Free Architectural Design Courses
There are several online Architectural Design and Studio courses offered free by top universities. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has a goldmine of them, but we also included a course from the Open University.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) offers a vast number of courses in Architectural Design for free. In the MArch Portfolio Seminar course, originally taught by Professors Mark Jarzombek and Meejin Yoon in 2003, you can view design ideas from architecture majors and learn how to assess design work. Other courses, such as the Level II Cuba Studio course, focus on a particular architectural project in a specific region, to get students to incorporate cultural and/or environmental elements into their work.
- MArch Portfolio Seminar
- Architectural Design, Level II: Cuba Studio
- Architectural Design, Level II: Material and Tectonic Transformations: The Herreshoff Museum
- Architectural Design, Level II: Material Essence: The Glass House
- Architectural Design, Level III: A Student Center for MIT
- Digital Design Fabrication
- Ecuador Workshop
- Architectural Design Workshops: Computational Design for Housing
- Special Problems in Architectural Design
- Interrogative Design Workshop
- Experiencing Architecture Studio
- Architecture Studio: Intentions
- The Architecture of Cairo
Open University
Open University offers a course focusing solely on the Royal Pavilion at Brighton. This pavilion is an example of Romantic architecture with exotic elements, and several architectural forms and their causes and effects are explored in relation to the structure.
Free Online Architectural Design Courses at a Glance
| Course & School | Program Level | Format | Assignments | Quizzes & Exams | Downloadable |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MArch Portfolio Center course from MIT | Graduate | Text/Images | Yes | No | Yes |
| Architecture Design, Level II: Cuba Studio course from MIT | Graduate | Text/Images | Yes | No | Yes |
| Architectural Design, Level II: Material and Tectonic Transformations: The Herreschoff Museum course from MIT | Graduate | Text/Images | Yes | No | Yes |
| Architectural Design, Level II: Material Essence: The Glass House course from MIT | Graduate | Text/Images | Yes | No | Yes |
| Architectural Design, Level III: A Student Center for MIT course from MIT | Graduate | Text/Images | No | No | Yes |
| Digital Design Fabrication course from MIT | Graduate | Text Lessons | Yes | No | Yes |
| Ecuador Workshop course from MIT | Undergraduate | Text/Images | No | No | Yes |
| Architectural Design Workshops: Computational Design for Housing course from MIT | Graduate | Text Lessons | Yes | No | Yes |
| Special Problems in Architectural Design course from MIT | Graduate | Text Lessons | Yes | No | Yes |
| Interrogative Design Workshop course from MIT | Graduate | Text Lessons | No | No | Yes |
| Experiencing Architecture Studio course from MIT | Undergraduate | Text Lessons | No | No | Yes |
| Architecture Studio: Intentions course from MIT | Undergraduate | Text Lessons | Yes | No | Yes |
| The Architecture of Cairo course from MIT | Undergraduate | Text Lessons | No | No | Yes |
| Brighton Pavilion course from the Open University | Undergraduate | Text Lessons | Yes | No | No |
