Two Weeks in Delft,
Every July
The Summer School Planning and Design for the Just City brings around 100 participants to the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, TU Delft, for two weeks of site visits, studio work, and argument about what planning owes to justice. The next application round opens in November.
100 places. One application form. No portfolio required.
Selection runs on your background, an 800-word motivation letter, and a three-minute introduction video — not a CV, not a design portfolio. We’re building a room of people from different disciplines and different parts of the world who are willing to argue seriously about spatial justice.
Who Can Apply
- Built primarily for Master’s students in the built environment
- PhD candidates and young professionals also take part
- You don’t need to be enrolled anywhere to apply
- A background in planning, architecture, or design helps, but isn’t required
- Architects, planners, engineers, designers
- Geographers, historians, sociologists
- Environmental engineers and related fields
- Anyone willing to engage seriously with urbanism
How We Select Participants
We can only host 100 people, so selection runs on your background, a motivation letter, and a short introduction video — not a portfolio, not a CV.
Your motivation letter should explain why you want in, and how the school fits your personal, academic, and professional trajectory. Tell us what makes you distinct — an interest, a project, a way you put your views into the world, whether that’s writing, activism, or a blog. Keep the letter to 800 words and the video to three minutes.
English Requirement
Teaching happens in English, and discussions move fast, with fairly advanced vocabulary. State your level candidly in your motivation letter — it helps us help you get the most out of two intense weeks.
What’s Covered, What Isn’t
The fee scales with your country’s income level — see the fee structure. Payment instructions follow once you’re selected. A limited number of scholarships are available; details are here. Plan to arrive at least a day before the school starts; you’re free to leave once the certificate ceremony wraps up.
- All Summer School activities
- Social events
- Some meals
- Materials and site visits
- Your certificate
- Accommodation — TU Delft can advise on finding it in Delft
- Travel to and from the Netherlands
- Your regular meals
Why Is It So Affordable?
Our fees sit well below comparable schools elsewhere, and that’s by design. We don’t want ability to pay deciding who gets a seat in the room — we want a genuinely mixed group of future planners and designers. Not providing accommodation is part of how we keep costs down; most participants find their own through friends, Airbnb, or a hostel.
Visa Requirements
Citizens of the following don’t need a visa for the Schengen Area — check your own status at SchengenVisaInfo.com, since this list isn’t exhaustive:
If you do need a visa, TU Delft provides an invitation letter, but the decision sits entirely with Dutch authorities — start the process early, since visa applications take time. Basic information is available here.
A Dutch visa covers travel across the Schengen Area — most of the EU plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, but not the UK or Ireland. Check exactly what you need before you plan around it.
Health Policy
You’ll follow whatever national health regulations are in force at the time of the school, in line with Dutch government policy and TU Delft’s own implementation of it.
How to Apply — 7 Steps
Read this page and the application form carefully, so you know exactly what to prepare.
800 words (see tips here). Draft it in Word, check spelling and grammar, then save it.
Three minutes max (see instructions here). Cover who you are, where you studied, a challenge you see in your own city, and why you want to join.
Use your first and last name (example: MARIA_DELGADO; Chinese names in traditional order, e.g. QU_LEI).
Complete every field. No passport yet? Write “I will provide it later.”
Upload your motivation letter and video, then submit the form. You’ll get a confirmation email — if it doesn’t arrive, check the address you entered or write to summerschool-bk@tudelft.nl.
Sent a few weeks after the application period closes.
Applications are currently closed — the next round opens in November