Glossary
Architecture Professor Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential architecture professor terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key architecture professor vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in architecture professor training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Charrette
- Intensive design session.
- Crit
- Design critique.
- Elevation
- Side view drawing.
- Jury
- Panel reviewing projects.
- M.Arch
- Professional master’s degree.
- Massing
- Overall form.
- NAAB
- Architecture accreditation board.
- Parametric design
- Rule-based digital design.
- Parti
- Main design idea.
- Portfolio
- Collection of work.
- Precedent
- Earlier building studied as an example.
- Section
- Cut-through drawing.
- Studio
- Hands-on design course.
- Sustainable design
- Design that saves energy and resources.
- Tectonics
- Art of construction.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Architecture Professor practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Architecture Professor training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.