This thesis explores the rapidly changing landscape of education and the necessity for adaptable educational environments highlighting the stagnation in current educational systems, particularly universities, the study calls for a reevaluation of their societal roles. Universities have transformed into transnational bureaucratic corporations, contributing to advanced capitalism by commodifying education. The research is driven by primary and secondary questions focused on designing future-oriented educational systems and spaces. It examines the architect's role in these systems and the future role of university campuses. The methodology combines practical building analysis with theoretical research on educational systems, historical examination of education spaces, and current educational theories to predict future trends and propose a model for lifelong learning. Conducted within a studio project framework, the thesis involves designing a hybrid building for higher education in The Hague’s central area. Project aims to foresee the future of education and urban development, emphasizing architecture's role in addressing complex challenges. The proposed building design prioritizes adaptability and flexibility, aligning with the agenda of incorporating multiplicity in design to create resilient, transformative spaces. The relevance of the proposed university campus is underscored within broader social, professional, and scientific contexts. The strategic site at The Hague's Central Station involves repurposing an existing building (The Stichthage) to create an additional 30,000 square meters of space. This adaptive reuse approach minimizes CO2 emissions and material waste, enhancing sustainability. The architectural concept comprises two main components: the existing structure and a superstructure supported by four cores. The superstructure includes generic adaptable spaces, hybrid public spaces, and archival areas, forming an open architectural system designed to adapt to future uncertainties. Sustainability is a central focus, with passive ventilation systems and primarily timber construction. In conclusion, this thesis proposes a hybrid building for higher education that emphasizes adaptability and sustainability. By repurposing the existing building and creating flexible, transformative spaces, the project prepares for the evolving educational landscape. This model envisions a progressive educational building and establishes a framework for continual evolution, advocating adaptability as the future of architecture. ... Read more

In Oxford and Cambridge, higher education arose around the 13th century and has undergone major developments. One of the first colleges in Oxford was Balliol College started as an act of charity in 1260 by the King of Scots, John Balliol, where Balliol housed poor students in a house rented by him (Jones, n.d.). Over the years, several colleges have been built, each with its character and identity and mostly horizontally organised. These colleges are, sometimes, connected by footbridges but are mainly self-contained complexes. The complexes are organised out of several courtyards to which university facilities are attached. The resulting colleges are introverted due to the courtyard-facing facades that create close street frontages and have little connection with the public realm. Many campuses continued developing using the traditional layout and are mostly still segregated from the surrounding city fabric. The densification of cities necessitates the integration of campuses into the city. This ensures that cities are open and more accessible and spaces and programmes of the city and campus can reinforce each other and contribute to challenges within the society (den Heijer & Curvelo Magdaniel, 2018). As an answer to the studio brief, the Temporary House of Representatives of The Netherlands in The Hague was selected as a project site for the new campus. This building is an obsolete office building that is, due to its function, for many parts closed for the public. The new campus will accommodate lecture halls, workspaces, housing and other public functions. These programmes have specific requirements and dimensions and therefore the building needs to be transformed. However, in The Hague’s densely built Central Innovation District (CID) there is little room for a horizontal extension and creating a horizontally oriented campus as in Oxford. In fact, in the future, the Municipality of The Hague plans to densify further the CID (Municipality of The Hague, 2021), leaving even less space for buildings and public spaces. On the other hand, it creates opportunities for more multi-use high-rise buildings with different types of public programmes and spaces. Therefore, the campus needs to grow in height which causes implications for the more “traditional” circulation patterns between different floors and functions within and around the campus. How can vertical circulation be created by breaking through the stacked floors as Musiatowicz (2008) argues? Additionally, at the moment the building of the Temporary House of Representatives of The Netherlands, colloquially named the Monkey Rock, is seen as a monotonous closed structuralist building. Although the building has a distinct identity and is part of “the unity of the archipelago” (Koolhaas, 1994, p. 296), how can the new campus incorporate the local identity which could be represented by the kiosk typology of The Hague, which is now lost in the high-density area? ... Read more