Faculty of Design and Architecture

The idea of establishing the Faculty of Design and Architecture at UPM began with a proposal paper titled "Proposal for the Establishment of the Faculty of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture", which was submitted to the Faculty of Agriculture in 1976. However, the idea did not receive further support from the faculty’s administration at that time. Nevertheless, a group of teaching staff specializing in Landscape Architecture was recruited in 1980 to teach "landscape courses" in both the bachelor’s and diploma programs in agriculture. The first landscape course was offered in 1984. It was a 3-credit course titled "Landscape Design Approach". This course became popular and successfully attracted many agriculture students who later pursued their studies overseas in the field of Landscape Architecture at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Many of these graduates returned home to become successful landscape architecture practitioners or academics at various higher learning institutions in Malaysia.

In 1991, UPM’s Faculty of Engineering proposed the introduction of an Architecture program. However, the idea was not pursued further until the Faculty of Agriculture was tasked by UPM management to explore the feasibility of offering programs in Architecture and Landscape Architecture at UPM. A committee was formed in the Faculty of Agriculture in 1994, and in 1995 a proposal to establish a new faculty offering academic programs in design and creative arts was submitted to the Vice-Chancellor of UPM. With strong support from the university’s top management, the establishment of the Faculty of Design and Architecture was approved by the UPM Senate, the UPM Board of Directors, and subsequently by the Ministry of Education Malaysia.

This new faculty was officially established on 26 June 1996 and began operations by offering the Bachelor of Landscape Architecture and Master of Landscape Architecture programs under the newly established Department of Landscape Architecture. Later, the Department of Architecture was established in 1999, followed by the Department of Industrial Design in 2002. Although the faculty initially operated out of several dilapidated wooden buildings that previously housed horticulture nurseries, it now boasts a modern building complex to accommodate its staff and students, complete with state-of-the-art facilities and equipment. The faculty started with an intake of 40 students. Today, it has grown rapidly and now hosts more than 1,000 students enrolled in 10 programs at the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral (Ph.D.) levels.

Official Website: https://frsb.upm.edu.my/