AFSF Saturday Design

2024-2025

Saturday Design Studio

6 straight Saturdays: 10:00 – 11:30 am PDT, either Mar 1 – Apr 5 or Apr 26 – May 31.

plus 1-hr per week of mentoring with an architect or other design professional during the week

tuition: $500  ($250 deposit required to confirm registration) 

Sign up now!

 

Curious about architecture & design? Want a broader understanding of the architectural profession? Ready for a deep dive into the design process? Want to work on your design skills? Developing work for your portfolio and your presentation skills? Well, then this is your studio

Our architecture studio meets online every Saturday for 6 weeks. We’ll focus on developing visual communication skills including sketching, form-making in models, as well as using digital design tools. You’ll learn foundational architectural concepts and terms and develop them in your design. And you’ll gain experience in the iterative design process, moving from concept to architecture. We’ll look at precedent projects to learn how architects approach design. At the end of our studio, you’ll present your project, gaining experience in creating a clear and thoughtful presentation of your architectural ideas.

The AFSF Saturday Design Studio is open to high school students from any state or country, including rising 9th graders. No prerequisites are required – we welcome all levels of experience including no previous architecture studios. We are proud to be a diverse studio. We welcome students from throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond, including international students. Please be mindful of our studio schedule and the time zones – design is a collaborative process so participating in our live studio is essential.

Click HERE for more info about the AFSF Design Studio Experience! 

Real World Learning

Drawing on the successes of our school-day, after-school and summer programs, our established curricula provide a dynamic, real-world project-based learning experience where students gain high-tech professional skills and insights.  As in all our programs, AFSF Design – Saturday Studio provides rigorous academic and professional experiences, providing youth with skills and inspiration to succeed in school, careers and life.  

In addition to your studio, each week you’ll meet with a design professional who will mentor you. In these 1-hour virtual meetings, your mentor will share their experiences in the profession as well as provide feedback on your projects.

Design Process and Skills

AFSF Design – Saturday Studio offers a deep dive into the design process, and along the way students gain a range of skills in both digital and analog tools used by professional architects and designers. Students work individually and in collaboration with students from around the world to create and present advanced original solutions to real design challenges.

Four more samples of student work submitted to the Architectural Foundation of San Francisco's High School Design Competition

Learn From Experienced Pros

Drawing on over 30 years of inspired educational programming, our professional teaching staff and volunteer architectural and engineering mentors provide students with direct instruction on software and design concepts, guidance on all project work, and certification of mastery of the technical tools.

Learn from architects and designers

Create a original designs.

Gain experience and content that can help you chart your path.

The AFSF Saturday Studio attracts students from around the Bay Area and across the globe.  All our students learn high-tech skills which they demonstrate through creating and presenting original design solutions to real-world design challenges.  Working collaboratively with diverse peers and engaging with professionals helps youth hone their interests and confidently envision themselves in a career.  Those who have struggled in traditional classrooms often find that success at AFSF gives them a more inspired view of their future.