How We’re Different
Most pre-college architecture programs focus on design skills, portfolios, or networking with elite practitioners. Firm Foundations focuses on something more fundamental: helping students make wise, informed decisions about college and their future.
We are not a camp.
We are not a design class.
We are not test prep.
We are not a networking group.
We are a career-clarity and leadership program operating outside the university system and grounded in the real work of architects.
We Simulate the Profession. We Don’t Just Talk About It.
Instead of history lectures or drawing exercises, students step into realistic simulations of architectural practice. They make decisions, face consequences, navigate uncertainty, and reflect on outcomes, just as architects do.
Most programs show students what architecture school looks like.
We help students experience what it feels like to be an architect.
We Focus on Career Clarity, Not Just College Access.
Getting into architecture school is not the same as choosing the right life path. Firm Foundations helps students understand whether architecture truly fits them, what different architectural careers look like, and how college choices shape career outcomes.
The goal is not just college acceptance … it’s future-finding.
We Prepare Students for Reality, Not an Idealized Version of the Field.
Architecture is a creative field, but it is also client-facing and business-driven. In our program, students learn about leadership, teamwork, professional systems, and real constraints alongside creativity.
This realism reduces disappointment, burnout, and costly course corrections later.
We Treat Students as Emerging Adults.
Firm Foundations is built on respect for students’ capacity to think deeply, reflect honestly, and take responsibility for their choices. The program offers a culture of support combined with structured risk-taking and learning from failure.
Students leave more confident, not because they were praised, but because they were trusted.