At FORA we feel one of the most important contributions we can make to our profession is an equitable practice that promotes belonging. We understand that more diversity means better design, and that improving representation and recognition in architecture won’t happen through passive means. Underrepresented students deserve robust, active, and sustained support, which is why we created the FORAship.

In its first few years, the FORAship Program offered a substantial financial scholarship and a year-long internship. Moving forward, we will continue to offer the combined internship and scholarship as our highest FORAship award, and in order to support more students, we will be offering additional scholarships to incredible applicants who we’d like to recognize.

• Read about our first FORAship recipient, Rosanna Valencia, here!

• Read about our current FORAship recipient, Gabriella Vaz de Freitas, and her first couple months with FORA here!

Application Period

The 2025-2026 FORAship application will open Feb 1 of 2025. Please see below for more details.

Eligibility

• Current community college and undergraduate students in their second year or beyond, or graduate students pursuing a degree in architecture

• Located anywhere (and legally authorized to work) in the US - we’re a virtual firm, supporting you where you are

• Current GPA of 3.0 or higher

• Underrepresented and underrecognized ethnic minority (Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander)

• Previous applicants and scholarship awardees are eligible and encouraged to apply again. Previous FORAship interns are ineligible.

Awards

• FORA Fellow: One individual per year will receive:

  • $3,000 Scholarship 

  • Year-Long Paid Internship ($25/hr): full-time summer internship (June-August) that becomes a flexible part-time position for the following school year (August - May)

  • This is a great opportunity to gain experience in many areas of the practice of architecture. You’ll work closely with FORA’s president on business management, be paired with 3-4 FORA employees to support their specialty research projects throughout the year (topics ranging such as building science, visual storytelling, human experience, custom coding, and beyond), and join a dedicated project team for exposure to different phases of design.

• FORA Scholar: Each year, a sum of $2,000 may be awarded to additional outstanding applicants at the firm’s discretion, distributed evenly amongst the number of recipients.
  

Submission Requirements

1. Resume / CV

2. Design Portfolio - PDF of your academic work (10MB max, link preferred)

3. Short Essay (1,000 word max) responding to: 

   1. What unique voice or perspective do you bring to architecture?

   2. How will you leverage your perspective to provide value to your community as an architect? and,

   3. How will the FORAship Program support you in doing so? 

4. Letter of Recommendation from a faculty member with direct knowledge of your work

Application Process & Timeline

1. February 1, 2025: Applications open. When open, apply here using the Apply Now! link or embedded submission form below.

2. March 10, 2025: Submissions due no later than 11:59 PM PST

3. Late March - Early April: Finalist Interviews

4. April 17, 2025: Awardee(s) announcement

5. June 2025 - August 2025: Full-time Summer Internship

6. Fall 2025: Scholarship(s) distributed to college(s) to be applied toward tuition and fees. Internship transitions to part-time during the school year

7. August 2025 - May 2026: Part-time Internship during the school year

FORA Attributes We Value:

• Collaborative with team members

• Self-organizing and motivated

• Solutions and growth-minded with a service-first attitude

• Excellent, regular, open communication

• Comfortable with digital tools and a remote work environment

• Diverse perspective and background

• Respectful and inclusive attitude towards all

• Committed to meaningful work that supports strong communities

• Curious and dedicated to continuous learning and knowledge sharing

• + basic Revit skills is a plus!

You may reach out to us at foraship@architectsfora.com or 408-295-2210 with any questions.