Internal/External Competitions

This year’s masonry design competition challenges students to develop an innovative conceptual masonry design which highlights the sustainable nature of masonry wall systems. Successful applicants will present visualizations of masonry systems and their architectural potential.

Eligibility

*This competition is open to any student(s) currently enrolled in their undergraduate B.A.S. or graduate M.Arch at the School of Architecture, University of Waterloo.

Award Criteria

1. Masonry is a critical component of the Architectural design intent. Masonry is a key feature of the building or a specific space withing the project
2. Innovative use of masonry;
   • Creative use of masonry techniques, patterns and technologies
   • Creative masonry applications
   • Innovative masonry products or hybrid strategies (e.g. 3DP masonry units)
3. Technical proficiency;
   •  Display an understanding of masonry and its integration in structural or facade systems
   • Appropriate architectural detailing
4. Craftsmanship;
   • The type of masonry and the type of pattern use shows consideration for the architectural intent
   • Detail design of the masonry application supports or enhances the features of the space or building
5. Sustainability
   • The use of masonry plays a key role in the overall sustainability strategy for the project
6. Longevity
   • Sustainability and durability
   • Innovative lifecycle considerations
   • Uses structural masonry as well as masonry facade components

Submission format;

1. Digital submission via the Masonry Council of Ontario website
2. PDF format – 2 panels 18″x24″ landscape or portrait

The Judging panel will consider the following criteria:

• Innovative use of masonry
• Technical proficiency
• Craftsmanship
• Overall presentation
• Consideration of sustainability
• The sustainability of the design

Submission Date: Deadline May 12, 2023 11:59PM, Toronto EDT (GMT -4)

Prize Structure:

• 1st: $1,000
• 2nd: $500
• 3rd: $250

Enter your submission.

Future City Builders brings together youth, aged 18-29, in cities across Canada to create and launch innovative ideas for their communities. Participants develop work-ready skills and make new contacts, all while improving the health of their city through Evergreen’s Future Cities Canada lab process, based in design thinking. As a participant in this program, you will learn from thought leaders in topics related to healthy cities – including an intersectional approach to transportation, housing, well-being and more. You’ll use Evergreen’s Virtual Design Thinking Lab process to develop a solution to a challenge facing your community.

The Martin Eli Weil Prize is awarded annually by the Society for the Study of Architecture in Canada to a student who submitted an essay on the role played by the built environment in Canadian society. The $250 prize and certificate shall be awarded to the winner at the Annual Assembly of the Society, where he/she will be invited to present a conference on his/her essay. The winning essay shall also be published by the Society.

All full-time and part-time students in a degree program at a Canadian university are eligible, and essays may be in English or in French.

Full details are available on the SSAC website.

In the FORM Student Innovation Competition, architecture and interior design students are challenged to design a piece for any residential or commercial setting using the competition's annual themes. 

The AZ Awards is AZURE’s international architecture and design competition, widely recognized for its influence within the global design and architecture sphere. 

The A+ Award for Student Work category presents an opportunity for students to have their work recognized by an international audience, composed of thousands of architecture and design professionals. Entries are juried by a panel of architects and designers at the forefront of their professions. Finalists and winners will be published in print and online, and celebrated at the AZ Awards Gala.

Full information and submissions on their website.

The Sustainable Buildings Network (SBN) a student-run network at the University of Toronto. An annual event that they host is the Sustainable Buildings Challenge (SBC). The SBC is a competition in which teams compete against each other to design innovative solutions that improve the sustainability and occupant comfort of a building.

Kaira Looro Architecture Competition is a design contest open to students and young architects with aims to discover new talents and to adopt sustainable architecture models for humanitarian purpose to improve life conditions in developing countries. Cash prizes, Internship and construction are provided for winners, selected by an international jury made up of pregistous architectural firms.

Founded in 1976, the ARCC is an international association of architectural research centers, academies and organizations committed to the research culture and supporting infrastructure of architecture and related design disciplines. Through conference programming, grant and award programs, workshops and research journal Enquiry, ARCC represents a concerted commitment to improve the quality of life in the built environment.

All award applications are due October 1, except for the King Medal and Best Research Paper and Poster Awards. ARCC defines ‘architectural research’ broadly and inclusively across a range of domains in support of advancing knowledge of the built environment.

Full details on the ARCC website.

Founded at Harvard University in 1940, the Society of Architectural Historians is a nonprofit membership organization that serves an international network of institutions and individuals who, by profession or interest, focus on the history of the built environment and its role in shaping contemporary life.

We award fellowships and grants to support academic research and present awards that recognize excellence in scholarship and professional service. We also advocate on issues related to preservation, higher education, and the humanities.

The competition, hosted by CPCI, is a great opportunity for students to learn about precast prestressed concrete design and construction. The competition is open to all students enrolled in Architecture, Civil Engineering, or Civil Engineering Technology programs. Submissions should highlight the opportunities precast concrete offers in terms of construction, structural strength, design innovation, social value, maintenance and durability.      

Construction Specifications Canada (CSC) Grand Valley and Toronto Chapters are delighted to once again offer Ontario students of post-secondary architectural and interior design programs, the opportunity to participate in the 9th Annual Student Design Challenge. The competition is a hypothetical redesign of an existing building. It will run until the end of the school year (April 28, 2023). Materials are available on-line; the drawings, a virtual 360-degree tour, photos, the back story, the requirements and any support required. The theme for this year’s design is “Hospitality”.

Complete contest requirements, details, updates and pertinent links are posted on the “Tapping the Future” Student Design Challenge website.

The Student Ideas Competition is organized by the NCC and has been a part of the annual Urbanism Lab lecture series since 2019. Through this competition, the NCC invites students to think of design concepts for sites in Canada’s National Capital Region. 

The competition is open to students enrolled in an accredited educational institution in Canada. The NCC encourages students to form interdisciplinary teams to consider all aspects of urban planning, site design, architecture and landscape design.

Visit the NCC for more information.

Through a unique structure of design competition, jury process, and prize winning travel grants, the Lyceum promotes collaboration, connectivity, and a design dialogue among schools, their students of architecture and the prominent architects who serve as program authors and jurors.

Visit Lyceum for more information.

The fund was set in 1956 in the memory of AA alumnus Michael Ventris who became world famous for deciphering the ancient Greek script of Linear B. Anyone from the field of architecture is eligible to apply (applicants may have a first degree in architecture or a subject related to project, and the award is open to applicants from all countries). The award is intended to support an independent project rather than a continuing programme of study.

This year, the award will present £5000 to support an independent project with a clear outcome. The creators contribution to the field should be an original endeavour in the field of architecture/archaeology reflecting the genius of Ventris in both disciplines.

Full details online.

Frequently updated, Buildner are one of the world's leading architectural competition organisers.  

A New Frontier: The Contemporary Border Crossing

Border crossing involves a change of state; the crossing of a barrier between two nations. The nature and meaning of this barrier are very specific to its location and the different characters of the nations involved. Borders can mark dramatic transitions between different cultures, political systems, economies, and levels of freedom. They range from open and undefended to closed and heavily militarized.

In many places around the world, borders are under stress and evolving to respond to war, migration pressures, the ebb and flow of political alliances, the creation and removal of trade barriers, the threat of terrorism, the movement of illegal drugs and weapons, and the spread of disease.

Border crossing architecture is the physical manifestation of the balance between evolving security concerns and the desire to welcome visitors and newcomers while symbolically marking the entry into a new country.

The Canadian Academy of Architecture for Justice (CAAJ) invites architecture students to speculate on these issues in a design competition for a new border crossing. Submissions are welcomed from either studio groups or individuals. The design will be evaluated by a jury of experts, architects and industry professionals. Participants are highly encouraged to explore a wide spectrum of architectural responses from functional and practical at one end to philosophical and social at the other, including ways in which this building or complex could be integrated into the surrounding context and community, act as a catalyst for building a positive relationship between two nations, and address what a border entry means in today’s context.

More information and registration on the CAAJ website.

Calling all Architecture Students! The Canadian Architecture Student Association (CASA-ACÉA) would like to celebrate the excellence of our Canadian architecture students who have continued to design this past year. CASA-ACÉA is calling for work to showcase at the 2023 RAIC Conference in May to continue our efforts to profile student work to potential employers, colleagues, and the public.

Eligible participants must be a current student or recent graduate* of an accredited Canadian school of architecture. Projects must be completed as part of school curricula and be the original work of the student(s). Individual and group work is accepted, provided all group members are clearly stated. Only one submission will be accepted per group or individual. All projects must have been completed between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022.

Competition entry opens Monday, February 20 and closes Sunday, April, 16 at 11:59pm EST.

Please email questions to submissions@casa-acea.org

* Graduated on or after April 1, 2022

We look forward to seeing your work.