Our next application cycle closes at 23.59pm on 16 April 2023. We will run additional application cycles but we recommend early application. If you submit by 12 February and your application is taken forward, you will be interviewed and, if successful, made an offer within 3 weeks according to the following tight cycle:
Unsuccessful applicants after application and interview will be informed as quickly as possible.
Our online application form will ask for Personal Information and Contact Details, confirmation of your Eligibility and fulfilment of Language Requirements, as well as your Employment and Education experience, the name of two Referees (from academia and practice) and some questions to collect diversity monitoring data.
You will also be asked to submit a Portfolio and provide a series of responses that make up your Statement of Purpose. These are assessed carefully as part of our Admissions Process and you will be expected to speak to both if invited for interview.
PORTFOLIO
The composition of all parts of your portfolio submission should be no more than 14 pages (including name and contents page) and the file size should be no larger than 100MB, and saved in PDF format. The Portfolio should be made up of two parts:
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
In responding to the questions which make up the Statement of Purpose we encourage you to be creative and thoughtful. All projects that you reference here should be properly represented in your portfolio.
Motivation
What attracts you to the LSA? (100 words)
What are your ambitions in undertaking this MArch (Part 2) programme? Do you have any specific areas of interest you want to develop? (maximum 100)
Design
Describe your design processes and methods (250 words) What is your first design move, and what do you require to make that move? What kind of spatial thinker are you? How do your preferred design tools help you to problem-solve?
Describe your undergraduate thesis project (200 words)
Practice
Please outline 2 contributions you have made to projects in practice (these should correspond to your portfolio submission). This will include a summary of the project (25 words), the RIBA Plan of Work stages you contributed to, and a summary of those contributes (150 words)
Upon receipt of a completed online application form, the Admissions Team will select applicants for interview. Interviews will usually take place in London, but may be conducted by video call if the applicant is currently living abroad or there are restrictions on movement due to the current pandemic. Each interview panel will contain at least one senior member of staff and a current student.
If you are invited to interview we will ask you to carry out a simple and short design exercise. A brief with full information will be issued with your invitation letter.
As well as discussing the response to the exercise, the interview will afford you the opportunity to present evidence of their qualifications, experience and commitment to the demands of the profession, including a portfolio presentation.
Conditional academic places will be offered to successful applicants in writing, and these will only be confirmed once a practice placement position has been secured. Applicants will be asked to provide evidence of eligibility prior to registration.
Following your interview an offer will be sent out within 48 hours if you have been successful. From this time you have five weeks to pay a small deposit, to secure your place to study for the next academic year.
The Student Placement is a fundamental part of our unique Part 2 programme. Below is a guide to how our Student Placement process works, beginning in Spring. If you are an applicant and have any further questions, please email our Admissions Team (admissions@the-lsa.org). If you are from practice, please email our Engagement Manager, John Nahar (john.n@the-lsa.org).
TWO ROUTES
The LSA has established a network of London-based architectural practices – the Practice Network – to provide Student Placements for 3 days a week in the first year of our Part 2 (MArch) programme. There are two routes to securing a Student Placement:
ROUTE ONE: Our preferred route is that Offer Holders who are employed by a London-based practice remain there if the practice declares its willingness for that employee to work part-time within the terms set out in the Practice Agreement
ROUTE TWO: An applicant who is not employed by a London-based practice or is seeking a new employer can seek a Student Placement through the Practice Network as set out below
The LSA matches Offer Holders with Placement Providers where mutual preferences have been met and/or the LSA feels that student portfolios match with practice project portfolios and pipelines. It is not always possible to meet exactly the preferences of both Offer Holders and Placement Providers but participants in the process often find the Student Placement a satisfying, if not fulfilling, professional relationship.
For more information about the Student Placement process, visit the Practice Network section of our website.