The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) President's Medals are an annual award. Open to students from over 100 schools of architecture worldwide, they are seen as the most prestigious of any student architecture award.
About the awards
They are given to the best student in three categories:
- Bronze Medal (RIBA Part 1 student)
- Dissertation Medal
- Silver Medal (RIBA part 2 student)
The University of Westminster's Department of Architecture has been particularly successful, with a distinguished history of winning both the Dissertation Medal and the Silver Medal, often seen as the highest of all awards.
This accomplishment is furthered by another outstanding achievement in the RIBA President's Awards for Research, with Westminster staff winning or being shortlisted in these awards over many years.
Roll of honour – University of Westminster winners
RIBA President's Silver Medals
- 2020 – Robert Beeny, Winner: Devil's Valley Geothermal Co-operative
Tutors: Anthony Boulanger, Callum Perry and Stuart Piercy - 2019 Rachel Wakelin, Winner: Serjeant Award for Excellence in Architectural Drawing at Part 2 Avian Air – A Tropospheric Bird Sanctuary
Tutors: Lindsay Bremner, John Cook, Ben Pollock - 2019 Sun Yen Yee, SOM Foundation Fellowship (UK Award) SEED of Havana: Dissolving Condensers
Tutors: Nasser Golzari and Yara Sharif - 2016 Molly de Courcy Wheeler, Commendation
Tutors: Sean Griffiths and Kester Rattenbury - 2014 – Yannis Halkiopoulos, Commended: 'Brooklyn Co-operative'
Tutors: Anthony Boulanger, Guan Lee and Stuart Piercy - 2010 – Jonathan Schofield, Winner: 'Creative Evolution: Silvertown Ship Breaking Yard'
Tutors: William Firebrace, Gabby Shawcross - 2009 – Nicholas Szczepaniak, Winner: 'A Defensive Architecture'
Tutors: Susanne Isa, Sasha Leong, Markus Seifermann - 2008 – Mark Rist, Commended, Serjeant Award: 'Communes for Urbanites'
- 2006 – Gillian Lambert, Winner: 'House at Gallions Reach'
Tutors: Susanne Isa, Simon Herron - 2005 – Yew Choong Chan, Winner: 'V.En (Vertical Energy)'
Tutors: Susanne Isa, Simon Herron - 2001 – Alexis Kyriakides, Winner: 'The Kinematic Garden'
Tutor: Jon Goodbun
RIBA President's Dissertation Medals
- 2020 – Amy Bettinson, Commendation: A Laboratory for Contextualism
Tutor: Harry Charrington - 2019 – Ruth Pearn, Winner: Age Through the Terrace: The Evolving Impact of Age on Social and Spatial Relations in the Home
Tutor: Harry Charrington - 2019 – Fiona Grieve, Commendation: The Reception of Refugees in the UK
Tutor: Davide Deriu - 2017 – Rhiain Bower, Winner: ‘Baricsio. The slate quarrymen’s barracks in North West Wales’
Tutor: Harry Charrington - 2015 – Marie Price, Winner: ‘The Overlooked Back Garden: Voyeurism In The English Back Garden’
Tutor: Harry Charrington - 2011 – Julianne Cassidy, Commended: 'Arka pana: the church in the city without god'
Tutor: Julian Williams - 2010 – Clare Richards, Winner: 'Happy Communities'
Tutor: John Bold - 2009 – Rebecca Gregory, Winner: 'The art of skew bridges'
Tutor: Richard Difford - 2008 – Dominic Severs, Winner: 'Rookeries and No-go Estates'
Tutor: John Bold - 2007 – Joanna Rapp, Winner: 'A Geometrical Analysis of Multiple View-point Perspective in the Work of Giovanni Battista Piranesi'
Tutor: Richard Difford - 2006 – Tim O'Callaghan, Winner: 'Centerparcs'
Tutor: Murray Fraser
RIBA President's Research Award for Outstanding University-based Research
- 2019 – Tumpa Fellows, Commendation: Improvised architectural responses to the changing climate; making, sharing and communicating design processes
- 2016 – Dr Nasser Golzari, Dr Yara Sharif and Professor Murray Fraser (Bartlett UCL), Commendation: Palestine Regeneration Team (PART)/Golzari NG Architects
- 2011 – Tatjana Schneider (University of Sheffield) and Jeremy Till, Winner: Spatial Agency
- 2010 – Kester Rattenbury and Murray Fraser, Shortlisted: Archigram Archival Project
- 2009 – Jeremy Till, Winner: Architecture Depends
- 2008 – Murray Fraser, Winner: Architecture and the 'Special Relationship'
- 2007 – Tatjana Schneider (University of Sheffield) and Jeremy Till, Winner: Flexible Housing
RIBA President's Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis
- 2015 – Isis Paola Nunez Ferrera, commended: ‘Territories of Scarcity and Creativity: A Critical view on Informal Settlements and Emerging Tactics under Conditions of Scarcity in Nairobi, Kenya and Quito Ecuador’.
Supervised by Professor Jeremy Till and Jon Goodbun - 2013 – Yara Sharif, commended: PhD by Design 'Searching for Spaces of Possibilities and Spaces of Imagination within the Palestinian/Israeli Conflict’