The semester in Japan and South Korea is an twelve-week, twelve-credit program that moves between five major cities between two countries. While these cities serve as the primary focus points of the program, a rich travel itinerary introduces students to many smaller cities and sights well beyond the realm of the tourist.

The Japan and South Korea program offers students an immersive studio and two seminars in urbanism and architecture in some of Asia’s most dense, vibrant urban environments. Throughout the semester, the courses connect students with renowned professors and practitioners in each city by way of dialogue, reviews, guest lectures, and visits to some of the most ground-breaking firms in Asia.

In each city, Seoul and Tokyo, students will study, live, and work with design challenges of a particular site, meet local residents and workers—including government officials and NGO leaders—to gain an understanding of real world urban issues and challenges. Students able to explore a more in-depth design project  in collaboration with many of these stakeholders, as well as students from local universities. The courses have a distinctly urban focus, challenging students to understand how architectural-scale work can enliven and complement the city at large.