Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Urbanismo
Other languages of instruction: Catalan, English
Teaching staff
Students may email any queries they might have to their teacher.
Introduction
In an ageing society, people aspire to improve their quality of life.
This macro trend has given rise to one of the world's most dynamic industries: accessibility and design for all, which is fast becoming an obligatory focus for an ever-increasing number of sectors. As a result, the market demand for companies and professionals able to respond to people's accessibility needs and to guarantee their quality of life will also increase.
The UIC Barcelona School of Architecture Postgraduate Degree in Accessibility and Design for All will make you an expert in accessibility, able to provide equal opportunities to all citizens regardless of whether or not they have a disability.
The teaching programme will allow you to analyse and understand the criteria that govern the accessibility of the spaces, routes, elements, products and services that surround us. You will learn how to apply what is known as unnoticed accessibility, with standardisation criteria and designs commonly used for all. You will find out which details are needed to develop affordable projects, and take an in-depth critical look at the main laws and regulations on accessibility.
In short, a specialised programme aimed at understanding, identifying, designing, marketing and facilitating accessible design for all.
Pre-course requirements
It is the first Postgraduate Degree course that combines theory and practice by means of face-to-face work sessions through an online platform.
New technologies allow the Course to be studied from anywhere in the world, providing interaction between the teacher and classmates in real time.
In the digital classrooms students will be able to follow the explanations of the teacher via streaming, resolve queries immediately, consult shared documentation, present their documents, communicate with their classmates, etc. Any session given may be consulted at a later stage.
Objectives
Analyse and understand the rules on accessibility of the spaces, routes, elements, products and services that surround us; with the aim of not just knowing the current regulations, but also mastering all the necessary details to apply unnoticed accessibility using standardisation criteria and designs commonly used for all, also suitable for PMR (people with reduced mobility), in many cases at low or zero cost.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
• 43-T - Ability to carry out safety, evacuation and protection projects for buildings.
• 44-T - Ability to draw up civil work projects.
• 45-T - Ability to design and execute urban layouts and urbanisation, gardening and landscape projects.
• 46 - Ability to apply town planning regulations and ordinances.
• 47-T - Ability to develop environmental, landscape and environmental impact correction studies.
• 48 - Adequate knowledge of the general theories of form, composition and architectural types.
• 49 - Adequate knowledge of the general history of architecture.
• 50 - Adequate knowledge of the methods of study of symbolisation processes, practical functions and ergonomics.
• 51 - Adequate knowledge of the methods of studying social needs, quality of life, habitability and basic housing programs.
• 52 - Adequate knowledge of ecology, sustainability and conservation principles of energy and environmental resources.
• 53 - Adequate knowledge of the architectural, urban and landscape traditions of Western culture, as well as its technical, climatic, economic, social and ideological foundations.
• 54 - Adequate knowledge of aesthetics and the theory and history of fine arts and applied arts.
• 55 - Adequate knowledge of the relationship between cultural patterns and the social responsibilities of the architect.
• 34-T - Aptitude for the conception, practice and development of both basic and implementation projects, sketches and preliminary projects.
• 35-T - Aptitude for the conception, practice and development of urban projects.
• 36-T - Aptitude for the conception, practice and development of construction management.
• 37 - Aptitude to produce functional programmes for buildings and urban spaces.
• 38-T - Aptitude to intervene in and conserve, restore and rehabilitate built heritage.
• 39-T - Ability to eliminate architectural barriers.
• 40 - Ability to exercise architectural criticism.
• 41-T - Ability to solve passive environmental conditioning, including thermal and acoustic insulation, climate control, energy efficiency and natural lighting.
• 42 - Ability to catalogue built and urban heritage and plan its protection.
• 56 - Adequate knowledge of the basic principles of vernacular architecture.
• 57 - Adequate knowledge of urban sociology, theory, economics and history.
• 58 - Adequate knowledge of the basic methodological principles of urban planning and territorial and metropolitan classification.
• 59 - Adequate knowledge of the mechanisms for drafting and managing urban plans on any scale.
• 60 - Knowledge of civil, administrative, urban, building and industry regulations related to professional performance.
• 61 - Knowledge of feasibility analysis and supervision and coordination of integrated projects.
• 62 - Knowledge of how to appraise property.
Learning outcomes of the subject
It is hoped that the knowledge acquired about accessibility will go beyond merely mastering the regulations and that students will be able to form their own opinions and question the regulations, putting forward proposals to potentially improve them by using all their senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch ... and common sense.
Syllabus
Module I
Introduction to Accessibility and Design for All
Module II
The Urban Space: Cities for All
Module III
Building for Public Use: Introduction
Module IV
Building for Public Use: Different uses
Module V
Building for Private Use
Module VI
New Technologies
Module VII
Accessibility in Transportation
Module VIII
Accessible Cultural Tourism
Module IX
Employability, Business and Ergonomics
Module X
Social, Health, Leisure and Recreational Accessibility
Module XI
Final Postgraduate Degree Project
Teaching and learning activities
Online
Classes will be held one day a week, with specialist lecturers or talks from different architects, technicians or users with disabilities, who work in the fields of Accessibility and the Suppression of Architectural Barriers and in Communication Access. They will share their experiences (through images and videos).
There will also be exercises supervised by the teachers.
All sessions will be online.
Evaluation systems and criteria
Online
Assessment will be based on participation and the final project produced by the student and supervised by the teaching staff.
This final accessibility project (PFA) will be on urban planning, public building, housing, transport and/or communication and will be undertaken on a space, service or real product, by means of an accessibility plan.
Corrections and supervision of work will be established throughout the course, thus achieving a fully standardised PFA.
Bibliography and resources
L’accessibilitat a l’edificació i l’urbanisme: Recomanacions tècniques per a projectes i obres. Published by: EDICIONES UPC
ROCA Product Catalogue on Accessibility Solutions
Personas, Dependencia, Calidad de Vida y Nuevas Tecnologías. Published by: Editorial Hacer
Author: Rovira-Beleta
Código de Accesibilidad de Cataluña. GENERALITAT DE CATALUÑA
CTE – Código Técnico de la Edificación y del Urbanismo.