Situated within an Aboriginal heritage site on Clements Drive at its Bundoora West Campus, Walert House or BWSA (Bundoora West Student Accommodation) is RMIT University‘s foray into on-campus student housing. Richard Middleton Architects (RMA) was engaged by RMIT to design halls of residence that would offer the best possible model for on-campus living within an increasingly competitive setting.
Photography: Dianna Snape
RMA worked intensively with RMIT, and also the building’s operator, Unilodge, to ensure that its residents would live within halls that offer the most supportive community possible thus, the functions of university life were to be incorporated within this building at its core.

This gave rise to the idea of a multi-purpose hub at the intersection of the building’s three wings. This hub would be themed and zoned, progressing from larger gathering spaces on the lower levels to quieter communal spaces on the upper. These spaces would serve a variety of functions, from bookable rooms to a TED space, but also encourage residents to move between each level via a winding open stairwell encouraging their serendipitous interaction. Photography: Dianna Snape
With a large grassed forecourt before it, this hub activates the northern campus entrance on its corner with McKimmies Road. It’s extensively glazed to offer views to the landscape and advertise an active series of spaces that draw its residents from their rooms to study and interact.

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