Archi.ru:
Why did you decide to study abroad and what did you expect to get from a foreign education?
Anna:
- I have long dreamed of living in different countries, I was interested in foreign languages and geography. In her third year, MARCHI even wanted to go to Japan to wash skyscrapers and admire the sea, or work as a nanny in California. Towards the end of my studies, I came up with a more rational plan - to go to Europe and study more. To begin with, I went to visit friends in Portugal to study Portuguese language and culture with the intention of moving on to architecture. After talking with colleagues from different countries, I gave up the idea of studying in Portugal in favor of the UK. In addition, London has always seemed to me a kind of center of Europe, offering great opportunities.
Natalia:
- I always wanted to study in the West, since when I was in the 10th grade on an exchange program in the United States, and we were given an excursion to one of the local universities. I remember that I was then struck by the friendly attitude of the teachers to the students, the general atmosphere and the huge modern library. After graduating from Moscow Architectural Institute, some of my friends left to continue their studies at various European universities, and it always seemed to me that the best education for architects is given in Great Britain. No wonder such "stars" as Rem Koolhaas, Zaha Hadid, Peter Cook and others studied there.
Why did you end up choosing Bartlett, what other institutions of higher education did you consider?
Anna:
- Initially, I considered Bartlett, London Metropolitan University, University of Westminster and University of West London. Among others, I liked Bartlett for his creative atmosphere and high ratings, but most of all I remember the interesting student work on the walls.
Natalia:
- Since the training was too expensive for me, I decided that a grant would be a suitable option. Having come a long way to the coveted scholarship, I considered the programs of two of London's leading architecture schools - the Architectural Association and Bartlett. I found the most interesting course in Urban Design at the Bartlett School of Architecture, which, in turn, is part of University College London. AA programs are no less interesting, but more tailored to the parametric architecture, which, in my opinion, is a bit utopian and not entirely applicable in Russian realities.
What difficulties did you have to face during admission?
Anna:
- Firstly, with everyday difficulties, so I highly recommend arriving early and before the start of school to settle the issues of housing, bank account, SIM card and other things: then there will be no time. In my experience, it is more profitable to live in a hostel at the university, since renting an apartment in September is very difficult due to the huge influx of students. You also need to stand in line for registration with the police (it took me as much as 8 hours, although now, they say, the queue is smaller).
Secondly, language difficulties - in the first month (or even longer) it is difficult to understand a variety of accents, especially Irish and Indian, especially when talking on the phone.
In addition, my application package for admission was lost at some point. The process of searching for documents was further complicated by the fact that university employees answered me on the phone with strong accents. With the help of my English friend, the documents were nevertheless found, and at the very last moment I was enrolled in the course. Unfortunately, I did not get a place in the hostel, which pretty much spoiled my life in the first months of London.
Tell us in more detail about the documents required when submitting an application and the conditions of admission. What do you know about the scholarships and grants available to Bartlett students?
Natalia:
- The conditions for submission of documents for admission to the master's course in all architecture schools in the UK are similar: a diploma of passing exams in English proficiency, preferably IELTS (in different institutions only the passing score differs), a paper portfolio, a motivation letter, recommendations from previous teachers, and, since the course is postgraduate, a diploma of completion of higher education. In our course, most of the students had an architectural background, but there were also photographers, biologists, graphic designers. There are a large number of grants that fully or partially pay for tuition, and for myself I chose the most interesting grant issued by the British government - Chevening. This scholarship, in addition to training, includes airfare and operating expenses for the period of study, and also opens up access to the extensive Chevening network around the world. The grant is not targeted at architects, but is designed for all priority professional areas.
Anna:
- Mmm … With the recommendations, I was all ambiguous. Some teachers agreed to give a recommendation orally, so that I would write it and give it to them for review. Others were less willing to make recommendations. But, for example, one of my friends (not from Moscow Architectural Institute) was refused by the teacher because of the unpatriotic nature of her decision - to go to study abroad.
In general, from my experience of filing documents, I can say that not all requirements should be taken literally. Often, institutes on their websites require a lot of unnecessary information, and then they are admitted to study without a full package of documents. We had several people on the course who were accepted without IELTS, taking their word of honor from the students that the exam would be passed later. It seems to me that some of these guys never passed the exam and spoke English quite poorly.
Did the MARCHI diploma somehow facilitate your admission? As far as I know, MARCHI positions itself as an institute whose diploma is accepted everywhere
Anna:
- This is not entirely true, the Moscow Architectural Institute diploma is credited upon admission to the university (like any other diploma of graduation from higher education) and upon hiring as an assistant architect. However, to register as an architect in the UK, you need to prove your education: pass an interview, pay around £ 4,000 and hand in two portfolios. In addition, it is necessary to complete a training course such as "part 3", which takes 1-2 years [architecture education in the UK is divided into three parts-stages - approx. ed.]
Tell us in more detail about the learning process and the program of your chosen course "Urban Design" for a master's degree in architecture
Anna:
- The course was intensive, but poorly structured. Once, at the border control when entering England, I was asked what subjects were on my course. I had to come up with something on the go. It lasts 12 months and is based on the development of one or two projects.
Natalia:
- That's right. After the first introductory week, which mostly consists of various excursions to the huge university (University College London has 17 libraries and several museums, including the famous Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archeology) and "exhibitions-fairs" of university clubs, the intensive training begins.
Anna:
- After two weeks, after examining us a little, we were divided into 6 groups, each with two teachers. Classes were held twice a week: one lecture day and one tutorial with a teacher. The rest of the time it was recommended to work in the studio of the institute and, in my opinion, it was very productive work, I learned a lot from my colleagues.
The lecture program was formed in the learning process, obviously, it depended on which of the teacher's friends was ready to come and give a lecture. Lectures were given by architects, some of them talked about some of their projects or about the theory of urban planning. The lectures were different: some were abstract, and some were incomprehensible due to the lecturer's low level of English proficiency.
For each student, the tutorial lasts 30 minutes, but you could stay and listen to your colleagues, which was very useful for developing your own project.
Natalia:
- As Anna said, in the first month, students do projects in groups and on their own. Subsequently, they choose one teacher for themselves, with whom they further work on their main project and write a written work - thesis, that is, a dissertation, thesis.
Throughout the year, students do two projects within the framework of group work, one independent and main project, an analogue of the thesis in the last year of the Moscow Architectural Institute. Also, students write two written works - an essay on a chosen topic.
The final "thesis" is a book that students form from their graphic work and a fictional story. In parallel with these projects, it is necessary to twice present to teachers and classmates a paper version of the portfolio of works completed within the course, as well as prepare a final exhibition of works with the rest of the students.
What practical lessons do you remember?
Natalia:
- In the first half of the course, the whole group goes on a study tour to study the terrain of the future project. In my case, it was an excursion to Istanbul. In addition to design work, there were various lectures and several workshops with the involvement of practicing architects. Most of all, I remember the workshop held by the Space Syntax team. We have studied an interesting program that helps to simulate transport and pedestrian traffic for a particular design solution.
Anna:
- We had several practical lessons on urban planning analysis of London, when it was necessary to study how, and most importantly, why a particular area of the city developed.
Our trip was to Amsterdam. By the way, the cost of this trip was included in the course price. Most of all, I enjoyed the boat tour of all the iconic sites of Amsterdam, including visiting offshore platforms and several factories converted into lodgings.
To what extent is English education more or less effective than Russian education?
Anna:
- Now I am studying at the fourth university (MARCHI in Russia, the University of Coimbra in Portugal, Bartlett and the University of Westminster in London) and the difference between the approaches to teaching is very noticeable - for example, the requirements for the content of the essay. In Russia, when you need to write an abstract, it is usually downloaded from the Internet. In the UK, this trick does not work, since all works are checked for plagiarism, that is, you definitely need to come up with something of your own. Everything that a student writes must be read, evaluated and commented on by someone. Accordingly, the quality of the work done is not determined only by the amount of the written text.
In Russia, at the exam, if, when asked "how many legs does a cow have", you casually mention a cow and tell in detail what you know about other animals - that's not bad. In the UK, the question would be “tell me about the cow” and the answer should be a detailed description of its shape and nothing else. Or, for example, in the UK, it never occurs to anyone to check attendance. Because skipping classes is like buying a tram ticket (very expensive!) And not going anywhere. Although, for example, in Portugal, the attendance was checked.
In summary, in the UK, students are treated like adults. They are given more freedom: they are offered to explore topics of interest to them themselves, they are advised to go to libraries and in every possible way promote the exchange of experience between students. It is quite obvious that students are no longer toddlers, and are able to find the necessary information themselves, and the teacher simply suggests what information can be useful and where to look for it.
What are the most noticeable differences in the organization of the educational process between MARCHI and Bartlett?
Natalia:
- In addition to what Anna said, I want to note that the learning process at Bartlett is somewhat different from the Moscow Architectural Institute. Personally, it took me a while to get used to it. Firstly, communication with the teacher was based solely on conversations and, what surprised me most, there was never even a shadow of mentoring in them. When I presented options for my design solutions, the teacher never insisted on any one, but, on the contrary, in each of them he emphasized the pros and cons. By asking me questions, the teacher did not lead me to solutions, but exclusively to useful thoughts.
Anna:
- Education at Bartlett, in my opinion, is more tied to the present day, while education at the Moscow Architectural Institute was not much different from my parents' studies there. Although many areas of the architect's work over the past 30 years have changed a lot, for example, building materials, this did not affect his studies: at the Moscow Architectural Institute we were not told anything about modern materials.
In my opinion, the forms of project submission differ, both at the institute and at work. At Moscow Architectural Institute and in Russia as a whole, it is common practice to present only the project itself. And in Bartlett and in English architectural practice, in my personal experience, it is important, in addition to the project, to show how you came to this decision, other options that you tried, and you need to explain why they did not fit, tell who else in the world did something on this topic and what worked and what did not.
Another difference is that, in Bartlett, projects do not have to be realistic at all - objects could be located under water or on the moon; in this case, the bathyscaphe or teleportation could be included in the 30 necessary elements of the project, for example, as a vehicle.
At the Moscow Architectural Institute there were many subjects that are not taught at Bartlett in principle, for example: art history, architectural history or philosophy. The ability to draw by hand is not taught here to architects, so even an average-level drawing by a student from the Moscow Architectural Institute in Bartlett is going with a bang. I have already won several architectural competitions in Great Britain due to drawings that would not impress anyone at the Moscow Architectural Institute. Or, for example, the knowledge that I received on the subject of "Construction" at the Moscow Architectural Institute still gives me an impressive advantage over my British colleagues.
Have you had any public presentations of projects (crit sessions)? Moscow Architectural Institute students often complain that they lacked such experience
Natalia:
- Yes of course. Every two months, students present their projects not only to their teachers, but also to teachers of other groups, as well as invited city planners (who most often turned out to be friends of the teachers). Often economists and sociologists were invited to the screenings as critics, who looked at the project from a completely non-standard point of view. This process takes about two days, when each of the students shows and talks about their developments, and also answers questions from those present. This is a rather difficult emotional process, but it helps in the future to confidently conduct a conversation and defend your project.
Anna:
- I would add that the main purpose of "crits" is the development of the project, not evaluation. Sometimes questions from educators, practicing urban planners, or even fellow students can help draw attention to omissions that can be improved. Or, conversely, emphasize some interesting solutions. By the way, besides the fact that this is a part of the educational process, we can say that "crit" also plays the role of "smotrin", and one of the third-party "critics" can invite a student they like to work. For the final evaluation of the work, both the portfolio - an album about the project and the final crit was important. In the near future, I myself am going to go as a guest critic to view student papers to my friend Professor Pablo.
What do you especially remember and like about Bartlett?
Natalia:
- Undoubtedly, a wonderful model workshop, where you can constantly experiment. The workshop space occupied the entire basement floor, there were tools and machines for working with metal and wood, a 3D printer and a laser machine. Just a dream workshop!
Anna:
- I absolutely agree with Natalia: although the faculty also had an excellent library and a computer class, the model workshop did not leave anyone indifferent. The workshop manager and I became very friendly and my friend and I lived with him for a month, when we were evicted from the hostel. He turned out to be a quarter Russian, his father (the son of a Russian ballerina) designed the British Embassy in Moscow.
Bartlett School is a very famous, innovative educational institution. Is her fame deserved, or is it a “brand” to some extent?
Natalia:
- The originality of studying at Bartlett lies in the constant opportunity for self-education. All interested students had free access to all ongoing events, including weekly lectures by international architects and lectures of parallel courses. Within the framework of the university, various seminars and symposia were held, which we attended without hindrance. I also went to free courses where I taught the art of presentation, interviewing, and the ability to correctly submit my work.
Anna:
- The audacity to experiment is definitely one of the main aspects of education at Bartlett. As for the increased requirements, despite the high requirements for ideas and texts, the accuracy of the execution of layouts, for example, was not appreciated at all. The concept and creativity of the project was much more important. Therefore, I found myself in an advantageous position - my layouts, which caused bewilderment in Moscow Architectural Institute, were often praised for the first time in my life.
Who studied with you? And who taught the course?
Anna:
- Students on our course were from all over the world. And it seems to me that this was the main idea of Colin Fournier (our course leader) - to bring together students with a wide range of knowledge and work experience, so that they inspire and teach each other. Sure, many of us were architects, urban planners, and planners, but we were graphic designers or even musicians. For example, the girl Fiona from Ireland, who used to study music. By the way, she had a very memorable final project - based on the scenario of the disclosure of space during movement, but not visual, but sound. That is, she was not worried about how the spaces would look, but how they would sound. I wouldn't have thought of that!
Natalia:
- The teachers on the course are either reputable theorists of urban planning, or practicing architects with their firms, or simply working professionals. The advantages of such teachers are in the presence of great experience, which they were happy to share, and the disadvantages are in a very busy work schedule. They are all busy people, and students often had to go to tutorials at their offices or in cafes near these offices.
Anna:
- It is true, often the tutorial was transferred or carried out via Skype due to the busyness of the teachers. Despite everything, I was personally lucky with the teachers - they were Jonathan Kendall and Yuri Gerrits, two talented, accomplished urban architects working on projects in England and Belgium. Both with very different, but complementary approaches - both to urban planning and design in general. In the case of my habitable mountain project, they did not force me to develop the project in a certain way, but simply asked leading questions. For example, how to deliver building materials in the context of my project, how the mountain will look during construction, how I will regulate the building rules, why similar ideas have not worked in the past, and how I propose to implement them in my project.
Which of the features of student life at Bartlett do you remember the most?
Anna:
- I remember most of all the tremendous sense of unity that prevailed in our group. In a foreign country, we were the closest people to each other, and this brought us very close, we were practically one family. If everyone was going to go to the museum together on Saturday, no one would refuse at the last minute, because “mom needs to bring a refrigerator,” “the girl did not let her in,” or “a classmate called for a visit.” Despite all the difficulties, the year of study was remembered for me as a very happy time with an abundance of new impressions for the rest of my life.
Natalia:
- And I especially remember the number of new friends around the world that I made during my studies.
Where do you work now, and how much did studying at Bartlett help you or not?
Anna:
- Five years after graduating from Bartlett, I worked in various London firms and designed everything from hotels to cities for foreign clients. Over the past two years, I have been increasingly involved in projects in London. This activity is necessary for me for "part 3" and registration in the UK as an architect. In parallel, I am completing the "Part 3" course at the University of Westminster. Recently passed exams in contracts and management of an architectural workshop. In my free time from work and study, I travel to cities that are interesting from an urban planning point of view and participate in architectural competitions. In the near future, I plan to move on to more creative projects.
Natalia:
- At the moment I am engaged in the design of residential quarters and microdistricts in Moscow. An important element in the design of a quality living environment is the creation of well-designed public areas, and this is where the learning and living experience in London certainly helps. Magnificent parks, cozy squares, city squares - this is what distinguishes London from many other cities. Of course, I miss that life and in my residential projects I try to create quality spaces.
At Bartlett, great emphasis was placed on the ability to present ideas quickly and beautifully. A huge plus of the training was the free courses organized by the institute on the study of new computer programs, such as Rhino, Grasshopper, depthmapX, InDesign and others. In my current practice, this greatly simplifies the solution of various non-standard tasks associated with the need to quickly and convincingly submit material.
All the skills I acquired during my studies at Bartlett have helped me to pursue very different projects. Immediately after returning from the UK, I ended up in a consulting company that was organizing an international competition for the development of the territory of the ZIL plant, where our task was not only to work with designers, but also to organize panel discussions with experts in various fields about possible scenarios for the development of the territory.
