Despite numerous studies on the quality of university spaces, most research has focused on open spaces, functional indicators, or general environmental assessments; few studies have systematically elicited the spatial preferences of architecture students or prioritized design components based on their visual perception. This gap has left designers without sufficient empirical evidence when making decisions regarding the physical and spatial characteristics of architecture schools. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the aim of identifying the components of spatial preferences among architecture students, ranking these components, and proposing a framework for the design of educational spaces. The study is an applied study that employed a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative methods. In the quantitative phase, based on a literature review, a set of selected images—covering areas such as volumetric and interior design, lobbies, galleries, classrooms, workshops, libraries, furniture, open and semi-open spaces, natural elements, multifunctional areas, group work zones, and educational event spaces—was compiled and presented to 100 undergraduate architecture students at Imam Khomeini International University. The students ranked the images according to their preferences; the resulting data were analyzed and categorized using the Friedman test in SPSS software and the t-test and Levene’s test were employed to examine the significance of differences between male and female students. Kendall's test was also used to analyze the level of agreement among respondents. The results indicated a significant difference in the prioritization of images across the examined dimensions (P<0.05), but no significant difference was observed between the groups of male and female students. The Kendall test indicated a significant level of agreement (P<0.05) regarding the collaborative workspace, exterior form design, furniture, and interior space; the highest level of agreement was observed for the exterior form, while the lowest level pertained to identity and natural elements within the space. In the qualitative phase, the reasons behind the students' image selections were analyzed through qualitative content analysis revealing that their preferences were primarily driven by factors such as form, spatial organization, natural light, visual appeal, and the quality of furnishings. Furthermore, content analysis of the responses revealed that students' preferences could be classified into four dimensions: physical, functional, social, and meaning with the physical dimension accounting for the largest share.