Undergraduate dissertations in a department of architecture

Undergraduate academic writing in a Department of Architecture offers opportunities as well as challenges. To students, it can be a source of independent research and learning, enriching their development as architects and critics of the built environment; at the same time it can be an obstacle, a perceived impediment to design work. To staff, it can be a chance to share their research interest with colleagues and students, so enriching exchange and debate; it can also be time consuming and not clearly relevant to the formation of a professional. This case study argues that a change in attitude towards the objectives of the dissertation, coupled with careful consideration of its curriculum, can enhance the role that undergraduate academic writing plays in a School of Architecture, extending its benefits to the development of research and design agendas.