Architecture Summer Programs

A person setting up architectural models on black pedestals.

First-year B.Arch. students prepare, assemble, and display their Core I Studio models and works for an exhibition in Milstein Dome. Melanie Chu (M.Arch. '24) / AAP

Build your portfolio. Start on your path to the study and practice of architecture at Cornell.

Develop your ideas and find new design inspiration at Cornell this summer! Architecture at Cornell's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP) is about creative and critical design practices that have a lasting impact by balancing rigorous research and scholarship, assuming responsibility for our natural and built environments, and reimagining the world at every scale to build a just and sustainable future for all. At Cornell Architecture, we see design as a process of creative experimentation and iterative analysis, ensuring non-judgmental, holistic, and open-ended inquiry enabled by independent, critical thinking and bold thought leadership.

High School Students

A person building a wooden architectural model.

"It was wonderful! Not only did I attain knowledge of basic architectural concepts, but I also learned how to think and analyze like an architect."

— Qi Yun (Christine) Gao, Summer Program Student

Introduction to Architecture and Design Precollege Program

Lay foundations. Explore new ideas. Open possibilities.

The Cornell Architecture Introduction to Architecture and Design Precollege Program is a rigorous six-week summer program for high-achieving and high-potential high school students interested in studying architecture and related design disciplines. The program introduces students to foundational principles of design at multiple scales, ranging from design objects and urban installations to buildings and landscapes. Taught by Cornell faculty, the program provides highly motivated students with an opportunity to build on their creative interests to explore architecture and design, architecture history, and theory at one of the nation's most prestigious schools of architecture. In Milstein Hall, students are immersed in a state-of-the-art facility with digital fabrication and imaging, and physical model-making capacity as well as access to the dynamic Mui Ho Fine Arts Library.

Application Deadlines
Residential student applications are due by May 1, 2025.
Commuter student applications are due by May 19, 2025.

Apply Now

In-Person Courses

Student Experience

Frances Shloss Studio

A group of people sitting in chairs in a brightly lit room.

These state-of-the-art studios on the third floor of East Sibley Hall feature individual and group critique spaces as well as a floor-length stretch of skylights that allow for an uninterrupted flood of daylight.

Learn More

A group of people sitting in chairs in a brightly lit room.

The side of a large brick, metal, and glass building.

Our Campus