The current and long-term strategy and plan of the department have been drawn in concordance with the general outlook of the university and with contemporary trends in architectural education, taking into account the need for integration within the European academe. In the spirit of this general trend, each discipline within the department has laid down its own objectives and methods.
1. The History and Theory of Architecture
The disciplines within these domains cover a diversity of teaching and research methods that pursue a balanced mean between the « hard » tradition of history, the theory of architecture, and its critical interpretation in the contemporary world.
Students are presented with a journey, commented from various angles, into the architectural phenomenon in the world and on the territory of Romania, so that they may benefit from a critical instrument in understanding architecture and approaching architecture designs.
The classical, diachronic approach stays subjacent, a needed ordering pattern, compared to which the various newer prospects, from the comparative to the hermeneutical ones, provide a subtly hued description and interpretation of phenomena. The more recent it is, the more critically investigated the history of architecture is.
Therefore, the theory of architecture is taught in parallel as observed practice in the first years while some more sophisticated approaches based on philosophy, literary theory or aesthetics are reserved to senior students, often in optional courses.
Thus, at present, the theory and history of architecture have come to dissolve together into a handful of prospects including: a position on architecture and the responsibility of the architect, a philosophy of history, a potential critical concept aimed at settling the yet unsolved problems of the current moment.
All along this road, the history of architecture in Romania’s present-day territory has always represented a steadfast blend of research and teaching activities. This stands out ever more marked since the last history of Romanian architecture published dates to 1980, while after 1989 very few studies of critical history saw printing light. Since it is imperative to find critical and interpretation means adequate to the local phenomenon, an important number of professors within the department, both historians and theorists, are involved in the research of Romanian architecture in the zonal context (Central-European, Balkan) and European, in general.
Collaboration with experts from various fields working without the desk, the school, the country has become common as they are invited to participate in teaching activities and research projects, too.
Foreign Languages
For several years now French, English, Italian, and Romanian (for foreign students) have been taught in the institution, plus German and Spanish more recently, in keeping with the expanding international contacts and programs of UAUIM. All the classes take into account the knowledge and capacity of the students with a view to helping them acquire the needed abilities for information and relevant dialogue. A closer connection with specialized culture is attempted through texts used for the study of the respective languages: many of them are selected from texts students also use in theory of architecture seminars.2. The Conservation and Restoration
In direct connection with the new approaches to history and with contemporary practice, conservation and protection of the built heritage have acquired considerable import. This domain, where the lack of experts weighs heavy, has been developed additionally as an optional specialty, up to the level of advanced studies, master’s and doctor’s degree.
The teaching process in conservation disciplines features a twofold organization, corresponding to two types of courses: on the one hand general courses and compulsory projects (for all students), and on the other specialized courses and “relevant” projects. Thus a considerable level of information is pursued, based on modern principles of integrated restoration.
The students who opt for specialization in heritage conservation are presented a set of courses and projects grouped in the final years of study. If the students so choose these can be set up as an optional, independent structure to be taken by students in the final years (six-year courses), with the possibility to continue the study within the interdisciplinary framework of a master’s degree in Conservation and Rehabilitation of the Built Heritage.
Physical Education
The program of this discipline is divided on option groups apt to meet the physical capacities and abilities of the students, and allowing for the actual education of the body and the prevention of occupational diseases.
Regulations
Taking into account the diversity of fields and disciplines within DITCP, promotion regulations are drawn out separately and laid down in charts of analytical programs.