Tutoring for architecture school applicants

*Scroll to the bottom for more information on essays.

Creative development

AP is focused on creative development (drawings, architecture-specific essays, paintings, sculptures, garments, designs, PDFs, etc.), rather than general admissions counselling. We require students to manage their own application tasks and timelines so that sessions can remain focused on creative work and its connection to personal and architectural themes. This focus is part of what has made the program so successful. We are, however, aware of the timeframes and application schools you present to us.

We may be selective with potential students around this requirement, as we assess time management, diligence, and interest in sustained creative development (regardless of talent). Students are expected to dedicate substantial time to feedback and organize their time accordingly. After the introductory call, each student must complete a time management questionnaire, and any concerns raised there may affect enrollment.

Availability may be limited within six months of application deadlines, but please reach out regardless. Full enrollment details are shared after an introductory call.

The process is encouraging and motivational. Our tutors enjoy the sessions as much as our students. We just need to establish the above expectations before we begin.

Enrollment length

After our call it should be clearer how AP can help. Together, we would decide on how many months of tutoring might be necessary. On average, students work with their tutor for around six months. Some students prefer just one month, and others prefer much longer. Six months is the average because many students research admissions this far ahead of deadlines. Longer enrollments result in much stronger development.

Example of time usually given to certain areas if starting from scratch:

Portfolio tutoring	70%
Architecture-specific essay tutoring (anything involving ‘why architecture?’ or ‘why this program?’)	25%
Interview tutoring (if applicable)	5%

Pacing

First sessions: We survey.

You and your tutor would go through your existing visual work and any written materials to get a sense of your strengths, interests, and direction as an applicant. Relevant tasks would be set between sessions. A rough portfolio outline and an initial draft of your AP essay would likely start to emerge. For the portfolio, this could include identifying gaps, areas to improve, and potential new projects. The AP essay would help you develop responses to architecture-specific application essay prompts, such as describing your interest in architecture and how that interest formed.  

Middle sessions: You develop.

Sessions would turn to guidance on developing the portfolio and AP essay content. For the portfolio, this might include skills lessons, for example in drawing. Portfolio work would generally take priority, as this tends to be our main area of focus and demands the most amount of time.

Later sessions: You polish.

Your tutor would focus on guidance in refining your work and preparing for interviews if necessary. Tutoring would focus on skills in visual communication, so that you could turn your work into single, coherent PDFs for your submissions.

An example

Norman, a high school student, wanted to apply to Cornell AAP (BArch) and the Bartlett UCL (BSc) for architecture. He had six months before his deadlines to make a portfolio. Norman had a few pieces of artwork from school, but nothing else. He hadn’t made a start on any of his architecture-specific application essays (UCAS PS, BArch supplementals, etc.).

During our initial video call, before enrollment, we learnt about Norman and talked with him about how we could guide him to make new work for his portfolio, develop his existing projects, and get started on his architecture-specific essays, such as his UCAS PS and BArch supplemental essays. After the video call, Norman was introduced to a potential tutor who would work with him over the following months. We agreed that six months of tutoring until his deadlines would be productive.

Norman planned to meet with his tutor a week after the initial video call, at a time that suited him. He was given a link to the planned video call, and a link to his personal online folder with instructions to upload all his existing work to the relevant subfolders before the first session began. This online folder would be the central location where he would work from, through all his application materials.

He and his tutor joined the video call, screen shared from his online folder, and spent the first session learning about his interests and background. They went through the work he uploaded, and his tutor recorded the meeting (with his permission) so that Norman could watch it back later if he needed to. Since applications require a consolidated approach, he and his tutor discussed how his interests outlined in his written materials might start to reflect in his visual work. They worked through a writing template (an ‘AP essay’) to help get him started on the UCAS PS and BArch supplemental essays. The template goes heavy on describing Norman’s interests and background, and how architecture school could align with those interests. They finished the first session with a task to complete before the next session. Norman was interested in martial arts, so he used that as the basis for his written work and subsequently it became a huge part of his visual work in the portfolio.

As the sessions progressed, they spent most of their time going through his portfolio, screen sharing, giving advice, and setting tasks for him to complete before the next sessions. Some of the writing was now being done ‘offline’, meaning he sent scheduled drafts to his tutor to review outside of video calls, and his tutor would come back with annotations and comments.

At this point, it was also clear that Norman needed some help with drawing and painting skills, since that was a big part of his portfolio. He and his tutor spent some sessions working on more technical exercises together.

As the sessions went on, it became more important for Norman to start tidying up his portfolio, so the focus shifted to formatting and layouts. His architecture-specific essays also needed some feedback to get them into a more polished state. Soon after, he was ready to submit his work. He sent off the applications. 

A few weeks later, he was invited to interviews. He had about two weeks to prepare, so he and his tutor spent two hours doing practice runs. Each of these sessions ended with feedback on how he could improve his responses and how to more eloquently talk through his portfolio projects. 

His interviews went well, and our time with Norman ended. Months later, he was deciding between his offers and wanted to get our advice. Even though his enrollment had ended, we kept in touch, helping him figure out what to make of all his offers and choices.

*Note on the main Common Application essay (applicants to US undergraduate programs).

The main Common Application essay is not architecture-specific as it asks students to give a response based purely on their personal background outside of academics. However, very rarely, some students write directly about architecture in this main essay (perhaps if architecture is inextricable from their personal background). We usually don’t recommend doing this. In this case, the essay would be ‘architecture-specific’ and we would be able to give tutoring.

If you’re looking for an unpaid version of tutoring, please see the AP Scholarship.