PREPARING A THESIS PROPOSAL

The Architecture Thesis Project is a two-fold undertaking by the graduating students

of BS Architecture. The Thesis would be a Research / Design Project with a research
project focusing on any architectural concept / ideas / principles / design approach that
would be applicable to the Design Project. The research undertaking would generate
new ideas in designing particular building types that would make the design endeavor
more innovative and creative.
Research and Design both involve processes of discovery that would lead to new
knowledge. Furthermore, Design is closely associated to Creativity. Being creative is
seeing the same thing as everybody else but thinking of something different. It can be
defined as the ability to take existing objects and combining them in different ways for
new purposes. Creativity can produce novel and useful ideas and solutions to everyday
problems and challenges.
The Research Project is aimed at gaining knowledge that would upgrade the quality of
our built environment and for the advancement of the architectural profession. The
Design Project, on the other hand, is viewed as an activity that would generate
proposals in changing something that already exist into something better.
The first step in the Thesis Project is the preparation of a Thesis Proposal. The students
will have to identify possible design projects to work on as well as introduce the
research project that they will relate to the design project. This is not an easy task and
before a student can come up with a credible proposal, one should have done the
following:
develop a perspective about the breadth, depth and scope of architectural discipline
develop an awareness of general issues, opportunities, and concerns within the
discipline through readings of articles concerning current architectural practices
choose an area of specialization from the general issues and concerns.
become familiar with specific issues, opportunities, and concerns within the area of
specialization
develop queries that speculate on the issues, opportunities, and concerns within the
area of specialization
The student can start initially by identifying an issue of local, regional, national or even
global concern as starting points for determining a specific research problem,
say Housing Backlog. The next question would be - why is there a housing backlog? It
continues with a search for possible cause to the problem that could have architectural
significance it is due to the inadequacies of conventional building materials and
systems to cope up with house production targets. The problem now has become an
architectural concern. A possible architectural intervention can be deduced from the
above statements House production rate can substantially increase if housing
components can be standardized. With that, the general problem has now been
reduced to an architectural problem focusing on the derivation of standards for housing
components. This can still be, however, trimmed down to a more focused and specific
derivation of standards for low-cost housing components.

From the above process, a possible Design Project could be A Housing Prototype for a
Low-Cost Community for North Rail Settlers and the Research Project could be
Derivation of Standards for Low-Cost Housing Components.
Other example of Thesis Projects that could be similarly undertaken is as follows:
1. Proposed Marikina Center of Performing Arts (A Neural Network Analysis of Auditoria
Design).
2. The SM Call-Center Complex (An investigation of indoor environmental factors that
may influence comfort and health of workers in office buildings)
3. School for the Deaf and Blind (Design of technology-based learning environments)
4. Redevelopment of Tahanang Walang Hagdan (Modeling human expertise in
designing building solutions for homes of persons with disabilities)
5. Proposed Quezon City Jail (An Analysis of the Physical Environment in Juvenile
Justice Facilities: the Physical Environment in a Complex System)
6. The Intramuros Hotel (Acknowledging and evaluating the social and aesthetic values
of heritage landscapes)
7. The Mactan Meditel (Thermal comfort and hybrid ventilation)
8. Sports Medica Mall (An integrated medical, sports and shopping complex)
The Architecture Thesis Projects seeks to support and enhance the study of
sustainable and energy-efficient building practices in Architectural Education. Thesis
students are encouraged to explore the use of new materials and strategies for building,
and the integration of aesthetics and technology for high-performing, cutting edge
architecture.
The objective of this integration is to encourage students and develop excellence in
architectural planning and design that integrates environmentally responsive design
strategies.