Thank you for five years of exciting design challenges featuring talented youth across the country. Due to some changes at the Chicago Architecture Center,  there will not be a 2020 National DiscoverDesign Competition. However, we will still post new competition-quality challenges as we know many of you – both students and educators alike - use the platform for capstone projects and portfolio building.

Announcing design education opportunities for March. These competitions and programs are open to high school students. Apply today!

The National DiscoverDesign Competition is an annual ideas competition challenging high school students to design solutions to a real-world problem using the design process. The competition is hosted by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring people to discover why design matters.

The 2018 CIRT National Design & Construction Competition invites ACE Mentor Affiliate teams (student and mentors) from across the country to design solutions for one of three challenges: an ultra-flexible home, an ideal high school or revitalize an urban block. The competition is maintained, coordinated and juried by the Construction Industry Round Table (CIRT), in coordination with ACE Mentor National and the Chicago Architecture Foundation

The 2017 National DiscoverDesign Competition challenged students across the country to design Design a Chicago public library in the Little Italy neighborhood. This year 436 students participated in the competition challenge....

CAF is pleased to announce the student winners of the 2016 National DiscoverDesign Competition. The competition invited youth from classrooms all over the United States to design an affordable housing prototype for a local town, city or location of their choice.