The Gensler Family AAP NYC Center
Source: https://aap.cornell.edu/aap-nyc/ Parent: https://aap.cornell.edu/undergraduate-admissions/undergraduate-admissions-architecture/
Cornell AAP’s New York City-based programs are immersive, cross-disciplinary, and connective. Dynamic by design, the AAP NYC student experience is defined by the city’s myriad urban contexts and guided by world-class faculty and facilities.
Complementing AAP’s Ithaca-based core courses and curricula, the Gensler Family AAP NYC Center’s (AAP NYC) new home on Roosevelt Island marks a watershed moment for the college and creates a platform for students and faculty to engage with the city’s buildings, spaces, and communities firsthand, address urban challenges, and rethink possibilities in situ.
The center is housed within the recently redesigned fourth floor of the Tata Innovation Center on the Cornell Tech campus, a hub for interdisciplinary exchange and collaboration. Steeped in the creative culture and rich history of New York City, Study Away at AAP NYC provides students with access to leading practitioners, civic and cultural institutions, and communities that advance current contemporary design and planning practices. Course offerings span the college’s disciplines and are augmented with field trips, tours, and site visits, as well as studio visits and networking events with industry leaders. Beyond coursework, students draw from the city’s unique artistic, historic, and cultural resources, and make lasting connections with AAP’s vast community of New York City-based alumni to enrich their Cornell AAP education.
Participating Degree Programs
Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.) \ optional in fourth and fifth year, fall or spring semester
Master of Architecture (M.Arch.) \ required in fifth semester (fall), optional spring semester
Post-professional Master of Science in Advanced Architectural Design (M.S. AAD)\ required for first of three semesters (summer)
Post-professional Master of Science in Advanced Urban Design (M.S. AUD)\ all three semesters take place at AAP NYC, beginning in fall
Bachelor of Science in Urban and Regional Studies (B.S. URS)\ optional (fall only, by application)
Master of Regional Planning (M.R.P) \ optional in second year, third semester (fall semester only)
Dual Degree: Master of Regional Planning and Landscape Architecture (M.R.P. / M.L.A.) \ optional in second or third year (fall semester only)
Master of Science in Design Technology (M.S. DT) \ available in second year (fall and spring semesters)
Master of Professional Studies in Real Estate (M.P.S. RE) \ available in second year (fall and spring semesters), debuting fall 2026
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City Visionaries: Summer Program for High School Students
A transformative, cross-disciplinary introduction to foundational principles of city design at the scale of New York City.
Inside the AAP NYC Center
Surya Kumar and Nirmohi Kathrecha (both M.S. AUD ’25) pin up their final studio project, which explores childrens’ experiences of the public realm and proposes alternatives for mobility, play, and belonging in East Harlem.
The “prow” of AAP NYC’s South Studio has panoramic views of Manhattan.
Guest reviewers gather in the Crit Room, the heart of AAP NYC’s new home.
Xiofan Zhu (M.S. AUD ’25) presents her final project, a collaboration with fellow student Haoyuan Kuang (M.S. AUD ’25), for instructor Dan Miller’s course on environmental spatial practices in urban design.
M.S. AAD students pin up their final studio projects for the year-end summer exhibition.
Students Zuming Yang and Yimiao Sun (both M.S. AAD ’26) put finishing touches on their model for the summer studio taught by visiting faculty Nile Greenberg and Michael Abel of the New York City-based design studio ANY.
Haoyuan Kuang (M.S. AUD ’26) inserts his team’s intervention in the collaboratively built scale model of East Harlem.
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Gensler Family Endows, Names Cornell AAP NYC Program
In January 2021, AAP received a $10 million endowment from M. Arthur Gensler (B.Arch. ’57) and his family to support the future of the college’s thriving New York City-based program, AAP NYC.
The Gensler family’s generosity and support sees that this cornerstone program cofounded by Art Gensler will continue to strengthen AAP’s commitment to engagement with the urban built environment that enables the next generation to make a deep and lasting impact on cities and communities.
Leadership Team
Executive Director - Cathy Lang Ho
Deputy Director - Jesse LeCavalier
Associate Professor
Architecture - Florian Idenburg
Professor of the Practice
Architecture
Upcoming and Ongoing Events
- Feb 9–Mar 9
### Open Houses: City Visionaries Summer Program for High School Students
Join us for an open house, where we’ll share information and answer questions about City Visionaries, a new summer program for high school students in New York City.
Admissions - Feb 25–Apr 9
### Island Editions Conversation Series at the Gensler Family AAP NYC Center Spring 2026
Attend a remarkable series of conversations with some of architecture’s leading practitioners, hosted by critic Cynthia Davidson and architect Peter Eisenman (B.Arch. ’55).
Lecture - Mar 25
### Design Tech Hybrid Open House for Admitted Students, Spring 2026
Register to attend this open house for admitted students, providing an overview of the multicollege Department of Design Tech and in-depth information about the Master of Science in Design Technology program.
Admissions
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Cornell AAP to Launch First New York City-based High School Summer Program
Cornell AAP recently announced an opportunity for rising high school juniors and seniors to join City Visionaries, the newest addition to the Gensler Family AAP NYC Center’s (AAP NYC) immersive slate of New York City-based programs.
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After a decade at 26 Broadway in Lower Manhattan, the center’s move to Roosevelt Island affords new opportunities for connection and collaboration.