Architecture

& Urban Design

Tuition &

Mentorship

Hi, I’m Khalifa Abubakar, an urban designer and architectural professional based in the UK. I have 15 years of expertise in the design and delivery of buildings, spaces and places. Alongside my design work, I have been helping budding architects and urban designers navigate their way through their degrees since 2010.

Learn more about my background, tuition and mentorship offers below…

Services

  • Through one-on-one sessions we will target specific topics with regards to your degree or architectural interest area. I can help with design theory, coursework clarification, Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator and SketchUp software, design conceptualisation, document design and preparation techniques, portfolios, cover letters and CVs, public speaking, and presentation.

    For those yet to start their degree, and are looking to better understand architecture or urban design as course or career options, I work with you to create a bespoke series of tasks, reading lists and activities all aimed at giving you a good overview of these built environment specialisms.

    Whether you require one or multiple sessions, the hope is that you will come away empowered with a broader appreciation of architecture and urban design as academic and professional pursuits.

    • Free 30-min meet & greet (online)

    • Tuition from £28/hr

    • 1-hr min. / session

    • Available in-person (London only)

  • Architectural courses are long, competitive and demanding undertakings. Students are often expected to spend many self-directed hours in their studios. In this environment, it is very easy to feel lost and overwhelmed. Furthermore, as design is never absolute, it makes it very hard to completely switch off in those precious moments you do manage to step away from your desk.

    Dealing with the social and financial pressures of university, on top of a gruelling enough course, can be mentally and physically debilitating. In this context, it is unfortunately of no surprise that the drop-out rates for architecture are high.

    In light of this, and reflecting on my own student days, I look to serve as an ever ready and willing mentor for you to seek help from and bounce thoughts and ideas with as and when you need. I can help in navigating different areas of your course and associated life at university. Unlike tuition, which seeks to address discernible topics, mentorship is less prescriptive. We can discuss course specific items as well as personal career goals, time-management and financial planning. I can also help in finding work experience, speaking with course tutors, architectural tours, and arrange for you to visit projects on site.

    • £95/month (excl. London) £110/month (London)

    • Available to you online and via WhatsApp as and when you need

    • Up to 5 contact hours in London only.

Mentorship

  • I am a co-founder of West Port Architects and Principal Urban Design Officer at Peterborough City Council. I also sit on the Design and Quality Review Panels for the London boroughs of Ealing, Brent, Haringey and Lambeth.

    In 2012, I graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a Masters in Architecture. Following that period of study, I moved back to London, where I worked in several renowned architecture and design practices. From 2015 – 2017 I undertook a MSc in Urban Design and City Planning at University College London (UCL). I graduated this course with distinction and commendations for my research into the inclusion and participation of black ethnic minorities in the redevelopment of Burgess Park, Peckham.

    In 2016, I co-founded the architectural practice West Port Architects. Our office specialises in cultural and residential commissions, and exhibition design. In the years since it’s founding West Port has grown in size, won and delivered several high profile bids and projects. In recognition of the studio’s achievements, it is profiled in the latest editions of the Architect’s Journal 40 Under 40 and New Architects 4 publications. Alongside West Port's design involvements it has served as a mentoring practice for architecture and planning students from UCL, Nottingham University, and the Royal College of Art.

    Tuition and Mentorship:

    I discovered my passion for tuition in 2010 while looking for a way to supplement my finances during my Part 1 year-out. As someone who had little experience of architecture, or related fields such as art, before university, I share affinity with college students intrigued by architecture as a degree choice but are unfamiliar with its ins and outs. Similarly, I know first hand, the struggles undergraduates at the start of their university life can face as they navigate the plethora of new terminology, conceptual ideas, and high expectations of an architectural course in the UK.

  • University College London UCL (2015-2017)

    MSc Urban Design & City Planning (MScUDCP, RTPI/RICS)

    .

    University of Edinburgh (2011-2012)

    MA Architecture (MArch, ARB)

    .

    Edinburgh College of Art (2010-2011) PG Dip Arch, ARB

    Edinburgh College of Art (2006-2009) BArch Hons, ARB

    Marlborough College, Wiltshire (2001-2006) A-Levels

  • Peterborough City Council

    Principal Urban Design Officer (January 2025 - Ongoing)

    Winchester City Council, Winchester

    Urban Design Officer (April 2023- December 2024)

    .

    West Port Architects, London

    Co-founder (2016 - Ongoing)

    .

    Broadway Malyan, Weybridge

    Urban Designer / Masterplanner (Sept 2015 - 2017)

    .

    2010-2015

    .

    TateHindle, London

    5plus Architects, London

    Sanei Hopkins Architects, London

    Alan Baxter Associates, London

Get in touch

If you’re interested in tuition and mentorship, please don't hesitate to leave your name and a message. I'll make sure to get back to you promptly. Thank you!