by Center for Architecture
This winter, the Center for Architecture and AIA New York partnered once again to organize the eighth annual Discover Architecture Career Exploration program for high school students in New York City. In 2026, the program saw a surge in interest, with over 100 applications resulting in 38 New York City high school sophomores and juniors, from 27 schools, being placed in 18 architecture firms across Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Past AIANY President Hayes Slade, AIA, launched Discover Architecture in 2019 as a three-day immersive career exploration experience for high schoolers interested in architecture and design. The 2026 program consisted of a three-day externship at an architecture office followed by a culminating event at the Center for Architecture led by Design Educators Breanna Katsman and Tim Hayduk. Each student presented their experience with the firms and shared a group design charrette. In the afternoon, Noah Shipley, an artist, designer, and educator who has a BArch and MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, gave a talk about his career trajectory and answered questions from the students about college and university programs, portfolio development, and alternate pathways to careers in architecture and design.
Although many of the students have cemented their interests in the field thanks to the experience, the program’s goal is not only to introduce students to the profession of architecture and design, but also to the types of activities that take place and the varied skillsets that are called upon by firm staff. For many students, the exposure to friendly professionals who were eager to share their professional path was just as valuable, with many wishing that they could have spent more time at the firms. Common themes emerged from all the students’ experiences, centered around sustainability, community, and the multidisciplinary nature of the field, which led to a lively discussion on the final day at the Center for Architecture:
“Architects are like glue—they connect all fields into one and collaborate with so many people.”
“I found that the meetings with clients and other engineers very interesting and how everyone collaborated to design a space. It was very insightful learning that they were not independent jobs.”
“It feels like the possibilities in architecture are endless and there’s a special niche for everyone.”
“I learned a lot about how to approach architecture not purely as an artist/design based discipline. Emphasis on community and civil works forces the team to pay attention to problems of sustainability, budget, and how the space interacts with the community around it.”
Many thanks to the firms and their colleagues who participated in the program. Your energy and enthusiasm are what makes this program a success!
Participating Firms:
- Allied Works
- Architecture in Formation
- Architecture Outfit
- Architecture Research Office
- Curtis + Ginsberg Architects
- Dattner Architects
- Design Republic
- DLR Group
- Gensler
- GLUCK+ Architecture
- HLW International
- Matiz Architecture & Design
- MBB Architects
- Sage and Coombe Architects
- Shakespeare Gordon Studio
- Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
- Slade Architecture
- Spacesmith
High Schools:
- Archbishop Molloy High School
- Brooklyn Latin School
- Brooklyn Technical High School
- Chelsea Career and Technical Education High School
- Columbia Secondary School
- Edward R. Murrow High School
- Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts
- Francis Lewis High School
- Frank McCourt High School
- Frank Sinatra School of the Arts High School
- Gramercy Arts High School
- High School for Dual Language and Asian Studies
- High School for Math, Science and Engineering
- High School of Applied Communication
- High School of World Cultures
- Hunter College High School
- Loyola School
- Millennium High School
- Restart Academy
- Robert F. Wagner, Jr. Secondary School for Arts and Technology
- Stuyvesant High School
- The Bronx High School of Science
- The Spence School
- The Young Women’s Leadership School of Astoria
- Tottenville High School
- Townsend Harris High School
- West End Secondary School
Students interested in participating in the 2026 program can find more information on the Center for Architecture website. Details on how to apply will be available in September 2026.
Firms interested in becoming a Discover Architecture program partner: please contact us at [email protected].