MASA Module Urbanism aims at the education and professional training of architects with a focused profile in urbanism. While general education at MASA programme aims to help students develop an integrated problem-based approach to a wide range of current architectural and urban planning practices, the MASA U module additionally provides them specific knowledge and skills that stem from considering broader and deeper natural and socio-spatial contexts, frameworks, structures and processes, while working on design projects.
The work in Studios in the MASA U module is conceptualised to differ in focus and complexity that leads and shapes students’ design proposals. While the first, M01U “Ecological urban design studio”, is focused on nature, structures and relations in the urban environment, M02U “Participatory urban design studio” is focused on social processes and community participation in shaping urban environment and architecture. The third Studio, M03U, “Creating and Designing in a natural environment”, changes both the context and scale of thinking architectural and urban design and focus on planning and design issues in protected rural or suburban areas. Accordingly, each Studio has a different educational and methodological approach and help students acquire different knowledge, skills and attitudes towards problems and issues under study.
Finally, Master studio deals with research, urban design and architectural interventions in relation to complex urban problems, such as urban regeneration, renovation or remodelling of specific urban areas, or with envisioning new urban futures of contemporary cities. It enables the application of previously gained knowledge, research and design skills, but also enables a new, complex and authentic approach to developing appropriate design solutions to complex development problems.