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Studies & Degrees in Architectural Restoration and Rehabilitation

Architectural restoration and rehabilitation deals with existing buildings. Restoration conserves buildings of historic or artistic value: churches, palaces, city walls, industrial heritage. Rehabilitation brings ordinary older buildings up to present standards of safety, comfort and energy use. Both ask the same first question: what is there, what condition is it in, and how can it be repaired without losing what makes it valuable.

What students learn

The field has shared international principles. The best known is the International Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites of 1964, the Venice Charter, published by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS). ICOMOS also has a 2003 charter with principles for the analysis, conservation and structural restoration of architectural heritage. Programmes turn these principles into method. The official master's degree of the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), for example, is organised in these subject areas:

  • Theory, history and criticism of conservation
  • Techniques and methods of analysis
  • Intervention techniques for architectural heritage
  • The conservation and intervention project
  • Management of architectural heritage

Students work on real buildings, with surveys, the study of materials and damage, and site visits to restored buildings.

Qualifications and levels

A degree in architecture or building first. Restoration is a specialisation, usually at master's level. In Spain, most bachelor's degrees (grados) have 240 ECTS credits, but degrees governed by European directives may have 300 or 360. The Grado en Estudios de Arquitectura of the Universidad de Navarra is an official degree of 300 credits taught over five years in Spanish in Pamplona. Its optional specialisations include one in urban project management, which covers heritage management and urban rehabilitation, and one in technical project management, which covers the management of energy rehabilitation. To practise as an architect in Spain a further master's degree is needed: the Máster Universitario en Arquitectura of the Universidad de Navarra has 60 credits, lasts 12 months and, according to the university, qualifies graduates to practise the profession of architect in Spain.

Specialised master's degree. Official master's degrees in Spain have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. UPV's Máster Universitario en Conservación del Patrimonio Arquitectónico is an official degree of 90 ECTS credits that lasts a year and a half, is taught on campus in Valencia in Spanish and English, and offers 33 places in the 2026-27 academic year. UPV has taught it since 2006. Applicants from countries where Spanish is not an official language must show CEFR level B2 in Spanish. The published price for 2026-27 starts at €3,180.60 for Spanish, EU and resident students and at €6,361.20 for other international students. Up to 13.5 ECTS credits can be taken as work placements.

Admission. UPV's master's degree is aimed mainly at graduates in architecture and in building engineering (arquitectura técnica). Graduates of other degrees related to construction or restoration can be admitted after the academic committee has assessed their record.

Italy. Italy has a long tradition in this field, and Rome is the seat of ICCROM, the intergovernmental organisation for the conservation of cultural heritage, established there in 1959. Italian universities run postgraduate specialisation schools for architects, such as the Scuola di Specializzazione in Beni Architettonici e del Paesaggio of the Politecnico di Milano.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists three schools for architectural restoration and rehabilitation: two in Italy and one in Spain. The Spanish school is the Universidad de Navarra, in Pamplona. The Italian ones are the Fondazione Campus Studi del Mediterraneo, in Monte San Quirico, and ISAD - Superior Institute of Architecture and Design, in Milan. Ask each school which courses in restoration it teaches now, in which language, and what recognition the qualification has.

Both countries have a large built heritage to learn from. Spain's World Heritage properties include the works of Gaudí, inscribed in 1984, and the Mudéjar architecture of Aragon, inscribed in 1986, according to the Spanish Ministry of Culture. Programmes are normally taught in the language of the country, sometimes together with English.

Careers

Specialists work in architecture practices, in construction companies that bid for conservation works, in public administration offices that deal with heritage, and in teaching and research. UPV notes that in tenders for projects the master's degree can earn points for the bidder. Rehabilitation of housing, including energy upgrades, is a second field of work alongside monuments.

There are no separate official employment figures for restoration architects. For the profession as a whole, architects held about 124,600 jobs in the United States in 2025, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment to grow 4 percent from 2025 to 2035.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to be an architect to study architectural restoration?

Usually you need a degree in architecture or building. The official master's degree at the Universitat Politècnica de València is aimed mainly at those graduates, and it considers other degrees related to construction or restoration case by case.

How long does a master's degree in architectural restoration take?

Between one and two years. The official master's degree at the Universitat Politècnica de València has 90 ECTS credits and lasts a year and a half.

What is the difference between restoration and rehabilitation?

Restoration conserves buildings of historic or artistic value and follows international principles such as the Venice Charter of 1964. Rehabilitation adapts existing buildings to current needs, for example by improving their energy performance.

Does a master's degree in restoration allow me to sign building projects?

Not by itself. In Spain, the profession of architect requires the qualifying Máster Universitario en Arquitectura after the degree in architecture. Ask the professional body of the country where you want to work.