The highly regarded Architectural Conservation programme at Edinburgh College of Art is over forty years old - the longest established architectural conservation course in the UK. The multi-disciplinary programme draws in postgraduate students from a wide range of backgrounds. The teaching combines the academic skills of international conservation scholarship and research with strong practical links to government and voluntary heritage bodies - all within the stimulating environment of a thriving school of architecture.

An increasing number of postgraduate taught programmes are delivered jointly with Architecture at the University of Edinburgh, in collaboration with the School of Built Environment at Heriot-Watt University. Staff in the College's school also participate in joint research projects and supervision of research students with both partner institutions.

The programme aims to provide students with the broad base of knowledge and skills necessary to embark on a career in one of the many professional sub-disciplines of conservation, ranging from heritage management to conservation architecture: it is one of the few conservation courses in the UK fully recognised by the Institute of Historic Building Conservation, Britain's official organisation of architectural conservation professionals.

To complete their studies, students must demonstrate their familiarity with the historical and theoretical foundations and challenges of conservation; the techniques of recording and research and the technologies of building repair; the influences of planning law, contemporary architecture and building economics on the historic built environment; and the special conservation challenges of Modern Movement architecture and urban planning. Students also develop more general practical and intellectual skills, in areas such as project organisation, historical research, or graphic and oral communication.

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