How to Form a Team

There is no limit to how many teams may be formed at a given college or university. Intercollegiate teams and members from different countries are welcomed and have been successful in the competition.  

Team Composition  

  1. Each team may be composed of three to five final-year undergraduate or graduate students representing one sponsoring university or similar institute from the Asia Pacific region.  
  2. The team members must represent a minimum of two disciplines with one preferably a non-design-related discipline. Your team will not likely advance to the finalist round without a team member with strong graphic skills. ULI does not consider team members’ undergraduate degrees when determining whether the team meets the interdisciplinary requirements. 
  3. For example, a team could consist of the following (these are just examples, there are other variations that can work):
    2 architecture (MArch) students
    2 landscape architecture (MLA) students
    1 business (MBA) student 
    1 architecture (MArch) student
    1 planning (MCP) student
    1 historic preservation (MHP) student
    1 real estate finance (MS) student
    1 real estate development (MRED) student 
    1 urban design (MUD) student
    2 landscape architecture (MLA) students
    1 planning (MCP) student
    1 real estate development (MRED) student 
    2 business (MBA) students
    1 planning (MCP) student
    1 landscape architecture (MLA) student
    1 architecture (MArch) student 

  4. Each student team member must be currently enrolled or engaged as a graduate student in a degree-granting programme.
  5. Exception: Part-time graduate students may participate in the competition provided they have completed one semester by the start of the competition and will be a part-time student during the entire competition period from 21 February to 18 March 2025. During team registration, they must submit to ULI a verification of their status from the sponsoring university.
    They can request this verification via the online registration form.      
  6. Students from different educational institutions may form a single team as long as all other individuals and team requirements are satisfied. For example, if your university does not offer a landscape architecture programme and you would like to have that discipline represented in your team, you can work with another university to achieve the mix you seek. 
  7. Students enrolled in dual-degree programmes must designate which degree programme they represent on the team for the purposes of the team composition requirements. For example, a student enrolled in a joint MRED/MArch program must state which discipline they represent on the team.  
  8. The only exceptions to these formulas for team formation are at universities where the graduate degree is considered multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary. If you think this might apply to your team, please email [email protected] before the application deadline.  
  9. Once the team has registered, it must remain intact throughout the entire process. If a registered team member decides not to continue, the team must replace the departing member and still satisfy the requirements for team composition. We allow you to replace student team members only in extraordinary circumstances and with written approval from ULI Asia Pacific.  
  10. Team members—students, faculty, and outside professionals—are not required to be members of ULI Asia Pacific. 

Communication with ULI  

  • Each team must designate one student member as the team leader who will act as a contact person with ULI.  
  • Please note that ULI Asia Pacific does not accept any phone call inquiries related to this competition to guarantee the standards of the competition. Please address questions and comments to [email protected].  

Faculty and Professional Advisors  

  • Each team must have at least one faculty advisor from its university. The faculty advisor can be from any programme. This faculty member serves only in an advisory role. They may not be an active team participant or a direct participant in producing any competition materials.  
  • Teams can have a second optional faculty advisor. If your team has two faculty advisors, we recommend that they represent different disciplines.  
  • Each team must have a programme head approve its application. The programme head might be a programme director, department chair, or dean. The individual who approves the application does not have to be the faculty advisor. By approving the application, the programme head confirms that all team members are full-time graduate students enrolled for the spring 2024 semester (or part-time or undergraduate under the exceptions noted above) and that the university is committed to supporting the team’s efforts.  
  • Each team can use outside professionals who agree to act as additional advisors. The professional advisors, like the faculty advisors, may not be active team participants or direct participants in producing competition materials. We have limited teams to two professional advisors. If there is a local real estate professional with whom you would like to work, feel free to contact them directly. If you need further assistance, please email [email protected].