The Department of Architecture and Urbanism is an organizational unit of Iscte that is deeply embedded in its scientific and academic community and coordinates the Integrated Master’s Degree in Architecture and the PhD Program in Architecture of Contemporary Metropolitan Territories as its main programmes of study. 

Iscte contains eight research centres, two of which conduct research in Architecture: Dinâmia/CET and ISTAR. These units have carried out and continue to host many projects with national and international support, namely in the areas of territory, history, postcolonial studies and technology. Those who work in Architecture at Iscte also enjoy well-equipped laboratories for digital fabrication and virtual reality. A new laboratory for low-technology areas will also be created shortly, which we hope will reinforce research done in the areas of heritage, restoration, conservation and vernacular architecture.

The discussions about architecture at Iscte have a broad critical basis, for they are supported by the transdisciplinary approach that drives the institution. Influences from the areas of Public Policy, Social Science, Economics and Technology provide new perspectives in the in-discipline discussion, which has granted the Department a reputation for innovation within and beyond Portugal. Thus, the proximity of the Schools and Research Centres of Iscte, fostered by their shared space in a single, iconic university campus designed by Raúl Hestnes Ferreira and located in the centre of Lisbon, contributes much to the study of Architecture at Iscte.

Paulo Tormenta Pinto

Head of Department of Architecture and Urbanism