Course Details

The Master in Advanced Ecological Buildings & Biocities (MAEBB) programme is focused on learning how to design and build a new generation of buildings and cities to respond to the planet’s emerging climate challenges. The programme is carried out in Valldaura Labs, where students live and work surrounded by the Collserola Natural Park, a dense forest ecology intwined with the students design process. MAEBB students learn both traditional woodworking and construction techniques and advanced digital technologies and design techniques to create intelligent and self-sufficient and ecological designs. Students study the many topics within advanced ecological buildings, and develop skills and a holistic understanding of advanced and ecological design. For their final thesis, MAEBB students design, fabricate and construct a full scale prototype of an ecological building.

Competition Details

The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia announces every year a Scholarship Competition giving our master’s applicants the chance to win partial scholarships covering 50%, 30%, 20% of the tuition fee of each IAAC’s Educational Programme.

Project Brief

“Ecological Wood Construction” – Create a design proposal at any scale (from architecture to furniture/object) related in some way to ecological principles, and using wood as the primary material. Please include the strategy/rationale behind the proposal.

Submission Guidelines

1 (one) PDF document in A4 format, 3 pages max (max 8MB) containing a short description in English of the project and the strategy/rationale behind the proposal. An additional page can be used to include pictures/illustrations (optional).
All proposals should contain the full name of the applicant and the programme they are applying for in the header of the document.

Who can participate?

Candidates interested in the Scholarship Competition must meet the Eligibility Criteria as described in the IAAC Guide for Applicants.

How to apply for the scholarship?

To apply, each candidate should visit the Application Portal, register, select the programme they wish to apply for, upload the necessary supporting documents including their Scholarship project proposal.

The full list of mandatory supporting documents to prepare for the Scholarship Competition are the following:

1) Letter of intent written in English
2) A Portfolio showcasing samples of your work in English
3) CV (Curriculum Vitae/ Resume).
4) Two letters of recommendation written in English
5) A scanned copy of your bachelor’s diploma.
6) A copy of your valid passport (or I.D. if you are a citizen of a member state of the EU.)
7) The scholarship project proposal which corresponds to the Selected Programme’s proposal topic.

Important: A 50€ Application fee (non-refundable) is to be paid to submit your application.

For more detailed information on the Supporting Documents listed above please consult the IAAC Guide for Applicants.

Important Dates

  • Start date: 1st December 2023 – 00:00 (CET)
  • End date: 31st January 2024 – 23:59 (CET)
  • Winners announced: 20th February 2024

Selection and Evaluation Process

Once an application is received, the Admissions Coordinator will start reviewing the submitted applications to check whether they meet all eligibility requirements. Once the eligibility check is completed, Applicants will be informed of the outcome by email.

For more information refer to the IAAC Guide for Applicants.

The Selection Committee

The Jury will be integrated by master programme Directors, faculty and special guests and professionals coming from the different topics to be addressed by the competitions.  

Winners Announcement

The Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia will officially announce the names of the winners on February 20th, 2024.