Degree of Bachelor of Architecture

RESOLUTION

The Degree of Bachelor of Architecture is governed by Resolution No. 551 of the University Court, the provisions of which are as follows.

1.  The Degree of Bachelor of Architecture (BArch) at The Glasgow School of Art may be awarded by the University of Glasgow either as an Ordinary Degree (on a full-time or a part-time basis) or as a Degree with Honours (full-time or part-time with a final full-time year) in such designations as may be prescribed by Regulation.
2. The Senate may make Regulations, which are subject to the approval of the University Court, governing the award of the Degree - these shall be stated in the section entitled 'Regulations'.
3. The Senate recognises The Glasgow School of Art, through its Academic Council, as being corporately responsible for the administration and development of the courses leading to the Degree of Bachelor of Architecture.
4. It shall be the duty of the Academic Council of The Glasgow School of Art to consider annually the curriculum for the Degree of Bachelor of Architecture and such other matters, including the admission and progress of students, as may be remitted to it by the Senate and to report to the Senate thereon. It shall be competent for the Academic Council to make recommendations to the Senate, with regard to the appointment of Examiners for the Degree.
5. It shall be competent for the University Court, on the recommendation of the Senate, to recognise as teachers of the University for the purpose of the Degree, such lecturers and other officers of The Glasgow School of Art having responsibility for courses qualifying for the Degree, as may be proposed for such recognition by the Academic Council.
6. The Senate may appoint as an Examiner for the Degree, but not as an External Examiner, any teacher recognised in accordance with §5.
7. The External Examiners for the Degree shall be appointed by the Academic Council of The Glasgow School of Art.

REGULATIONS

1.  Introductory and Definitions

The definitions set out in the Glossary of Terms apply to these regulations.

2.  Duration of Degree Study

2.1  The curriculum for the Ordinary Degree shall extend over no fewer than three sessions full-time or four sessions part-time. The curriculum for the Degree with Honours shall extend over no fewer than four sessions full-time, or four sessions part-time and the honours year undertaken in full-time mode.

2.2  The minimum and maximum periods of study, expressed as academic sessions, are as below:

Type of award	Full-time		Part-time
	Minimum	Maximum	Minimum	Maximum
Honours degree	4	7[1]	5	7
Ordinary degree	3	5	4	6

3.  Recognition of Prior Learning

3.1  Prior certificated learning and prior experiential learning can be counted for credit on this degree.

3.2  A candidate seeking accreditation of prior certificated learning must have completed, in whole or in part, a formally assessed programme of study. In addition to the documentation specified in the Admissions Policy published by The Glasgow School of Art, the candidate must present evidence of their achievement in the form of an original certificate, transcript or similar document and, where relevant, must also present details of the syllabus and form of assessment.

3.3  A candidate seeking accreditation of prior experiential learning is required, in addition to the documentation specified in the relevant policy, to provide evidence that will enable admissions tutors to make informed judgements about the level of learning, knowledge and skills that they have acquired through life experience, employment, work experience or study that is not formally recognised.

3.4  The procedure for approval of such accreditation is set out in the Admissions Policy published by The Glasgow School of Art. The maximum limit for the award of such credit is, other than in exceptional circumstances, 50% of the credits associated with the degree programme.

4.  Composition of Degree Programme

4.1  The degree programme shall be composed of courses, each of which is characterised by the academic level at which it is set and the number of credits which it conveys. The programme Stages will be expressed as 1, 2, 3 or 4, these corresponding to levels 7 to 10 in the Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework.

4.2  The structure of the degree programme, including the compulsory and optional courses of which it is composed, is shown in the degree’s programme specification.

4.3  The curriculum for Stage 1, 2 and 3 may be undertaken by full-time or part-time study. The curriculum for the Honours Year, Stage 4 must be undertaken by full-time study.

	Stage 1	Stage 2	Stage 3		Professional Practice Year Out	Stage 4 (hons)
Full time mode	F1	F2	F3		PPYO	F4
Part time mode	P1	P2	P3	P4	N/A	F4

4.4  Full-time candidates are recommended to undertake a year of practical experience (Professional Practice Year Out) at the end of Stage 3. For further details see the Programme Specification.

4.5  Part-time candidates will be required to spend no fewer than one and a half days per week in attendance on courses or in supervised study. The remaining time will be spent employed in a recognised architect’s practice approved by the Head of the Mackintosh School of Architecture.

4.6  In each academic session, a candidate will normally take courses conveying the total number of credits set out below:

Stage 1	Full-time and Part-time routes	120 credits per academic year
Stage 2	Full-time and Part-time routes	120 credits per academic year
Stage 3	Full-time route	60 credits per academic year
or Stage 3	Part-time over two years (P3 and P4)	120 credits per academic year
Stage 4	Full-time routes only	120 credits per academic year

5.  Pre-requisites, Co-requisites and Excluded Combinations

5.1  Each course may have pre-requisite and/or co-requisite course(s). To be admitted to a course:

a)  The candidate must normally have attained grade D3 or above in each pre-requisite course. If the course follows a pre-requisite course in the same academic session, however, it shall be sufficient for the candidate to have attended the pre-requisite course.

b)  The candidate must either have attended, or be concurrently attending, each co-requisite course.

5.2  Where a candidate’s curriculum includes courses which form an excluded combination, credits from only one of these courses may be counted towards the requirements for award of a degree or other qualification.

6.  Approval of Curriculum

The curriculum of each candidate must be approved at the start of each session by the candidate’s Programme Leader. Once approved, the curriculum may not be altered except with the approval of the Programme Leader.

7.  Assessment 

7.1   Assessment is governed by the Code of Assessment which is published by The Glasgow School of Art.

7.2   The minimum requirement for the award of credit for a course is the submission of at least 75% by weight of the summative assessment. Additional requirements, including attendance requirements, shall be published in the programme specification and/or its course specifications and/or given to the candidate in writing by the Programme Leader at the commencement of the programme or course.

8.  Progress and Reassessment

8.1  The progress of candidates shall be reviewed annually.

8.2  A full-time or part-time candidate will be eligible to progress to the next year of the programme if they have achieved a grade of D3 or above for all courses of the curriculum for that year.

8.3  A candidate in Stage 1, 2 or 3 will be offered reassessment for any course in which they fail to achieve at least grade D3 at the first sitting.

a)  Following reassessment, a Stage 1 or 2 or a part-time Stage 3 (P3 only) candidate may, in line with GSA’s Code of Assessment, carry forward a maximum of 20 credits at grade E1 or below and must achieve at least grade D3 in the subsequent session.

b)  Where, following reassessment, a Stage 1 or 2 or a part-time Stage 3 (P3 only) candidate has more than 20 credits at E1 or below; or where a full-time Stage 3 candidate has any credits at E1 or below, they will not be allowed to progress but may be offered the opportunity to repeat the course(s) in the following session at the discretion of the GSA Final Examination Board. Students repeating a course will normally be subject to the same attendance and participation requirements as the first sitting of the course.

c)  A full-time or part-time candidate on the Ordinary Degree programme, or a Stage 3 on the Honours Degree programme, will be excluded from further study if after a repeat year of study they have failed to complete satisfactorily the progress requirements.

8.4  The assessments in Stage 4 will be taken within one session and reassessment is not permitted.  Where a candidate fails to achieve the requirement for the award of the Bachelor of Architecture with Honours, they will be allowed to transfer into the First year of the Diploma of Architecture programme and be permitted to undertake reassessment, which, for the purposes of the Diploma of Architecture, will be considered as a second sitting. 

8.5  A part-time candidate so eligible, if intending to graduate with Honours, must enter Stage 4 of the full- time Honours programme. Alternatively, a part-time candidate who has completed the Ordinary Degree curriculum after four years of part-time study and who has graduated may be permitted to enter the First Year of the Diploma programme.

9.  Administration of Progress

9.1  Decisions on progress shall be taken by the GSA Final Examination Board. The GSA Final Examination Board shall have the power to exclude a candidate or to impose conditions regarding a candidate’s future progress if their previous performance does not offer a reasonable prospect of reaching the required standard.^[2]

9.2  The Mackintosh School of Architecture shall publish to all candidates the arrangements for identifying any candidate who does not comply with progress requirements.

9.3  Appeals against decisions of the GSA Final Examination Board may be made following the process set out in The Glasgow School of Art’s Code of Procedure for Appeals.

10.  Award of a Certificate of Higher Education

10.1  A candidate who has completed courses totalling at least 120 credits with grade D3 or above in each course shall be eligible to receive a Certificate of Higher Education unless the candidate proceeds immediately to a degree programme.

10.2  The Certificate of Higher Education shall be awarded with Merit where the grade point average^[3] is at least 12.0, and with Distinction where the grade point average is at least 15.0.

10.3  Where the candidate has accumulated more than 120 credits, the credit counted in the calculation of the grade point average shall be reduced to 120 credits by discarding the credit from a course or courses in such a way as to maximise the grade point average while meeting all other requirements of the regulations.

11.  Award of a Diploma of Higher Education

11.1  A candidate who has completed courses totalling at least 240 credits at grade D3 or above shall be eligible to receive a Diploma of Higher Education unless the candidate proceeds immediately to a degree programme.

11.2  The Diploma of Higher Education shall be awarded with Merit where the grade point average^[3] is at least 12.0, and with Distinction where the grade point average is at least 15.0.

11.3  Where the candidate has accumulated more than 240 credits, the credit counted in the calculation of the grade point average shall be reduced to 240 credits by discarding the credit from a course or courses in such a way as to maximise the grade point average while meeting all other requirements of the regulations.

12.  Award of an Ordinary Degree

12.1  To be eligible for the award of the Ordinary Degree, the candidate must have obtained at least 360 credits at grade D3 or above.

12.2  The Ordinary Degree shall be awarded with Merit where the grade point average^[3] is at least 12.0, and with Distinction where the grade point average is at least 15.0.

12.3  Where the candidate has accumulated more than 360 credits, the credit counted in the calculation of the grade point average shall be reduced to 360 credits by discarding the credit from a course or courses in such a way as to maximise the grade point average while meeting all other requirements of the regulations.

13.  Award of an Honours Degree

To be eligible for the award of an Honours degree, the candidate must have obtained at least 480 credits, including at least 120 Stage 4 credits at grade D3 or above and achieved grade D3 or above for a piece of independent work worth at least 20 credits.