School of Architecture

The education of architecture in Iran officially began with the establishment of the Faculty of Fine Arts in 1939. The founders of architectural education in Iran were French archaeologists and graduates from the National School of Fine Arts in France, and the instruction methods were modeled after those in France. Initially, the education was divided into three parts: preliminary practical training, first cycle, and second cycle. The theoretical courses were limited to spatial geometry, technical drawing and perspective, statics, concrete and steel, surveying and estimation, elements and details of buildings, history and art, and French language. From 1955, the selection of architecture students at the Faculty of Fine Arts was conducted through a specialized entrance examination, and after completing the preliminary course, students would enter the first and second cycle, gaining experience with modern architectural practices.

Between 1961 and 1965, the structure of the curriculum changed, merging the first and second cycles into a unified system. In the new architecture program, which has been executed recently as a non-continuous master's program, the focus shifted to training experts with both general and professional competencies. Key themes of these courses include enhancing imagination, spatial visualization, expressive skills, creativity, and self-confidence. These themes are organized through three workshop courses: understanding and expressing the environment, applied geometry, and materials and construction. The interrelation between the courses and designs and the live relationships between them are essential for the successful implementation of the architectural education program.

Architecture not only provides shelter for humans but also serves as a platform for expressing all values, beliefs, emotions, and complexities of human existence. Architecture is in fact not just about the knowledge and theories related to buildings; rather, the knowledge and practice in architecture are interwoven. Architectural design is an integrated and unified synthesis of various domains that cannot be separated or elucidated, with all influential factors deeply connected and fully unified in the growth and evolution of the design.

To explore the connection between sciences and arts with architecture as well as to better understand this relationship, architectural design can be divided in terms of type and quality into areas of values, knowledge, and synthesis. Values provide the foundation and principles for the design work, while criteria and regulations serve as the support for the architect's actions. In terms of knowledge, the field of architecture requires the synthesis and design of phenomena that create a human living space within nature. The two subjects of “human” and “nature” are the origins of all these insights and knowledge. Understanding environmental and climatic issues helps the architect to better align the design with the external environment and create a suitable context for humans. In the realm of synthesis, the main responsibility of the architect is creativity and innovation. Based on their values, knowledge, and expertise, the architect strives to create high-quality living environments for humanity. While the sciences provide the knowledge and insights necessary for the architect’s work, the arts serve as the foundation for direction and thematic inspiration. In other words, the sciences are supportive, informative, and create possibilities for the architect, whereas the arts enable the architect's perspective and qualitative insight, which are fundamental to architectural work, while various sciences focus on specific topics to investigate and provide the results to the architect.

Regarding educational levels and specializations in architecture, it is noteworthy that until 1998, student admission was done in the form of a continuous master's program in architecture. From 1999, under a centralized national program, the continuous master's program was transitioned to a bachelor's program. The doctorate program in Iran was also first developed by the architecture group of the Faculty of Fine Arts in 1990 and approved by the Supreme Council for Planning of the Ministry of Sciences.

The acceptance of the first doctoral cohort began in 1993. Given the community's needs for contemporary specializations, the architecture group of this faculty proposed the establishment of specialized architecture programs for the first time in 2000. Consequently, the curriculum for the specialized architecture, landscape architecture, conservation of heritage buildings, and project management and construction was prepared and approved by the Ministry of Sciences, with student admissions commencing in 2002. Additionally, two new fields, “Architectural Energy” and “Architectural Technology,” were defined and approved for study as of 2005, with students enrolled in these areas. In recent years, these specializations have also been reviewed and expanded.

In 2005, the Faculty of Fine Arts was renamed the Faculty of Arts and Architecture, and the existing groups in the Faculty of Fine Arts continued their activities under this new title. Currently, the architecture group operates as the "Faculty of Architecture" with a new structure, comprising educational groups in "Architecture," "Architectural Technology," "Conservation," and "Landscape."