices in the UK and Germany, including Foster + Partners and AHMM, and previously taught at Norwich University of the Arts and Birmingham City University.

Stephen Brookhouse is Professor Emeritus and contributes to the Part 3 course.  He is a chartered architect with over 20 years’ experience in practice has authored the first three editions of the Part 3 Handbook as well as Professional Studies in Architecture: A Primer.

The School of Architecture + Cities runs the largest RIBA Part 3 programme in the UK. This year (2022-23) over 470 students enrolled on the course. The students come from a wide variety of backgrounds including overseas schools of architecture. Architects who trained outside the UK also attend the course to gain an in-depth understanding of the complexities of UK practice.

Following the requirements of the ARB/RIBA Professional Criteria, Part 3 is structured as a series of building blocks with clear assessment points throughout the year. The lectures, delivered by industry experts, allow students to balance attendance with work commitments and are recorded for easy future access.

Students’ professional development in the workplace is supported by a team of 40 professional tutors – all architects in practice – who provide one-to-one tutorial guidance on project-based coursework. Professional examiners consistently comment on the high, critical standard of the coursework which we attribute to the structured tutoring system where students are challenged to think about practice differently.

The students’ personal backgrounds, the types and number of practices represented on the course, along with the tutors and examiners gives the course an unprecedented reach into the architectural profession. This enables the course both to draw from the breadth of practice experience as well as contribute to it.

The Part 3 Course was validated by the RIBA for a further five years in November 2022. The Visiting Board gave it Commendation, citing the efforts of ‘Part 3 staff (both full-time and part-time) in producing an outstanding programme that is integrated and holistic, in preparation for architectural practice’.

Alastair Blyth & Wilfred Achille

Lecture-based Modules

The two lecture-based modules are delivered during the first semester. The lecture programmes are delivered by differing industry experts, including construction lawyers, construction managers, architects and surveyors, and are repeated to allow students to balance attendance with work commitments. Lectures are video recorded for easy future access. Each series concludes with an open book written exam.

Work-based Modules

These are supported by a team of 44 professional tutors – most of whom are architects in practice – who provide one-to-one tutorial guidance and act as the students’ professional studies advisors for the year. Tutors arrange a mix of group and individual tutorials and additionally provide individual advice by email where needed. The work-based modules are also supported by a lecture programme. Students may defer submission of the coursework for the work-based modules for either six or twelve months to enable them to respond to their workplace context.