Course overview:
Week 1 - Introduction, preparation and taking the examination (8 October).
Purpose, structure and marking of the Chartered Membership Examination, question selection, examination strategy and time management, preparation of reference material, examination day requirements, and introduction to past paper practice.
Week 2 - Feedback from recent attempts and examiners (15 October).
Examiner led review of how scripts are assessed, including correctness, clarity, compliance with the brief and presentation. Common weaknesses are discussed together with recent changes in the examination.
Week 3 - Section 1A: conceptual design and scheme appraisal (22 October).
Development of two distinct, viable and sustainable structural solutions. Candidates practise framing, load paths, stability, serviceability and proportionate viability checks, followed by critical appraisal and justified selection of a preferred scheme.
Week 4 - Structural stability (29 October).
Application of stability principles to building schemes, including diaphragms, bracing, cores, sway behaviour and transfer of horizontal actions to foundations. The session also addresses robustness, movement joints, temporary conditions and serviceability.
Week 5 - Concrete structures (5 November).
Design of reinforced concrete solutions, including rapid scheme sizing and examination level calculations for loading, slabs, beams, columns and stability walls, with emphasis on realistic member sizes and efficient structural forms.
Week 6 - Timber and masonry (12 November).
Selection and development of timber and masonry solutions, including framing and stability systems, preliminary sizing, robustness, connections, movement, creep and shrinkage, moisture, temporary stability, fire, durability and interaction with supporting primary structures.
Week 7 - Professional communication, method statements and embodied carbon (19 November).
Preparation of professional client communication, including challenging the brief to reduce material use. Candidates also develop project specific construction method statements and integrate embodied carbon considerations and approximate A1-A3 calculations into structural decision making.
Week 8 - Steel structures (26 November).
Development of steel-framed solutions from concept to detailed design, covering structural form, stability, preliminary sizing, beams, columns and connections. Sustainability, structural reuse and design for disassembly are considered where relevant.
Week 9 - Drawings and structural details (3 December).
Preparation of examination standard general arrangement drawings and critical details, including plans, sections, elevations, dimensions, annotations and information for estimating. Emphasis is placed on communicating the scheme clearly.
Week 10 - Foundations and substructures (10 December).
Selection and preliminary design of substructure solutions from stated ground conditions. Topics include shallow and piled foundations, basements, retaining systems, groundwater and integration of the foundation solution into calculations, drawings and construction methodology.
Week 11 - Sample paper review and feedback (17 December).
A feedback-focused final session reviewing candidate responses to a sample or past examination paper. Tutors discuss alternative solutions, strengths and weaknesses, presentation, examination technique and time management, and identify priorities for final preparation.
Course aims:
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Develop an effective and structured approach to the IStructE Chartered Membership Examination.
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Strengthen conceptual design and scheme appraisal skills for open-ended structural briefs.
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Develop examination level capability in stability, materials, calculations, drawings and construction planning.
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Improve professional communication and integration of sustainability, material efficiency and embodied carbon.
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Develop effective examination strategy, time management and critical self-review.
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, candidates should be able to:
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Interpret an examination brief and identify its structural, functional, geotechnical, construction and sustainability constraints.
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Formulate and communicate two distinct, viable and sustainable structural schemes, including foundations and clear load paths.
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Establish and explain framing, stability, robustness and serviceability, and critically appraise alternative solutions.
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Undertake proportionate calculations and develop credible solutions in steel, reinforced concrete, timber and masonry for building structures.
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Incorporate approximate A1-A3 embodied carbon calculations and material efficiency considerations.
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Prepare clear general arrangement drawings, structural details and concise client communication.
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Prepare a project specific construction method statement addressing safe construction and temporary conditions.