ITU Department of Architecture is an institution that carries an educational tradition dating back to 1944 to the contemporary education environment in the context of the possibilities of today’s architectural profession. This institution aims to educate architects with social and environmental awareness and ethical responsibility. The formation of the architect who graduated from ITU Architecture Department coincides with a versatile personality definition that can filter scientific facts of architecture through artistic sensitivity and social awareness. The aim of the Department of Architecture, which adopts an international education strategy, is to educate competent architects who can discover ways to reach information in every environment, think flexibly, question, establish relationships, transform knowledge, and learn to learn.
The Department of Architecture provides Master’s (with and without thesis) and PhD degrees in related fields to the students who have completed architectural program after four years of undergraduate education. 69 academicians, 11 lecturers and 72 research assistants contribute to education with must and elective courses that offer a rich range of subjects. Architectural design studios, building elements, building materials, construction systems, architectural history and restoration courses are held in a contemporary studying environment. Data Centers and laboratories contribute significantly to the development of students.
Students are encouraged to work with other members of the department and faculty where interdisciplinary interaction is emphasized. The summer school, workshops and competitions are organized to allow different experiences in this sense. Architects and graduates invited as jury members or speakers to share their experiences in practice with students.
The undergraduate program of Department of Architecture of ITU Faculty of Architecture and the Master of Architecture without Thesis program were awarded substantial equivalency for 6 years after the last visit by NAAB (American National Architectural Accrediting Board) in 2015. This equivalence, which confirms the quality of education and training activities provided, has been given to the Department of Architecture of the ITU Faculty of Architecture for the first time outside the USA in the field of architecture.
Department of Architecture’s mission is to train architects who are sensitive to the environment, attentive to social and individual expectations, equipped with ethical and aesthetic values, and absorbing innovations and technological developments in creating resourceful solutions for the contemporary needs of the 21st-century societies in both local and global scales. Its undergraduate program aims to cultivate students’ awareness of the cultural, ecological, ethical, aesthetical, historical and socio-political dimensions of built space and to enable them to make accountable decisions as well as innovative designs to address the needs of all and to increase the quality of life for all. DoA prepares its graduates to take leadership roles across design-related areas and encourage them to utilize new ways of designing through the employment of advanced digital design and manufacturing tools and technologies.
Department of Architecture’s vision is to have an impact on architectural education and practice, the built environment and society, through innovative interdisciplinary inquiry, and by providing students with the opportunity to enhance their intellectual capacity and develop their architectural character in an internationally accepted and high-quality educational atmosphere. DoA adopts the following values in its key activities in teaching, research and service:
• Innovation and participation at the national and global scale,
• Transparency in decision-making processes,
• Scientific method, accurate information, effectual knowledge production and sharing in curriculum and research,
• Interdisciplinary approach and teamwork in education and research,
• Social responsibility, ethical conduct, historical consciousness, respect for environmental, social and cultural values,
• Understanding of continuous improvement of individual, family, community and environmental health as a whole,
• Openness to development, continuous learning, healthy communication,
• Creativity and flexibility, and entrepreneurship.
History
| 1884 |
“Hendese-i Mülkiye Mektebi” was opened to train the first civil architects and engineers. In the first programs of the “Hendese-i Mülkiye Mektebi”, road, bridge and various building constructions were included in a mixed manner, civil engineering and architecture were considered as one profession. |
| 1909 |
The school was separated from the military administration, attached to the “Nafia Nezareti” and named as the “Mühendis Mekteb-i Ali”. The school, which gives education in every branch of engineering, was divided into road, “Railway”, “Water Works” and “Construction-Architecture” branches. |
| 1928 |
The school, which gained legal personality, was renamed ‘Higher Engineer School’. |
| 1940 |
The Architecture Branch, which educates “Master Engineer Architect”, gave its first graduates. |
| 1941 |
Affiliated to the Ministry of National Education, the school was named “Higher Engineer School”. |
| 1944 |
With the enacted Universities Law, the Higher Engineering School became an autonomous education institution with the name of “Istanbul Technical University” that provides education for 10 semesters. Architecture branch was transformed into “Faculty of Architecture” implementing a separate teaching program. Taşkışla building was allocated to this higher education institution. |
| 1955 |
In the name of educational reform, education and training programs were developed. |
| 1973 |
As a result of the reorganization efforts, 13 chairs were created within 5 disciplines. |
| 1974 |
Faculty of Architecture started graduate education by reducing the undergraduate education from 10 semesters to 8 semesters. |
| 1981 |
With the implementation of the Higher Education Law No. 2547, the Faculty of Architecture was reorganized and continued its education, research and practice activities. |
| 1981 |
Architecture and City and Regional Planning became two separate departments. |
| 1982 |
ITU Faculty of Architecture and ITU Maçka Faculty of Architecture were combined under one roof. |
| 1993 |
Department of Industrial Product Design was established. |
| 2002 |
Department of Interior Architecture and Department of Landscape Architecture were established. |
| 2008 |
Architecture Department received ‘Substantial Equivalency’ from NAAB (National Architectural Accrediting Board). |
| 2009 |
Building-Structure Information, Architectural History and Restoration Departments in the Department of Architecture were removed and the Department of Architecture was established. |