Changes to my study programme

Hello everybody, today I will talk about the changes I would make to the programme of studies for my career.

Architecture is a very demanding career where you have to have knowledge in many areas that go beyond what you learn at the university, so you have to work hard to be a good professional.

In general, the study plan, the workload and the duration of the studies seem to me to be adequate, but I deeply believe that the subject of "Taller" has too much prominence. Although design is a fundamental part of architecture, it is not the only and most important thing, it ends up being a subject that devours all the dedication of the students to the detriment of the other subjects, which in my opinion are just as important, all this due to the way of working demanded by the professors. It is an instance that demands a lot of resources and often does not generate more knowledge, you can't just design well, you also have to know about everything else. Every semester you have to do the workshop course and very little changes from one semester to the next.

I wouldn't change anything about the theoretical subjects, but I would change the methodology with which the workshop is taught:

In first year I would implement Taller 1 as a workshop for experimentation and learning manual and digital graphic techniques, where the teachers really dedicate themselves to teaching how to project, I would not implement design as such in this instance. Where the evaluations are based on what has been taught and not on "learning by doing" or "messing up is learning".

Taller 2 I would implement it as a materials experimentation workshop, where they learn about different materials and techniques for working with them, such as paper, cardboard, earth, plaster, cement, wire, steel, wood and more. 

Only from Taller 3 I would implement design, when the students already have more knowledge about architecture and how to work with materials and have more skills to project, and that this does not depend on how much extra time they spend learning more things, so that everyone has a good base and it is less aggressive with their mental health.

Finally I would keep control over how teachers carry out their teaching methodology, it is seen that in many cases the ego issue of teachers and wanting to highlight their workshop above the others ends up being a problem for students and makes them lose focus on the importance of life for people. It's not just about doing spectacular things to impress....

As for the facilities of the faculty, an improvement in the infrastructure is long overdue, especially in terms of the demand for power sockets and spaces where students can work comfortably with their computers. In addition, there is a need for rest areas inside the building and for a proper casino to cope with the demand. The students are in the faculty all day, uncomfortable and in terrible conditions and with few hours of sleep, we have nowhere to rest.