Bilkent University Quality Management in Education

Foundation

1995

Qualification Awarded

Master of Fine Arts in Interior Architecture and Environmental Design

Level of Qualification

Second Cycle Degree

Mode of Study

Full Time

Admission & Registration Requirements

Applicants are required to have a Bachelor's degree in a relevant field of design. In addition to the general requirements set forth by the university, admittance to the program is through an interview as well as a portfolio evaluation. The portfolio should represent work done during undergraduate years and contain those pieces of work the applicants consider their best efforts. All students are expected to be fluent in written and oral English in order to be admitted to the program.

Assessment of Student Performance

Apart from work conducted throughout the semester, students are usually asked to take a final examination and at least one midterm examination for a course. If a staff member considers it appropriate, practical laboratory work or other such assignments may be assessed as midterm examinations or as a final examination.

Grades are finalized when they are announced via the internet on the date specified in the Academic Calendar. Semester grades for practical studies and other non-lecture courses are determined by an evaluation of the student's overall work and performance throughout the semester.

The University grading system uses letter grades with pluses and minuses. Letter grades and their grade point equivalents are: A+ to D; F, FX is failing. The quality-point equivalents of the grades are:

  A+   4.00   B+   3.30   C+   2.30   D+   1.30   F   0.00
  A   4.00   B   3.00   C   2.00   D   1.00   FX   0.00
  A-   3.70   B-   2.70   C-   1.70           FZ   0.00

Other grades used are S (Satisfactory), U (Unsatisfactory), I (Incomplete), P (In Progress), T (Transfer), and W (Withdraw). These grades do not have grade point equivalents.

S : accorded to students who are successful in non-credit courses.
     
U : accorded to students who are unsuccessful in non-credit courses.
     
I : accorded to students who, although otherwise successful, have failed to complete the required assignments for a course due to illness or some other valid reason. Proof of illness or other reason for non-completion must be submitted within two days of the date of the final exam. A student receiving an incomplete grade for any course must make up for the deficiencies within 14 days after the final exam in order to obtain a grade. Otherwise, the grade I automatically becomes FX. At the discretion of the department chair, the period specified above may be extended until the beginning of the following semester. P : progress, used for multi-semester courses.
     
P : progress, used for multi-semester courses.
     
T : reflects approved transferred courses from other universities or from an exchange program. A student with a grade of T is exempted from an equivalent number of credits on the condition that the courses are accepted by the department on the recommendation of the department chair and with the approval of the board of the faculty/school. This grade may provide an exemption for a particular course at the program.
     
W : student has withdrawn from the course before the withdrawal deadline of the respective semester.

A student with extraordinary performance in a course may be granted an A+ grade. However, the number of A+ grades in a given course is limited based on class size: If the class size is less than 25 students, no A+ grades may be given; if the class size is between 25 and 74 students, only one A+ grade may be given; if the class size is between 75 and 124 students, two A+ grades may be given; if the class size is between 125 and 174 students, three A+ grades may be given; if the class size is between 175 and 225 students, four A+ grades may be given; if the class size is more than 225 students, five A+ grades may be given. (The letter grade A+ was instituted beginning with the 2010-2011 academic year.)

Students who have not met the minimum performance and/or attendance requirements to qualify to take the final exam receive an FZ grade before the final exams begin. Failing students who have not shown up at the final exam receive an FX grade instead of an F.

In graduate programs, in addition to grade S, a grade of C or higher is a passing grade in masters programs and a grade of B or higher is a passing grade in Ph.D. programs. Letter grades lower than C and grade U are failing grades in masters programs and grades lower than B and grade U are failing grades in Ph.D. programs.

A student's academic performance is determined at the end of each semester by computing an average of the letter grades he/she has received during that semester. For each course, the grade point equivalent of the letter grade received by the student is multiplied by the credit units for that course; the sum of these products is then divided by the total credit units taken in that semester to yield the Grade Point Average (GPA) for that semester. The Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) is calculated by multiplying the grade point equivalent of the letter grade by the credit units for each course and then dividing the total sum by the total credit units taken in the program.

National Degree Qualifications

Architecture and Construction Basic Field Qualifications (Academic - Weighted) - 7th Level - Master
NQF-HETR
LEVEL		 KNOWLEDGE
- Theoretical
- Conceptual		 SKILLS
- Cognitive
- Practical		 COMPETENCES
Competence to Work
Independently and
Take Responsibility 		Learning Competence Communication and Social
Competence 		Field Specific Competence
7th Level Master's
EQF-LLL:
7th Level
QF-EHEA:
2nd Cycle
Qualifications that signify completion of the sixth cycle are awarded to students who
K1. Has advanced knowledge and understanding on the basis of competencies gained at the undergraduate level, providing the necessary foundation for original studies in the field of architecture, planning and design.
K2. Has a critical awareness nature of the knowledge, its sources, knowledge production and testing of knowledge in the interfaces between architecture / planning / design and other related fields.
S1. Gain the necessary cognitive and practical skills for professional application proficiency in professional master's degree.
S2. Applies the acquired knowledge, understanding and problem solving skills in new and unusual environments in a wider, interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary contexts.
S3. Have the necessary problem solving skills in order to develop new knowledge and methods in the related research field and to integrate the knowledge from different fields.
S4. Conducts an academic research critically, conducts academic dialogue for its critical and categorical results.
W1. Independently conduct studies that require proficiency in the field.
W2. Acts independently and takes responsibility in working and learning environments, defines and manages a project.
W3. Manage and transform work and learning contexts requiring complex, unexpected and new strategic approaches.
W4. Contribute to professional knowledge and practice of teams working in academia or practice and/or take responsibility in examining their strategic successes in the field.
L1. Has learning skills that allow it to be largely self-directed or independent.
C1. Share findings and conclusions of a study with the underlying knowledge and rationale with both professional and non-professional groups systematically and openly.
C2. Shows thinking dialectically on social norms and relationships and leads for change.
C3. Communicate oral and in writing using a foreign language at least at the B2 level of the European Language Portfolio.
C4. Use language, symbols and text interactively.
C5. Use information and communication technologies at an advanced level interactively with computer software required by the field.
F1. Conducts an academic research systematically and critically, conducts academic dialogue for its critical and categorical results; present and publish papers in national and international environments.
F2. Has the competencies necessary to obtain the valid certification for the professional application qualification in the vocational master's degree.
F3. Aware of the social and ethical responsibilities that may arise from the implementation of information and decisions, integrates information and tackles complex situations and produces decisions with incomplete or limited information.
F4. Develop strategy, policy and implementation plans on the issues related to the field and assess the findings within the frame of quality processes.
F5. Produces comprehensive projects related to his / her field: using his / her knowledge, insight and skills [in an interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary approach] produces a comprehensive project that demonstrates his / her capacity to make design / planning decisions at different scales.

Program Outcomes

  1. a. Develop and apply knowledge of principles and methodology of design research, research strategies and designs.
  2. b. Apply statistical methods for use in practice and later in masters thesis.
  3. c. Integrate and critically assess research information within the field of design, environment-behavior, building science studies.
  4. d. Demonstrate good knowledge of different research methods for problem solving in design process and practice of profession.
  5. e. Conduct literature review, design and/or field research and write a research report.
  6. f. Produce and present design guidelines for problem-solving in design process and practice of profession.
  7. g. Discuss and evaluate critically research reports, oral presentations, group discussions, and scholarly written papers.
  8. h. Conceive and perform suitable design process steps in a collaborative and interdisciplinary environment.
  9. i. Present and publish result findings in national and international contexts.

Program Outcomes/Degree Qualification Matrix

 Program Outcomes
Qualification(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f)(g)(h)(i)
K1✓✓
K2✓✓✓✓✓
S1✓✓
S2✓✓✓
S3✓✓✓✓✓
S4✓✓✓✓
W1✓✓✓✓
W2✓✓
W3✓✓✓
W4✓✓✓✓
L1✓✓✓✓✓
C1✓✓✓
C2✓✓
C3✓✓✓
C4✓✓✓✓
C5✓✓✓✓✓
F1✓✓✓✓
F2✓✓
F3✓✓
F4✓✓✓✓
F5✓✓✓
Qualification
Program Outcome

Program Curriculum

Course Code Course Name Hours Credits Prerequisite Options
Lecture Lab/Studio
/Others		 Bilkent ECTS
GE 500 Research Methods and Academic Publication Ethics 0 0 0 1 [ Syllabus ]
GE 590 Academic Practices 0 0 0 12 [ Syllabus ]
IAED 501 Graduate Studio I 2 2 3 5 [ Syllabus ]
IAED 502 Graduate Studio II 0 3 3 5 IAED 501 [ Syllabus ]
IAED 511 Research Methods I 3 0 3 5 [ Syllabus ]
IAED 590 Seminar in Research Topics 0 0 0 1 [ Syllabus ]
IAED 599 Master's Thesis 0 0 0 71 [ Syllabus ]
Elective 6 [ Courses ]
Restricted Elective 9 [ Courses ]


Elective Courses in the Curriculum

Elective Count Program Outcomes Options
Elective 2 (Discuss and evaluate critically research reports, oral presentations, group discussions, and scholarly written papers.g)   [ Courses ]
Restricted Elective 3 (Develop and apply knowledge of principles and methodology of design research, research strategies and designs.a) (Integrate and critically assess research information within the field of design, environment-behavior, building science studies. c) (Demonstrate good knowledge of different research methods for problem solving in design process and practice of profession. d) (Conduct literature review, design and/or field research and write a research report.e) (Discuss and evaluate critically research reports, oral presentations, group discussions, and scholarly written papers.g)   [ Courses ]