First architecture apprenticeships for UK students
August 2018
Architecture apprenticeships will be made available to UK students for the first time this year, thanks to an initiative from the RIBA and a group of architecture practices led by Foster + Partners. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) worked with a "trailblazer group" of 20 British studios to develop the apprenticeships, which offer a new route to qualifying as an architect in the UK.
Two apprenticeships have been approved by the Institute of Apprenticeships. The first will allow students to achieve the Part-I accreditation, to become architectural assistants; while the second is for the Part-II and Part-III qualifications, to become accredited as an architect. Apprenticeships to be available from September 2018 and will last four years.
"This vital initiative will help us to improve the diversity of our profession, to attract young people to study architecture, and provide more accessible routes to qualification and employment opportunities," said RIBA president Ben Derbyshire.
"The exposure to contemporary architectural business will be a major benefit for students, and practices will also benefit from the challenge of a new commitment to developing talent."
Courses combine practical experience with academic training. They were developed over a period of 18 months by RIBA and architects co-ordinated by Peter Garstecki of Foster + Partners. The leading British practices that helped develop the apprenticeships including Hawkins/Brown, BDP, Grimshaw, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, HOK, Stanton Williams and Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM).
