Values, Diversity
& Inclusion
The Summer School studies who cities are built for, and who they leave behind. Those questions are not just academic. They shape how we admit students, set fees, and build each cohort.
Photo by Madeleine Almqvist, 2016 Summer School.
TU Delft is an international university built on mutual respect and cross-cultural exchange. There is no separation or discrimination among students and staff on the basis of gender, race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or any other ground. The university asks everyone who studies and works here to uphold these values — not as formal rules, but as the conditions that make genuine learning possible.
The Summer School’s subject is spatial justice: the ways in which planning decisions distribute opportunity, safety, and dignity unevenly across cities. Our commitment to equity is not decorative. The same values that run through the course content run through how we admit students, structure fees, and compose each cohort. This programme cannot do its work with a room full of people who share the same background, city, or assumptions.
Diversity in the Summer School is a pedagogical necessity. Planning problems do not have universal solutions — they require the kind of analytical friction that only comes from putting people who have experienced very different cities, planning systems, and forms of urban injustice in the same room. Every decision we have made about admission, fees, and cohort composition is aimed at producing exactly that.
Our fees are significantly lower than comparable programmes at European universities, and are calibrated to the World Bank’s income classification. Ability to pay does not determine who can attend. We are especially committed to welcoming students from least developed nations, Sub-Saharan Africa, and countries in political transition or conflict.
We do not admit more than ten students from any single institution. This is not an arbitrary constraint — it is how we ensure that no single planning tradition, pedagogical approach, or national context dominates the work. When you join this cohort, you will work alongside people from universities and cities you may never otherwise encounter.
Students who carry singular life experience — those who have navigated conflict, displacement, discrimination, or planning under conditions of scarcity — bring irreplaceable analytical perspectives to the group work. You do not need a conventional academic or professional profile to thrive here. We have been surprised, repeatedly, by the quality of work produced by people who arrived uncertain and left with a clear proposition.
Everyone Is Welcome Here
The Summer School is open to people of all backgrounds, nationalities, identities, and abilities. We actively encourage applications from students who face barriers to participation in international programmes — whether financial, geographic, or social. We do not ask you to leave any part of your identity at the door.
Every person at this Summer School is free to be themselves.
We explicitly recognise and affirm the rights of LGBTQ+ students, including those who feel unsafe or persecuted in their country of origin because of their gender identity or sexual orientation. The Summer School is welcoming to people of all gender expressions and identities. We ask the entire cohort to be accepting and caring of those who live their lives differently from themselves — not as a policy, but as the most basic form of respect. If you are unsure what LGBTQ+ means, this is a good introduction.
Watch: Gender expression and identity ↗Accessibility, Food & Practical Needs
Our facilities at TU Delft are fully accessible to students with mobility impairment, and we actively encourage people with disabilities to join us. If you have specific access requirements, please inform us ahead of your arrival so we can adapt site visits and off-campus activities accordingly. We will do our best to ensure full participation.
Please inform us of any dietary requirements or allergies at the time of application. We will do our best to accommodate them in the meals we provide. We are not currently able to guarantee halal or kosher-certified catering, but vegetarian and vegan options are available throughout the programme and we can provide guidance on nearby options.
TU Delft is a secular institution and does not have dedicated permanent prayer facilities. We are aware this matters, and we can arrange a provisional prayer space on request. Please let us know your needs in advance at summerschool-BK@tudelft.nl and we will do our best to accommodate them.