Built Environment Foundation - 2013 entry
Foundation course
Typical A-level offer: grades DD or equivalent
Overview
Built Environment student in a tutorial
Built Environment student in a tutorial
Group work
A Built Environment student with her work
This course is run by the School of Architecture / Department of Planning / Department of Real Estate and Construction
Love them or hate them, cities are the context within which most of us live, work and play. This Built Environment Foundation course provides the basis for deciding what to study at degree level and the chance to make choices about your future professional education and career. We provide a lively and stimulating environment in which to study, with the possibility of progressing on to a range of courses relating to the built environment at Oxford Brookes University.
Progression options include:
- BA (Hons) Architecture
- BA (Hons) / MPlan City and Regional Planning
- BSc (Hons) Construction Project Management
- BA (Hons) Interior Architecture
- BA (Hons) Planning and Property Development
- BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying and Commercial Management
- BSc (Hons) Real Estate Management.
Why Brookes?
When asked what they value about their Oxford Brookes experience, most students agree on one thing: the quality of our staff. They help us to deliver courses that are centred around the needs of our students. You will find that our staff will be on your side from the start, and prepared to work with you to bring out the best in you. Our aim is to prepare you thoroughly for undergraduate study.
While studying varying aspects of the built environment, you will also be able to gain a wide range of skills, including communication skills, such as writing, group working, and the ability to make presentations, and learning how to use computers and access library facilities. Academic staff from across our various departments, whose specialisms include architecture, planning and real estate and construction, will all take an active role in ensuring that the Foundation programme offers you a great variety of learning opportunities.
Teaching, learning and assessment
During the first semester you will take a range of modules which will introduce you to studying at university. In addition you will be involved in a multidisciplinary module which will extend over both semesters and which will help to clarify your further study choices within the school.
Various teaching and learning methods are used including lectures, seminars and tutorials. Lectures cover the principal themes and are attended by all students studying the module. Coursework is set and most of this counts towards the module and to overall assessment. All modules also require regular reading in preparation for the lectures and involvement in problem-solving exercises.
Learning outcomes
When you have successfully completed the course, you will have gained:
- applied knowledge and skills relating to building environments
- an awareness of current technology used in building construction and the use of computer-aided techniques
- the ability to critically examine the technical issues involved in building development, production and quality, and maintenance
- the skills to research, analyse and evaluate material which is relevant to a particular project.
This foundation course qualifies you to go on to a validated BA (Hons) or BSc (Hons) degree course, and beyond that to study for a master's degree or even a PhD.
In detail
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Course content
The course is designed to achieve two objectives:
- to develop your understanding and problem-solving skills in areas which are fundamental to the environment, design and development of cities
- to introduce you to a variety of subjects that, with the correct choice of modules, will contribute to your progress to one of the degree courses offered relating to the built environment.
Before the course starts you will be asked to choose which degree subject you are interested in pursuing so that we can ensure your programme of study is appropriate. However, the decision you make at this early stage does not commit you and, if your interests change during the foundation course, you may still be accepted on to other courses offered within the subject area.
We are keen to encourage as wide a range of applicants as possible, including mature students, those unsure of their future career and applicants from abroad whose first language is not English.
The foundation course is an integral part of our undergraduate programme and therefore qualifies for a mandatory award. Normally you will complete it in one year studying full-time, or in two years studying part-time.
If you don't meet our formal entry requirements for our BA / BSc degrees, or if you didn't do as well at A-level as you had expected, there is no need to give up hope. This foundation programme could be just what you are looking for, as successful completion will guarantee you a place on one of our degree courses in the faculty.
Equally, if you want to return to study after working for a while, but lack confidence, this programme is designed to bring you up to speed. If you are an overseas student, or if your first language is not English, you will also find this course ideally suited to your needs as it will introduce you to our way of learning. In addition, you will find an excellent range of English language courses on offer at Oxford Brookes.
As well as offering you the chance of sampling the degree subjects relating to the built environment, the foundation programme will also give you a good introduction to university life. You will discover new areas of study you might not have considered before, such as City and Regional Planning, Environmental Sustainability, or Construction Management. Whatever your background, the Foundation course will widen your horizons and open up a host of exciting career and life opportunities.
Like all courses at Oxford Brookes, the Foundation is based around self-contained units known as modules. You can choose from a range of modules which aim to give you an idea of what the undergraduate subjects are about. There are several compulsory modules, including a student-centred module that focuses on understanding the built environment through a programme of visits, project work, seminar presentations and talks.
As well as modules in Environmental Science and Essential Built Environment Skills, you may follow others in Planning, Leisure, and Architectural History and Theory. The range of optional modules includes Foundation French, Introduction to Business, Basic Mathematical Methods, Basic Accounting, and Word Processing and Spreadsheet IT skills. For International Students there are modules on academic writing, listening and speaking.
For those wanting to progress on to Architecture or Interior Architecture it should be noted that the course is not designed to enhance your artistic skills and there is no teaching on the course that will help you prepare a portfolio. We do however give extensive advice on portfolio preparation and point you in the direction of places where you might improve your artistic skills.
Sample module list
Courses are reviewed regularly and the module list you choose from may differ from this list:
- Integrative and Contextual Studies
- Essential Skills in the Built Environment
- The City, People and Diversity
- Environmental Science
- Introduction to Architectural History and Theory
- Building the City
- Introduction to Spatial Planning
- The Leisure Environment
- Word Processing and Spreadsheet IT Skills.
Free language courses for students - the Open Module
Free language courses are available to all full-time undergraduate and postgraduate students who are studying any course on our Headington (including Marston Road), Harcourt Hill or Wheatley Campuses, and can be taken as a credit on some courses.
Key facts
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Department
School of Architecture / Department of Planning / Department of Real Estate and Construction
Course length
Full-time: 1 year
Part-time: 2 years
Teaching location
Headington Campus, Gipsy Lane
Start date
September 2013
UCAS code
K201 BSc/FBE
Fees / funding
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Tuition fees
The fees shown are for the academic year 2012/13. The fees for 2013/14 have yet to be set, and are likely to increase.
UK/EU students
Full-time: £9,000
Part-time: £750 per module. You can take up to five modules per academic year.
International students
Full-time: £11,000
Questions about fees?
Contact Student Finance on:
+44 (0)1865 483088
finance-fees@brookes.ac.uk
Funding and scholarships
For general sources of financial support, see:
Apply / Entry reqs
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Typical offers
A-level: grades DD or equivalent
Advanced Diploma: grade D, including A-level at grade D
Other typical offers include:
- BTEC National Diploma or Certificate in any programme
- Vocational A-levels (any programme).
We also welcome mature students who, at interview or in the personal statement, demonstrate commitment and motivation.
Specific entry requirements
A-level: 1 pass and evidence of post-GCSE study in another area
GCSE: 4 passes including English (or a subject testing English)
Please also see the university's general entry requirements.
English language requirements
Applicants whose main language is not English should have IELTS 6.0, TOEFL 550 (paper-based) or 79-80 (internet-based).
Please also see the university's standard English language requirements.
English language requirements for visas
If you need a student visa to enter the UK you will need to meet the UK Border Agency's minimum language requirements as well as the university's requirements. Find out more about English language requirements.
Full-time students should apply for this course through UCAS.
Conditions of acceptance
When you accept our offer you agree to the conditions of acceptance. You should therefore read those conditions before accepting the offer.
Student experience
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Why Oxford is a great place to study Built Environment Foundation
There can be few more exciting cities in which to study the built environment than Oxford. It is amazingly compact and full of contrasts, containing within a few square miles some of Britain's most expensive property, vibrant multi-cultural and 'student' areas, 1960s housing estates, state-of-the-art architecture and new business parks. It is also one of the world's most visited cities, with a year-round tourist industry.
For those working in the built environment, Oxford poses a tremendous challenge as it strives to develop as a 21st century city without losing its historic heart. Planners, architects and urban designers have to balance the pressure from developers wishing to build more shops, nightclubs and offices on the one hand, with the need to preserve its green belt and ancient buildings, on the other.
Oxford is a vibrant city with plenty of attractions for its large student population, from theatres and cinemas to museums, art galleries and music venues. A bustling and stunning cosmopolitan city, Oxford has excellent shopping, restaurants, cafes, pubs and clubs.
Situated in the heart of rural England and home to around 150,000 people, Oxford offers students a clean and safe environment less than an hour from London and international airports.
General support services
Supporting your learning
From academic advisers and support co-ordinators to specialist subject librarians and other learning support staff, we want to ensure that you get the best out of your studies.
Personal support services
We want your time at Brookes to be as enjoyable and successful as possible. That's why we provide all the facilities you need to be relaxed, happy and healthy throughout your studies.
Accommodation
At Brookes we understand that when you live away from home it's important to be somewhere that you feel comfortable and safe.
After graduation
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Further study
Successful completion of the Foundation course can lead you onto one of the following degree courses at Oxford Brookes. All of the courses will have specific progression rules which will be highlighted to you during your induction programme. We will also provide you with advice and guidance on how you can meet the progression rules.
- BSc (Hons) Real Estate Management
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules and achieve an average of 55%) - BA (Hons) City and Regional Planning
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules) - BSc (Hons) Construction Project Management
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules) - BSc (Hons) Quantity Surveying and Commercial Management
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules) - BA (Hons) Architecture
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules, achieve an average of 55% and have a portfolio of artistic work approved by an architecture tutor) - BA (Hons) Interior Architecture
(Pass all relevant compulsory modules, achieve an average of 55% and have a portfolio of artistic work approved by an architecture tutor)
