BAS Application Process

Bachelor of Architectural Studies for 2021 applications

Getting Started
The Bachelor of Architectural Studies Application Process
Because the Bachelor of Architectural Studies (BAS) degree has a limited number of spaces, the School of Architecture
and Planning (SoAP) has an additional, competitive selection process, which is outlined in this document. First,
applicants must follow the undergraduate application process by applying online through the Student Enrolment
Centre by 30 June 2020. To be considered for the BAS degree, applicants must meet the specified minimum
academic requirements, and satisfy any additional Faculty or School requirements. Admission is not guaranteed for any
applicant. Information on the degree, the requirements and how to apply can be found here:
www.wits.ac.za/course-finder/undergraduate/ebe/architectural-studies

Following the online application, the School evaluates spatial imagination, creative problem-solving and communication
abilities in Exercises 1 and 2, which are detailed on pages 4 and 7. Next, applicants may job shadow an architect as
part of an optional Exercise 3, detailed on page 8. Only those applicants who perform well on Exercises 1 and 2 will
be invited for an admissions interview. The Exercises, interview and academic performance all count equally towards
admission into the BAS degree programme.

Please double-check the Dos and Don’ts for Submission on page 9 before submitting your Exercises. Exercises
submitted by email will not be accepted. If exercises are mailed by post, please be sure to follow the mailing instructions
on page 2, and in the Dos and Don’ts for Submission. Exercises not submitted in the specified manner or by the
deadline will not be considered.

Inquiries
For inquiries related to the BAS degree application process, first check our frequently asked questions (FAQs) on page 9.
If you don’t find what you’re looking for, you may contact:
@ [email protected] 011 717 7623

Wits person numbers and mail tracking or receipt numbers must accompany all inquiries.

Additional Information
General information about the School: www.wits.ac.za/archplan
Online applications: www.wits.ac.za/applications
Fees and funding: www.wits.ac.za/study-at-wits/fees-and-funding
Steps to Apply

1 30 Jun Complete and submit the online undergraduate application to Wits. If you have not already done
2020 so, you may complete the Online Application here: https://www.wits.ac.za/applications/

Original hard copies of BAS Exercises 1 and 2, along with the Submission Form, must be
2 24 Jul received at the School of Architecture & Planning by 16h00 on this date, or time-stamped by
2020, by registered mail or courier, with a tracking number, by that time. Items sent by standard post
16h00 without tracking numbers that is not delivered or received after the deadline will not be
considered, irrespective of the postage date. The Exercises are detailed in this document on
pages 4 and 7, and the Submission Form is on page 3. Keep a photocopy for yourself in case
of delivery problems, but do not email submissions or submit photocopies to the School – only
originals will be evaluated. The office is open Monday to Friday from 8h00-16h30. Late or after-
hours submissions will not be accepted.
Physical address Mailing address
School of Architecture & Planning University of the Witwatersrand
John Moffat Building School of Architecture and Planning
University of the Witwatersrand, East Campus John Moffat Building
Yale Road, Braamfontein Private Bag 3, Wits
Johannesburg Johannesburg 2050
Google Maps pin: https://goo.gl/maps/gXArCJKJcEhCHQp4A

Applicants who submit the Exercises on time, meet minimum requirements, and show potential
21 Aug in the Exercises will be invited to interviews at the School. In exceptional circumstances only,
2020 interviews may be arranged by Skype, with permission. Applicants not invited for interviews
will also be informed at this time. Applicants who have not heard from the School by this date
and do not see a decline status on their Self-Service portal must email to inquire in order to
maintain eligibility.
Applicants invited for an interview must respond to confirm an interview appointment by this
3 26 Aug date. Applicants who do not respond to the interview invitations may be excluded from further
2020 consideration. Make sure that you give your correct contact details on the Submission Form
and check your email daily to reply to the interview invitation if it arrives.

Complete BAS Exercise 3. This is not compulsory, but we advise that you either job-shadow
4 28 Aug an architect, take the Wits EdX MOOC (or both) as detailed on page 8, before this date, prior to
2020 the interview. You may also browse architecture books, magazines or blogs to find out if you
are going to enjoy this highly demanding course and profession.

Submit official academic results if they were not submitted upon application. Certified
5 28 Aug hardcopies of all official academic results (except final grade 11 and interim grade 12 results) are
2020 required. No application can be considered without academic results.

6 01-03
Sep
Interviews will be held at the School of Architecture & Planning for invited applicants.

11 Sep We check the academic results of suitable applicants after the interviews. The total selection
2020 score consists of scores for the Exercises, the interview and an academic score based on APS
points, which are explained here: www.wits.ac.za/undergraduate/entry-requirements/

28 Sep Provisional offers will be made to eligible candidates based on total scores by this date.
2020 Applicants who accept the conditional offer, maintain good academic performance, and do
equally as well (or better) in their final exams will receive firm offers in January.
Applicants who receive provisional offers must accept them by emailing their assigned
7 26 Oct
Admissions Consultant within four weeks of receipt or the place may be offered to other
2020
applicants.

8 Jan Following the publication of matric results, provisional offers are confirmed and some new
2021 offers made to waitlisted applicants, which must be accepted via the Self-Service
portal within a limited number of days to reserve a place. If offers are declined or not
responded to, these places are offered to the next in line; this process continues until all
places are filled, even if it requires making offers after the first registration date for new
students. If you accept an offer elsewhere, please notify the School.

2
Submission Form
Please print, fill in all sections, including those above the thick dashed lines at the bottom, but not those marked ‘staff
only,’ and submit with your Exercises. Exercises without submission forms and person numbers will not be evaluated.

Applicant’s Contact Information

Applicant’s surname

First names

Wits person number

Postal address

Phone

Email

If you have already written matric but are re-writing any subjects in 2020, please tick here

BAS Application Exercise BAS Application Exercise

Receipt of submission for applicant. Record of submission for School.

Surname Surname

Initials Initials

Wits person no. Wits person no.

For staff only: For staff only:

Received by Received by
Date & time Initial Date & time Initial

3
Exercise 1: Objigamathing
The Scenario
You are to make an objigamathing. You do not know what an objigamathing is, because it is something that does not
yet exist. It is not a building, or any place you have been; it is something that you have never seen before, that performs
some kind of function. Beyond that it can be anything you want it to be, coming from your own imagination. Now
imagine that your friends ask you what this objigamathing is, and they want to see it represented physically, in three
dimensions, in order to understand it. But, being friends, they do not want you to spend any money, so they ask you to
make it using only re-used packaging cardboard (from cereal boxes, crackers, or something similar) and one other found
material (something you could find almost anywhere, even refuse).

Your Task

1 Making. Using the packaging cardboard and not more than one other found material, build a
three-dimensional representation of the objigamathing that would fit into a box 210mm wide,
297mm long, and 210mm tall (the size of standard ream of A4 paper). You may not use glue,
tape, or any other adhesive, so you will have to decide how to assemble your objigamathing.

2 1 or 2
Storyboarding. Draw a step-by-step instruction manual that clearly shows how you made the
objigamathing on one or two A4 sheets of paper, using the Storyboard Layout Guide on page 5
A4s as a guide. This must be made up of drawn images using black ink and a maximum of one other
colour, not with a pencil, and not through photos. Communicate in such a way that someone
who does not speak much of your language could produce a similar object using your manual.

Writing. In approximately 200 words, define what your objigamathing is, and write the story of
3 1 how it came about, and what its possibilities are. Your story should include something about
A4 why the objigamathing is significant for you.

Photo. Take one good photo of your objigamathing, and print it on a single A4 page. Include
4 this photo with your submission.
A4

Things to Consider
There are a number of decisions you need to make in the process, including:
• How can you use the limited materials to create a wonderful objigamathing?
• How you are going to put the various pieces of the objigamathing together without glue or tape?
• How you explain to someone else what your objigamathing is, or what it does?

Getting Help
If you feel stuck, you may look at precedents (examples of other objects) made from cardboard. However, the
objigamathing you create should be the product of your own imagination, with your own personal story. Remember
that anything you find online can also be found by the admissions team at the School, so we will know if you are copying!
The final object must be a product of your own hands. It can be an abstract object, an invention, an imaginary creature,
or anything else you can come up with. Below are some images which may give you some inspiration.

Checklist for Submission

Submission Form (see page 3) duly filled and your Wits person number on every sheet.
1 or 2 A4 sheets containing a storyboard using the issued layout: Storyboard Layout Guide (see page 5).
1 A4 sheet containing a 200 word essay: The Story of Objigamathing.
1 A4 sheet containing a good photo of your objigamathing.
Make photocopies for yourself; the School does not return completed exercises to applicants.
Submit originals along with Exercise 2 and the Submission Form in person, or send by registered mail or
courier with a tracking number, by the deadline listed on page 2. Do not submit the object itself.

4
Storyboard Layout Guide
Name of Project

Person number
Sample Storyboard Layouts
Use the Storyboard Layout Guide on the previous page to help compose the way in which you present your drawings.
You may draw directions on that sheet if you want, but you may wish to copy it and recompose it on another paper once
you decide how to organise your storyboard. The grid shown is a guideline, but you may combine different squares to
make bigger ones if you want. Below are some possible ways to lay out the storyboard but these are only suggestions
for possible layouts and you are free to explore alternatives using the Storyboard Layout Guide

You ca n use each square You can combine rows You can combine
e grid sepa rately columns

You can combine lots of You can modify the

squares to make bigger blocks of the grid
drawings however you want

Put a title somewhere

5mm between small gridlines 12mm in the middle & at margins at the top left

Put your person number

Don’t draw outside the margins
at the bottom right
(of both pages if 2)

6
Exercise 2: The Journey
Background
This is an exercise in freehand artistic drawing. Please note that ‘freehand’ means without the use of rulers or straight
edges. There is no correct or incorrect interpretation, we want to see your creative interpretation of the requirements
listed below.

Your Task
Drawing. With graphite pencil (not coloured pencil) on an A3 sheet of paper, draw your most
1 1
memorable journey. It could be a family vacation you went on, a place you went with friends, a
A3
move to a new house or new school, or some other kind of journey. Open your senses of sight,
hearing, touch, smell and taste as you think about your journey. Think about all the things and
experiences both familiar and unusual which happen along the way. Consider your destination
and how it feels to arrive. Think of this as a journey through space, time and emotions.

Communicating. Your drawing must communicate the following:

2 ? • The sequence of events that make up the journey (not just the destination);
• Noteworthy or significant moments during the journey;
• Landmarks or special places that were part of the journey;
• The spatial relationships between these places;
• Feelings, memories and states of mind that accompanied you on your journey;
• Qualities of light and shadow.

You need to find a creative way to represent your ideas graphically for the above. Please note
that one single scene is not a representation of a journey. A two dimensional map on its own
will not be sufficient, and tracing is not permitted.

Checklist for Submission

1 A3 sheet with your original drawing. You may fold it to an A4 to fit in an envelope;
Make a photocopy for yourself; the School does not return completed exercises to applicants;
Submit the original drawing, along with Exercise 1 and the Submission Form in person, or send by
registered mail or courier with a tracking number, by the deadline shown on page 2.

7
Exercise 3: Job Shadowing & MOOC
Background
Although Exercise 3 is optional, having some exposure to the profession of architecture before the interview is strongly
recommended, as it allows you to explore and better understand the profession of architecture and will serve to eliminate
any misconceptions of what a future in architecture holds. You may complete one or both options.

Option 1: Job Shadowing

Job Shadowing. Do your best to undertake a day of job-shadowing in an architectural practice.
1 This involves following the day to day roles and responsibilities of an architect in practice to gain
maximum benefit from the experience. If you do not live near an architectural practice, consider
a substitute experience of either job shadowing a registered draughtsperson or spending a day
on a building site when the person responsible for drawing the building plans makes a site visit.

Documenting. During the day and when you get home, make notes and sketches about
2 conversations, the office, any building sites you visit as well as your own observations.

Option 2: Wits EdX MOOC

Wits, in conjunction with other universities, has developed a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) entitled What Do
Architects & Urban Planners Do? It is intended as an overview and preparatory course for people interested in pursuing
architecture and other spatial design professions.

Take the MOOC. Set aside some time to go through the entire MOOC, which is available
1 online at: https://www.edx.org/course/what-do-architects-and-urban-planners-do, and
complete the assignments. This is a 3-week course, with 2-3 hours of engagement per week.
You can do the free version; we do not require the certificate. All you need is a computer or
smart phone and internet access. Please note that you have to register for this MOOC by 30
March 2020 to do the first course. It will be open for future registrations later in 2020, but this
may be after the interviews.

2 Documenting. As you complete the assignments, assemble the creative work that you do into
an organised portfolio, and write a few notes reflecting on how your views about the creative
process and architecture have been shaped by it.

Finding an Architect
For the job shadowing, you will need to find an architect. For a list of registered architects and architectural firms, see:
• The South African Council for the Architectural Profession: www.sacapsa.com
• The South African Institute of Architects: https://saia.org.za
• The Gauteng Institute for Architecture: www.gifa.org.za

Checklist for Your Own Record

You do not need to submit this information to SoAP, but you may want to bring it to your interview. Record:
A timeline of your progress on either or each of the options above;
Your impressions of the role of the architect;
Sketches of what you did or saw in the office, on site, or in the MOOC;
Compile a portfolio of sketches and/or creative work from your experience. If you are invited to an
interview, you may bring this to it.

The Interview
Once we have evaluated the BAS Exercises, approximately the top half of the applicants will be invited for interviews,
which is the last step in the application. It takes place at the School, and you’ll be able to see what BAS students do,
ask questions, and look around at student work and our facilities. If you are invited, you will be expected to bring your
objigamathing and a portfolio of creative work. The interview is a required component of the application.
Please note that not all applicants are invited for interviews. Check the email you used for your online application (or
listed on your Submission Form) regularly around the date indicated on page 2 when invitees will be notified. Applicants
will only be notified by email; if you do not respond to confirm your interview invitation, the School may remove you from
consideration.

8
Dos and Don’ts for Submission
Do
Do make sure the Submission Form is filled out in its entirety.
Do double check the ‘checklist for submission’ indicated at the bottom of Exercises 1 and 2.
Do put your Wits person number (not your ID number) on every page.
Do make copies for yourself before submitting.
Do keep your receipt of submission, or waybill from your courier if submitted by registered mail or courier.

Don’t
Don’t submit the objigamathing object; if you are invited to an interview, you may bring it then.
Don’t submit all 9 pages of this set of instructions; submit only your Exercises and the Submission Form.
Don’t submit the Exercise 3 information; this will only be reviewed if you are invited to an interview.
Don’t submit elaborately crafted displays; stick to the A4 and A3 sized papers specified in the requirements.
Don’t laminate your pages, put them into a plastic portfolio, or ‘package’ them in an unusual way.
Don’t email your submission.
Don’t send by standard post mail without a tracking number; use only registered mail or courier with a tracking number.
Don’t ask the School to confirm delivery by courier; use your tracking number to confirm with your courier.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How many applicants will be accepted? The BAS programme targets a first-year enrolment of approximately 70-75
students. This may include students who are repeating after having failed the previous year, and rollovers from previous
application years. We continue to make offers until all places are filled.

How are the application Exercises evaluated? Understand that there is no right or wrong answer! Your response
enables us to evaluate your suitability for architecture. We do not want to see technical drawings; imaginatively drawn
exercises which communicate as many layers of meaning as possible score well. Clear, logical but evocative graphic
communication is important.

I mailed the Exercises; how will I know if the School received it? Use the tracking number provided by your courier
to check the status through your courier. A date, time and recipient name will be recorded by your courier. Do not ask
the School to confirm receipt; we receive hundreds of applications and it is not possible to follow up with all of them.

How will I know how I’ve done in the exercise? Exact evaluation scores are not released to applicants, but those
who score well on the exercise will be invited for an interview; those who do not will be declined. Relevant dates can be
found on page 2. Always check your email regularly.

How can I stay informed of my application status? Always check the email you used to complete the online application;
changes to your application status will be emailed to you and applicants must make use of the Student Self-Service
portal https://self-service.wits.ac.za

What if I don’t hear anything by the date interview invitations are sent out?
If the date interview invitations are to be sent passes without communication from Wits and your portal shows your
application is still active, please check both the email you used for the online application, and the email you listed on the
Submission Form, if different. Check both your inbox and your spam/junk mail folders for any communication from a
Wits email address (ending in @wits.ac.za). If you have not received any communication, and your portal shows your
application is still under consideration, email us at [email protected]

What if I mailed the Exercises before the deadline, but my application portal says I was declined due to non-
submission? If you sent the Exercise by registered mail or courier with a tracking number, the time scan of receipt by
the courier will show whether you submitted it on time, and it will be accepted. If the School does not receive it due to
a mistake by the courier, you may send us your waybill from the courier and we can use the tracking number to locate it,
but please only do this if requested by the School. If you mailed the Exercises by standard mail (including Fastmail by
the South African Post Office) and do not have a tracking number, we cannot accept Exercises received after the
deadline.

How are applicants ranked when making offers of admission? We use an internal scoring system which gives equal
weight to the three criteria: the exercise score, the interview score, and a score based on your APS.