Columbia University Pre-College Programs Introduction to Architectural Design and Theory

Class runs Monday to Friday in two blocks of just under two hours each. Sections 001, 002, 004 and 005 meet from 9:10 to 11:00 a.m. and 1:10 to 3:00 p.m., and Sections 003 and 006 meet from 11:10 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. and 3:10 to 5:00 p.m., all Eastern Time. That adds up to roughly 18 hours a week in class, and Columbia says to expect an hour or two of homework a night on average.

Residential students can have breakfast from 7:30 a.m. on weekdays, and the two-hour midday break is for lunch, the gym and activities. Activities, outings and workshops run through the day, with special events every Friday and Saturday. Commuters follow the same class pattern and can stay for lectures and college workshops in the early evening, but should leave campus by 6:30 p.m. Monday to Thursday. Friday evening community events need a parent's permission.

If you complete the course, you get a Columbia University Certification of Participation and an evaluation letter from your instructor. They're usually issued by mid-October and uploaded to your account rather than mailed. The letter comments on your effort, participation, assignments, progress and potential in the field. Since no grades are given and the course carries no college credit, it's the main written feedback you'll take away. If you miss more than two days of class, you aren't eligible for the certificate, and repeated absences are noted in the letter.

Columbia says you can ask your school counselor to add both documents to their recommendation. It's equally clear that taking part has no influence on admission to Columbia College, its undergraduate school.

The summer program is open to domestic and international students from rising 9th grade through current 12th grade, and seniors can come the summer after they graduate. The commuter option also takes students entering their freshman year of college. Living on campus has an age rule: you must be at least 15 and, if you're 15, turn 16 by 31 December 2027. Columbia calls admission selective but sets no minimum GPA and doesn't ask for PSAT, SAT or ACT scores.

You'll answer two short-response questions and send an unofficial transcript, a teacher recommendation and, for either in-person option, a recommendation from a school counselor or administrator. English test scores aren't required, but Columbia expects a level equivalent to 90 or above on the internet-based TOEFL or at least 6.5 on IELTS. The catch is that Columbia admits you to the program, not to this course. You name your top two courses, then register after paying the deposit, and once a course is full there's no waitlist.

For summer 2027, Columbia lists $12,838 for a three-week residential session and $6,381 for a three-week commuter session. The residential price covers housing, three meals a day and the activities, health services and technology fees. The commuter price covers those fees but not room or meals. Commuters can buy food in the dining halls, but they can't get a meal plan. Columbia calls both totals estimates pending Board of Trustees approval.

On top of that come a $95 application fee and about $150 of basic studio supplies you buy before class starts. Columbia's latest course-fee list, for summer 2026, also shows a $150 fee for this course covering equipment, facilities and field trips. It doesn't say whether that's the same money as the supplies, so it's worth asking. Columbia also suggests budgeting about $50 for textbooks and field trips for most courses, and you'll need to pay for travel to campus.

A non-refundable deposit of $3,500 (residential) or $2,000 (commuter) holds your place and counts toward the total. The balance is due by 11 June 2027, and there's no payment plan. Paying by card adds 2.85% for domestic cards or 4.25% for international ones. If you withdraw by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on 24 June 2027 (Session A) or 15 July 2027 (Session B), you get everything back except the deposit. After that, you're liable for the full cost.

Need-based aid is open only to commuters who are US citizens or permanent residents living in the US or its territories, and only for a single session. Awards cover 25% to 50% of the program cost but not the activities, health services, technology or course fees. The aid deadline is 10 February 2027. You have to say you want aid in your application before you submit it, because you can't add an aid request afterward.

Residential students are supervised by live-in Resident Assistants who complete two weeks of training, backed by professional Resident Directors on call around the clock, and Columbia puts its staff-to-student ratio at 6 to 1. Public Safety officers guard residence hall entrances 24 hours a day. Students live on single-gender floors or in single-gender suites, with non-binary housing available, and can only go to their own floor or suite.

You have to be in your building by 9 p.m. on weeknights and 10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and in your room by 11 p.m., or midnight on Friday and Saturday. Breaking curfew gets you dismissed. Free time off campus is limited to the area from 110th to 120th Streets between Amsterdam Avenue and Riverside Drive, and you need staff with you in parks, on the subway or in a rideshare. Commuters must live with direct adult supervision, never in a hotel, Airbnb or hostel. Instructors are background-checked and trained under Columbia's Protection of Minors policy. There's no airport pickup, so families arrange travel themselves.

Applications go through Columbia's summer programs portal, and complete applications are reviewed on a rolling basis.

1. 1

   Choose residential or commuter and Session A or B, then gather your unofficial transcript and tell your teacher and counselor recommenders.

2. 2

   Name this course among your top two choices and submit the application with the $95 fee by 1 February 2027 for early registration, or by 1 March 2027 (residential) or 1 April 2027 (commuter).

3. 3

   Expect a decision about three to five weeks after all your materials arrive.

4. 4

   Pay the non-refundable deposit by the date in your acceptance email and complete the enrollment forms. Proof of immunization is due within two weeks of admission, and processing it can take two to three weeks.

5. 5

   Once your holds are cleared, register for the course yourself, from 3 March 2027 if you applied early or 17 March 2027 otherwise, while seats remain.