PCA’s 4 week summer program offers students an intensive environment to deepen their understanding and sharpen their skills in art and design. Courses expose students to Paris in a unique way, by combining classroom time with excursions to various sites around the city. Students enroll in two back-to-back 2 week classes, one from “Session A” and one from “Session B,” for a total of 6 credits.
Application open until: March 15, 2026
Apps accepted on a rolling basis, and after closing as space permits
Application Requirements
Complete online application
Personal statement (300-500 words)
Official transcript
Passport scan (photo page)
Digital photo (passport style)
EU privacy consent form
Highlights
- Select from a range of courses in Fine Arts, Design, and Liberal Arts.
- Popular courses include: “Paris Through its Museums” and “Photography in Paris.”
Program Dates
June 13, 2026 – July 11, 2026
Eligibility Requirements
Age: 18+
Academic Year: Sophomore (2nd year) or above
Cumulative GPA:* 2.75 (on a 4.0 scale)
* contact SAI if you don’t meet requirements
Communication Design
Fashion Design
Fine Arts
Interior Design
Liberal Studies
Photography
Transdisciplinary New Media
This introductory Lighting Techniques course reveals how light shapes the visual language of cinema. Students will study iconic film excerpts and real-life environments to understand how lighting builds emotion, atmosphere, and narrative meaning. They will learn to create professional lighting setups both in studio and outdoors using industry-standard lights, modifiers, filters, color temperatures, and effect-lighting techniques. Through hands-on exercises, a lighting diary, and continuous shooting practice, students will develop their ability to craft mood, sculpt subjects, and support camera movement and framing. By the end of the course, they will be able to design cinematic lighting setups, operate equipment safely, and use light as a storytelling tool.
In this course, you will discover how documentary filmmaking captures reality in motion and transforms everyday life into cinema. You will learn to choose a meaningful subject, understand what makes documentary language unique, and use the camera as a tool to observe, connect, and translate the world around you. Through hands-on practice, you will become comfortable handling equipment, directing real situations, recording interviews, and shaping your footage into a compelling short film. As you explore Paris and interact with people and places, you will also gain insight into how your own perspective influences the stories you tell, developing both your technical abilities and your creative voice as a filmmaker.
You will learn how to conceive, design, and produce a complete artist book from concept to print, using Paris as your primary source of visual and narrative inspiration. Through daily workshops, field observations, and guided exercises, you will develop a strong understanding of sequence, rhythm, layout, hierarchy, typography, and image–text relationships. You will explore how designers transform research and impressions into editorial concepts, how format and material choices shape meaning, and how to translate a digital layout into a printed object. By the end of the course, you will have built a coherent editorial project that reflects your personal experience of Paris and demonstrates both conceptual clarity and design intention.
You’ll build a strong foundation in graphic design by exploring illustration, typography, color, and visual storytelling. Through hands-on experiments, fieldwork, and conceptual exercises, you’ll learn how to observe, interpret, and transform your surroundings into meaningful design work. You’ll develop a personal visual language, understand how support–tool–writing interact in communication, conduct research that informs your creative choices, and articulate your design intentions with clarity and confidence.
Pre-requisite: Level: Open to All and Pre-college.
This Fashion Illustration course draws inspiration from the rich cultural heritage of Paris. Students will create fashion illustrations influenced by the city’s art and architecture. Students will learn the fundamentals of fashion illustration, with a focus on capturing the movement of the silhouette and the proportions of garments on the human body. This course emphasizes illustrating creativity, textures, and garments while encouraging students to develop their unique style. A key aspect of the course is experimenting with diverse media and techniques, showcasing the wide-ranging possibilities in fashion illustration.
Explore the A-to-Zs of what goes into garment construction and development; introduction to sewing and finishing techniques in order to create a foundation of understanding of the technical side of fashion; building an understanding of vocabulary synonymous with the garment industry; elaborated draping techniques (from the fluid aspect of draping to technical methods such as Tomoko Nakamichi’s pattern magic) as well as the translation to patterns; translation between 2D ideas to 3D volumes to appropriate textiles manipulations and fabric to create a final look.
In this course, you will: express and sketch basic plant anatomy in traditional form, Expand visual culture and have references of traditional and contemporary illustration and European landscaping, explore projects through printmaking techniques, observe and create exciting compositions while sketching in outside spaces, extrapolate and create an interesting composition from imagination.
How to strengthen your ability to sketch and quickly record information; learn what makes the identity of famous Parisian buildings through sketches and photos; develop your cultural understanding and knowledge of the history of Parisian architecture; provide inspiration for future designers projects; improve your capacity to see and feel.
Pre-requisite: Course open to Level: College & Continuing Education, Open to All, and Pre-college.
This Pocket-Size Ceramics course introduces students to the creative world of miniature clay objects, from figurines and amulets to spoons, tiles, and sculptural inventions. Over ten days, students will learn essential hand-building techniques—including coil building, slab construction, pinching, pressing, and slip casting—along with decorative processes such as underglazing, glazing, and surface treatments. Through hands-on studio practice, students will explore material experimentation, develop their own visual language, and gain a full understanding of the ceramic process from forming to firing. This course is designed for beginners and enthusiasts interested in discovering the expressive possibilities of small-scale ceramics.
Pre-requisite: Some working knowledge of the vocabulary used within interior design, a strong sense of perspective, measurement, style, and spatial awareness. Course open to Pre-College, Undergraduate, Graduate, & Young Professionals.
Through a series of playful exercises, discover interior design and Paris together.What you will learn: You will explore interior design within the immense art and design scene of Paris. You will explore the fundamentals of interior design through a hands-on approach including drawing, model making, look and feel collages, mood board making and more.Where you will visit: Through a series of playful exercises, often starting with iconic visits to important design icons and exemplary destinations in Paris, you will discover interior design and Paris together. Whether you are considering more advanced studies in interior design but beforehand or you would like to experience a just a taste of it, studying this course in Paris is the answer.
You will explore the memoirs and legacies of Parisian icons—from artists and writers to revolutionaries and visionary creators—while uncovering how their lives shaped the city’s identity. Through their stories, you’ll understand why their influence continues to resonate in Paris today. As you move through the course, you will trace the evolution of major artistic and cultural movements that emerged in and around the city, from Romanticism, Art Nouveau, Impressionism, and Symbolism to modern dance, early cinema, feminist art, and the political upheavals of May ’68, leading up to contemporary cultural figures.
This course familiarizes students with the history, arts and culture of the city of Paris through an interactive and thematic approach based on three main modules: the city and its history; the literary and artistic representations of the city; and the city, its citizens, and its future. Students will learn about key moments in French history from the Romans onward, via the Middle Ages, the French Revolution, Haussmannization, and May 1968. This history will come alive through outings in the city and visits to museums, and will allow students to contextualize the city of Paris and French culture of today. The course will also explore Paris’ role in various artistic and literary movements, from the avant-gardes to literary modernism, as well as representations of the city in art, literature, music and cinema. Students will also be introduced to such themes as political migration and colonialism, and will explore the city from a variety of points of views including literary and artistic exchanges, urban history, architecture, and ecology. The final module of the course will examine how our study of the past informs our understanding of the present, and in particular what the future may hold for the city of Paris.
Pre-requisite: Students must bring their own DSLR camera and laptop.
In this intensive summer program, you’ll develop the core skills and creative instincts essential to street style fashion photography during one of the world’s most influential fashion events—Haute Couture Paris Fashion Week. Through hands-on instruction, you’ll learn to work confidently with natural and artificial light, master compositional techniques, and capture compelling portraits in fast-moving public environments. You’ll also gain experience approaching and directing real people on the street, evaluating scenes quickly, and making intuitive technical decisions under pressure. By the end of the course, you’ll understand the full workflow of street style photography—from on-location shooting to beauty retouching and post-production—culminating in a polished digital portfolio that showcases your personal visual style.
You’ll learn how to craft a coherent visual narrative by using photography, sequencing, and book-making as tools for storytelling. Through hands-on workshops, Paris-based field trips, and guided critiques, you’ll develop your ability to conceptualize and design an artist’s or photo book, draw inspiration from historical and contemporary works, and articulate a project that unites artistic intent, visual language, and editorial structure.
This course teaches students how to merge the physical and digital worlds using augmented reality, 3D scanning, and 3D printing. Through hands-on experimentation, students will learn to digitize physical objects, create interactive spatial experiences, and transform their concepts into AR or 3D-printed artworks. They will explore storytelling, sculpture, and interaction design while developing technical skills with beginner-friendly digital tools. By the end of the course, students will be able to produce and present an original hybrid artwork, articulating both their creative process and artistic concept.
This New Media & AI course explores how emerging technologies reshape the way we create, think, and tell stories. Students will experiment with AI tools, digital processes, and conceptual strategies to produce artworks that blend technology, imagination, and critical thinking. They will learn the fundamentals of new media art, including systems, structures, identity, surveillance, speculative futures, and hybrid realities.
Throughout the course, they will explore techniques such as prompt-based creation, digital collage, video, sound, photo manipulation, data-driven art, and conceptual research. This hands-on approach allows students to develop their creative voice while understanding how AI can act as a collaborator, a tool, and a subject of artistic inquiry.
Courses & Schedule
SAI students are free to enroll in any available course, but prerequisites must be demonstrated through students’ transcripts. Students choose two back-to-back 2 week courses (one from session A and one from session B). Courses are intensive and meet 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday – Friday.
Course Registration
Students choose their courses after they have been accepted into the program. As soon as the PCA schedule is confirmed, students are asked to complete a Course Approval form, which is used to specify first-choice and alternate-choice courses. All posted schedules of classes are tentative and subject to change unless otherwise noted. SAI’s Paris Admissions Counselor will guide students through this process.
| Pre-Departure Calendar | |
|---|---|
| March 15 2026 |
Application Closes Applications accepted after closing as space permits. |
| Within 1 week of acceptance |
SAI Deposits Due $500 Enrollment Deposit (applied toward program fee) $300 Security Deposit (refundable) |
| March 15 2026 |
50% of Total Program Fee Due Students who are accepted and submit SAI deposits after this date will have an amended pay schedule. 50% of the Program Fee will be due within 5 business days, based on the deposit payment date. |
| March 15 2026 |
Financial Aid Agreement & Financial Aid Program Deposit Deadline Students wishing to utilize SAI financial aid payment deferment must complete the Financial Aid Agreement form and submit the Financial Aid Program Deposit by this date. Students whose deposit payment date is on or after this date will have a deadline of 5 business days after the deposit. |
| March 15 2026 |
SAI Scholarship Application Deadline Students wishing to apply for a SAI scholarship must have all application items submitted by 11:59pm Pacific Time on this date. |
| March 29 2026 |
SAI Financial Aid Verification Deadline Students wishing to defer payment until financial aid disbursement must submit the financial aid verification form to SAI by this date. |
| March 29 2026 |
Enrollment Closes Students must complete their enrollment, including paying deposits, by this date. |
| April 14 2026 |
Balance of Total Program Fee Due (For students utilizing SAI financial aid payment deferment, any balance not covered by aid is due) |
| On-Site Calendar | |
|---|---|
| June 13 2026 |
Arrival & Housing Check-in Students arrive at Charles de Gaulle (CDG) airport. SAI airport pickup is provided between 9:00am and 12:00 noon, and students are transferred to SAI housing. |
| June 14 2026 |
SAI Orientation Mandatory SAI orientation is held at the SAI Paris office and introduces students to their city while covering safety, policies, housing, and culture. |
| June 15 2026 |
PCA Academic Orientation & Session A Classes Begin PCA orientation covers academic policies, and provides opportunities for students to meet one another. Following orientation, session A classes begin. |
| June 26 2026 |
Session A Classes End |
| June 29 2026 |
Session B Classes Begin |
| July 10 2026 |
Session B Classes End |
| July 11 2026 |
Program End & Housing Check-out Students must move out of SAI housing by 10:00am to return home or pursue independent travel. |
| SAI Program Fees* | USD |
|---|---|
| Application Fee | $120 |
| Security Deposit Refundable at the end of the term. |
$300 |
| Program Fee Includes tuition, standard housing and SAI 360° Services (see What’s Included). |
Coming soon |
| Optional / Additional Fees: | |
| Optional Private Room Supplement Private room in a shared apartment, with a shared bathroom. |
Coming soon |
| Optional Homestay Housing Supplement Homestay housing in a private room. Includes daily breakfast and 3 or 5 dinners/week. |
Coming soon |
| International Mailing Supplement When applicable, students are charged an international mailing supplement to ensure visa paperwork arrives in a timely manner. |
$90 |
*prices are subject to change
Please see SAI Policies for SAI cancellation & withdrawal deadlines.
Note: certain SAI-affiliated US universities require specific payment arrangements. These may require that some fees are paid by the student directly to SAI, and other fees are paid to SAI by the affiliated university on behalf of the student. If you attend a SAI-affiliated university please contact your study abroad office or speak with your SAI Admissions Counselor for details.
| Budget | Low Est. | High Est. |
|---|---|---|
| Airfare to/from Paris |
$900 | $1,800 |
| Books, Supplies & Course Fees Course fees are sometimes imposed to cover field trips. |
$25 / course | $125 / course |
| Meals Includes groceries and eating out. |
$400 / month | $800 / month |
| Personal Expenses | $350 / month | $450 / month |
| Transportation within Paris Public transportation with some taxi rides. |
$125 / month | $150 / month |
| Weekend Travel Cost varies greatly by student. |
$300 / month | $1,000 / month |
This is a SAI 360° Services Program; it includes our full services!
- Program tuition and U.S. academic credit
- Accommodation in carefully selected student housing
- Airport pickup on arrival day
- Welcome reception and events
- Orientation to the host city and school
- On-site staff who foster a welcoming community for you and provide assistance when needed
- SAI Viva Experience: cultural engagement, excursions & wellness activities
- Student health insurance providing full coverage and medical emergency evacuation
- 24-hour on-site emergency support
- Farewell event
Pre-departure and Re-entry services
- Knowledgeable Admissions Counselor dedicated to you, providing friendly assistance
- Helpful pre-departure tools and resources
- Parent & family resources
- Online student groups to acquaint you with other SAI students
- Student visa advising
- Assistance with financial aid processing
- Need-based SAI scholarships
- Alumni Ambassador Program, with paid internship opportunities
- SAI alumni network
SAI offers all students the Viva Experience: frequent cultural activities, at no extra cost, for participants to get to know their community, city and country. Following is a sample of the activities included in this program. Please note that actual activities may differ.
Welcome Lunch & Walking Tour
Students are welcomed to their new city with a delicious lunch and walking tour of the many Parisian sites, including the Eiffel Tower and the Champs de Mars.
Le Marais Walking Tour & Dinner
Students take a guided stroll through one of the most fashionable neighborhoods in Paris: Le Marais! The district is known for much more than its colorful vintage shops and food, but also for its rich history and culture.
Bateaux Mouches
On this activity, SAI students explore the heart of Paris by boat! Students enjoy a cruise on one of the city’s iconic Bateaux Mouches and take in Paris’ beautiful architecture from the water.
Visit to the St. Chappelle & the Conciergerie
Students visit two incredible feats of Parisian architecture. The St. Chappelle was the chapel to the kings of France and is known for its remarkable stained glass, which remains some of the most intricate in Europe. Just a few steps away from St. Chapelle students also visit the Conciergerie, which once imprisoned Marie Antoinette.
Day Trip to Deauville
Students take a 2 hour train ride to the beautiful coastal city of Deauville. Founded in the 19th century by the Duke of Morny, Deauville was meant to be the “elegant kingdom” close to Paris, and is known for its architecture and beautiful beaches.
Open Market Tour with Tastings
Le marché, or outdoor market, is a tradition at the heart of Parisian life, providing the city with a focal point for social interaction and culinary inspiration. Students take a tour of the celebrated market, and learn about its neighborhood and history. Students also receive tips on how to select the best fruits and vegetables, according to the season.
Farewell Evening Picnic
Students celebrate the end of a successful summer abroad and say their goodbyes over a typical French picnic along the Seine.
Standard Housing: Student apartment
SAI student apartments are convenient and well equipped, and include a shared occupancy bedroom in a shared student apartment (option to upgrade to private bedroom, if available). Typical residences house 2 – 8 students and contain a combination of kitchen, bathroom(s) and living areas. Furnishings, a washing machine, basic kitchen supplies, bed linens and towels are provided. All apartments are equipped with wireless Internet. Housing configurations are designated as female, male, and in some locations, gender-inclusive. SAI on-site staff is available to respond to any maintenance needs that may arise.
Optional Housing: Family homestay (additional fee applies)
Students choosing the homestay option will be placed with a local family, which could be an older couple or a family with children. SAI homestay families are thoroughly screened and are accustomed to welcoming visiting students into their homes. Homestays provide a private bedroom in the family home with basic furnishings. Wifi is included, as is access to laundry facilities. Students opting for this more immersive housing get breakfast included, as well as 3 or 5 dinners per week. (costs vary).
Passports
Passports should be valid for 3 months after planned return from France.
Student Visas
In accordance with French law, U.S. students studying in France for 90 days or less are not required to obtain a student visa. Therefore all U.S. students do not require a student visa for this program. Non-US nationals should consult their local Consulate for information on student visa requirements.