The League Mentorship

Initiated in 2018, The League Mentorship matches design professionals with students at local public architecture schools for one-on-one advising, mutual learning, and intergenerational community building during the academic year.

Participating students are selected from three public architecture programs: Brooklyn’s New York City College of Technology, Harlem’s Spitzer School of Architecture at City College of New York, and New Jersey’s Michael Graves College of Architecture & Design at Kean University.

Over the course of the academic year, each League Mentor meets regularly with their student match, generally three to four times a semester, offering them guidance as they prepare for careers in architecture and design. To supplement these one-on-one meetings, the League also organizes several group events for both mentors and students, including panel discussions and private tours of leading local firms, and facilitates mentor-led skill-sharing and community-building events.

Become a League Mentor

New and returning mentors are required to complete the 2024–25 application form.

All Mentor applications must be submitted by Tuesday, August 13 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Mentors are selected based on their professional experience and compatibility with student needs.

Mentorship FAQs

Who is eligible to be a League Mentor?
Mentors should be architects or designers based in the New York/New Jersey area with a professional degree in architecture and at least three years of professional experience after graduation. Mentors do not need to be licensed architects. People of color, first-generation college alumni, and immigrants are strongly encouraged to apply.

What are the responsibilities of a League Mentor?
During the course of the academic year, each mentor-student match must meet at least twice per semester—either online or in person—and attend the three mandatory full-cohort events: an orientation in October, a mid-year studio tour in February, and an end-of-year studio tour in June.   

What types of activities do League Mentors do with their student matches?
Potential activities include: attending a lecture, visiting a museum, touring the League Mentor’s office or project site, exploring the city, attending a student’s studio reviews, providing feedback on a student’s portfolio or resume, preparing for job interviews, and discussing potential career pathways. 

I am a student interested in mentorship. How do I apply to become a League Mentee?
This program is only open to students currently enrolled in the New York City College of Technology, the Spitzer School of Architecture at City College of New York, or the Michael Graves College of Architecture & Design at Kean University. If you are a student at one of these schools, please contact your department chair for more information on how to apply.

Partner Institutions

City College of New York
Established in Manhattan in 1847 as the nation’s first municipal public college, the City College of New York (CCNY) prides itself on enabling social change, propelling generation after generation of students and their descendants up the ladder of economic mobility. The student body of approximately 16,000 is comprised of students from 153 countries who speak over 100 languages.

CCNY’s Bernard & Anne Spitzer School of Architecture has a mission to create a “just, sustainable, and imaginative future for a rapidly urbanizing planet.” Spitzer’s student body numbers approximately 450, spanning across a BArch program and graduate programs in Architecture, Landscape Architecture, Urban Design, and Sustainability in the Urban Environment. With a rigorous foundation in the core competencies of ecological thinking, design, history & theory, and technology, these programs aim to educate the next generation of innovators as they redefine the role of the architect in the twenty-first century.

New York City College of Technology
New York City College of Technology’s Department of Architectural Technology is the largest undergraduate program of architecture in the tri-state area. As a public design education program rooted in the 1950’s post-war economic pragmatism, it has evolved to equip students with the aesthetic and technical skills to visualize inventive solutions for building design, assembly and analyses. A unique feature of the program is the Building Technology spine which runs parallel to Design Studios for students in all three degree programs.    

The department is now NAAB accredited with a professional five-year BArch degree. The four-year baccalaureate degree (BTech) and two-year associate degree (AAS) program enable students to pursue tracks which respond to the proliferation of technical sub-specialties in the building industry. Graduates of the program work for private firms and public agencies establishing a reputation for intellectual energy, technical knowledge and appetite for engaging with industry challenges. 

Kean University
Kean University’s School of Public Architecture was developed under the advisement of the influential American architect, Michael Graves, in 2015. The School’s pedagogic structure enables students to work on real architectural and planning projects—public projects that put design in the service of the public good.

Students gain experience working with stakeholders in every public project—clients, community groups, planning commissioners and government officials. In the process, students develop a broad perspective on the way architects approach professional challenges, address client demands and solve client problems, and contribute to a more responsive and responsible built environment.

The School of Public Architecture offers two degree programs: a BA in Architectural Studies and a Master of Architecture (MArch).