Best Certificate Courses in Architecture (2024)

As the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry continues to evolve through technological advancements and integration, industry professionals are realising the need to continuously learn and adapt. Upskilling provides architects with an avenue to explore the tools they need to stay competitive in the job market and meet the ever-changing needs of their clients. Students and young architects are aware of the networking as well as prospective career benefits these online courses in architecture can help them achieve. Pursuing architecture certification online alongside their architecture school is no longer an afterthought, with much social and global exposure that these AEC professionals have access to.

Why Undertake Architecture Certification Courses?

Enrolling in architecture certification courses can be beneficial in many ways, especially for people who are interested in pursuing their career in a certain direction. From the outset, these courses can provide them with a strong foundation in design and an opportunity to develop creativity and industry-relevant technical skills. These architectural courses allow the students to build further on what their online architecture certificate courses offer, making them a lucrative option to explore. Here are some other reasons why architecture certificate online training programs can be beneficial for students and young architects.

1. Competitive Industry

The architecture industry is incredibly competitive, and even a Master's degree is no longer necessarily a guaranteed way to boost one’s career. Once out of college, one can easily find themselves struggling between what’s learned through the conventional methods of teaching versus what is being practised in the industry via architecture and design courses. This gap often leaves one feeling unmotivated and directionless. Online architecture programs can help them learn industry-relevant skills and achieve a competitive edge in the industry.

2. Focus on practical skills

Employers are often looking for practical skills that might not necessarily be acquired through a master's program. Thus, this brings an opportunity for graduates to enrol in online architecture certification courses and fellowship programs to enhance their on-ground understanding and achieve an edge in the job market. 

3. Industry-relevant Software

These online architecture programs equip students and young architects with cutting-edge tools and software, especially BIM-related software, which are highly relevant to the AEC industry. Popular BIM Software like Revit, Tekla, Navisworks, and more enable them to enhance productivity, improve collaboration, and reduce errors and reworks.

4. Community Building during these online architectural courses

The biggest advantage of the architectural courses is the like-minded community they are able to build. Discussion boards, group projects, and other methods of collaborative learning ensure that participants learn from each other through consistent sharing of ideas.

5. Focused learning

Having a focused audience for these additional architectural and design courses allows instructors and course curators to delve deeper into the chosen subjects. This makes the architecture courses more targeted, specific, and relevant.

Read more: Masters Vs Certificate Courses: Which is Better for Architects and Engineers

List of Top Architecture Certificate Courses to Enrol in

Architecture programs online can be pursued in short-term on-site formats or even considered to be enrolled online. One thing is for sure - they open up the scope of personal and professional growth and are a great addition to one’s resume. They help expand your network in the domain that one wishes to go forward with. A good mix of the best online architecture programs and offline courses has been listed below.

Here’s a list of the best online architecture programs that you can consider to upskill in the AEC industry.

1. BIM Professional Course for Architects V2.0

Course duration: 9 months, Online
Institution: Novatr
Subject: Software and tools

Key Learnings: 

• 15+ Industry-relevant software and workflows
• AutoDesk Revit and Its Essential
• Visual Programming
• Parametric Modelling
• Architectural Visualisation
• 4D, 5D, and 6D in BIM

Learning Building Information Modelling (BIM) has proven to enable an average 60% CTC hike for AEC professionals. Novatr offers a BIM Professional Course that features a specialised, career-focused curriculum designed and delivered by BIM experts from the top 1% of global AEC firms. Learners get a chance to learn from mentors leading firms like Populous, Jacobs, Dar Group, and more. This expertly designed module-based curriculum includes an international RIBA and ISO 19650 capstone project to help learners practise their BIM and design skills, all guided by industry experts. The 9-month course equips learners with a holistic understanding of BIM processes and software knowledge including modelling, information management, cloud collaboration, presentation, clash detection, and visual programming.

2. Making Architecture

Course duration:3 weeks
Institution: IE Business School, IE School of Architecture & Design
Subject: Architecture Theory

Key Learnings

• Understanding the mindset of an architect
• Design analysis
• Creating spaces 
• Process Process

Taught by professors from the IE School of Architecture and Design in Spain, names such as Nenad Katic, David Jeffrey Goodman, and Manuel Perez Romero will lead the course. This architecture certification course teaches its learners the basics of the profession. The online course is a theoretical study of the mindset of an architect and concludes by looking at basic design principles such as composition, form, space, and hierarchy while stressing the importance of creating a story that helps define the design. By dedicating approximately 13 hours, the course serves as a beginner's guide to architectural understanding. 

3. Master Computational Design Course for Real-World Application

Course duration: 10 months, online (10-12 hours/week)
Institution: Novatr
Subject: Software and tools

Key Learnings:

• Foundations of Computational Design
• Rhino 3D and Grasshopper
• Parametric Forms
• Generative Design
• Facade Panelling and Geometry Rationalisation
• Automated Design Systems

The Master Computational Design Course offers architects and engineers an opportunity to learn from experts working at ZHA, UNStudio, Henning Larsen, Benoy, External Reference, Populous, etc. Taught by industry experts such as Ogla Yatsuk, Brice Pannetier, Raina Lin, and Ami Nigam, this architecture certification course enables its students to learn by doing, enabling industry-ready computational design specialists. The course offers two specialisations, namely high-performance building analysis and computational BIM workflow. As one of the highly sought-after technologies taking over the AEC industry, the course helps students earn up to 50% more than the industry average, unlocking their creative potential, and using automation for design exploration.

Read more: Benefits of emerging Computational Design Developments in the AEC industry

4. Sustainability in Architecture: An Interdisciplinary Introduction

Course duration: 4 weeks
Institution: UPValenciaX
Subject: Sustainability in Architecture

This architecture certification course introduces the basic elements that define sustainability in architecture today. The self-paced free online architecture course with a certificate follows an interdisciplinary approach that helps learners gain an understanding of performance assessment and urban policies. This architecture and design course is taught by industry experts such as Maria Valles-Planells, Elena de la Poza-Plaza, and Naoko Ellis. By the end of the course, learners can evaluate the sustainability performance of buildings based on their materials, assess material use, account for the use of urban infrastructure, and create a model adequate for analysis and urban policy assessment. 

Wondering if a master's degree is even relevant with all these benefits of architecture courses?

In Conclusion

Architecture certification courses have become increasingly important in the AEC industry. The increasing demand for remote learning opportunities has provided a flexible and accessible way for aspiring architects to gain knowledge and skills through these architecture design certificate programs. However, the time and resources that one spends on pursuing a certificate course should be able to account for the value that one achieves in return. As an extra effort course, these certification programs will help make one stand out from the crowd. 

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