About the Faculty
The Faculty of Architecture of the University of Ljubljana is the leading higher education institution in the field of architecture and urban planning in Slovenia. It employs pedagogues and professional colleagues who, with their professional and creative work, earn top national and international achievements in the fields of art and science.
We employ a direct pedagogical approach involving active, practising creators, taking knowledge from business and culture and translating it to the study environment. The faculty strives to provide quality education to future architects and urban planners. On an international level, the institution actively participates in wider regional frameworks. Most of our students come from Slovenia, alongside increasing numbers from Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and North Macedonia.
The faculty’s research work ensures the preservation of architectural traditions, techniques, and helps further the development of modern spatial theories. Our programmes shape critically thinking creators who can work independently in architectural and urbanistic planning, as well as in other creative professions.
Alongside the Museum of Architecture and Design of Slovenia, the Chamber of Architecture and Environmental Planning of Slovenia, and various architectural societies, the faculty helps preserve, promote, and spread the national importance of architecture. It also plays an active role in all major architectural events in the country. With its plurality, scope, and care for quality, the faculty helps lead the discourse on the fundamental values of architecture, space, and spatial culture
In cooperation with the Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia, the Institute of Civil Engineering, and other institutes and organisations, the faculty also contributes significantly through its scientific research work to the identification and definition of key spatial challenges for sustainable development, modern urbanisation, spatial policy, safety, and quality of life. Over the decades its research and other activities have proved to be an invaluable resource for the realisation and implementation of goals set by the Architectural Policy of Slovenia.
Dean’s Address
“The times we live in are in many ways unprecedented and important from political, social, economic, and environmental points of view. We believe that it is precisely this – the transformation of society, fueled by its shifting attitude towards the environment – that can have the most far-reaching consequences in space, economy, and politics. The Faculty of Architecture of the University of Ljubljana, with its scientific, artistic and pedagogical work, addresses fundamental issues of this societal transformation.
In architecture and urbanism, ideas must stem from a critical analysis of contemporary society and space, and not from an imitation of past patterns and similar examples. It is in historical experience that we must find a basis for the analysis and reconsideration of our profession’s fundamental truths. The higher education architecture study programme was established in 1919, coinciding with the establishment of the University of Ljubljana. Though initially part of the Faculty of Engineering and the Faculty of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy, the Faculty of Architecture has since 1995 been an independent member of the university.
The Faculty of Architecture sees its students as researchers, visionaries and pioneers of innovative career paths. For these reasons, they must embark on a critical observation of the world they live in and the environment which surrounds them. That is why here, at the faculty, we help our students become individuals who will recognize pressing present-day issues and know how to approach the future. Many of those involved in the study process are experts in the fields of architecture, urbanism and design. Among them are recipients of numerous awards, both at home and abroad – all professionally active social-minded individuals. We ensure the continuous development and excellence of our academic and research cadre.
Studies and research at the faculty are tightly intertwined. Its cooperation in projects and research with local communities, public and other institutions, as well as the economy, strengthens its relevance and social importance. This cooperation takes the form of professional events, scientific and artistic projects, as well as architectural and urbanist workshops.
Simultaneously, the faculty also participates internationally, through joint international projects, European mobility of students and teachers, several weeks–long annual visits by foreign lecturers, series of guest lectures, and direct pedagogical cooperation with other faculties of architecture from the region, in the form of joint seminars and design studios.
Education in architecture and urbanism is a rare example of combining creative, technical, and social scientific-humanistic skills. This affords architects and urbanists the ability to adapt to diverse challenges in their professions, even ones they were not strictly trained for. To help cultivate and harness these abilities, our study and research programmes spur students to further their intellectual breadth, adaptability, and creativity.”
The Faculty’s Vision
Quality and Topicality of the Study Programme
The faculty ensures academic excellence and a high level of employability of its graduates, while simultaneously establishing mechanisms for constant improvements to its study environment.
Social Criticism and Importance of Architecture and Urban Planning
With its socially active role, the faculty helps in shaping global living culture as an ethical spatial practice and contributes to the meaning and understanding of spatial interventions within a wider social context.
Active Cooperation with the Community
The faculty cooperates with local communities and economic institutions, emphasizing practical, research-based solutions.
International Recognition
The faculty cooperates with numerous international institutions and associations, boosting its recognition through various artistic and research projects.
Modern Spatial and Information Infrastructure
Through improvements to the information environment and gradual spatial reorganization, the faculty enhances conditions of both its studies as well as artistic and scientific-research work.
Students connect with experts by joining excursions and participating at relevant events, both within and outside the scope of the faculty.
