Archinect has offered most popular architecture and design job board for over two decades, and that standing enables us to get a unique look at hiring trends throughout the industry at any point in time. With the economy taking a hit, and employers navigating many unknowns due to COVID-19, job seekers are wondering what the future holds for them. We decided to create a brief outline of what we’re currently seeing on our job board in hopes of providing some insights into what might be occurring in the larger architectural employment market.
Unsurprisingly, of the firms actively hiring on Archinect, roughly 75 percent of them are located in California and New York with just over 40 percent of open positions in the country being in California and just over 30 percent in New York. Naturally, the big cities in each state hold the bulk of the positions with Los Angeles listing 28.4 percent of open jobs and New York City listing 31.5 percent of available opportunities. If we home in on California as a whole, we also see activity in cities like Irvine, Oakland, and, of course, San Francisco, all making up about 30 percent of the remaining jobs in the state outside of LA. Of the open positions in New York, only about 10 percent are outside of New York City.
Leaving California and New York, movement in other states diminishes. The states that offer the next highest number of active job openings, in order, are New Jersey, Florida, Massachusetts, District of Columbia, Washington, and Pennsylvania. In light of the recent trend in virtual work, there has been an increase in remote positions that have no location, allowing candidates to work outside of the firm’s physical workplace. Canada, typically the second most popular country in our job board, currently represents 3% of the active job ads.
The majority of firms that are hiring are medium (7-49 people) and small (1-6 people) firms with most working in the residential sector. However, many firms, especially the fewer large firms (50+ people) are working in the commercial sectors in areas such as healthcare, corporate, and education. Of the currently listed openings at the date of writing, close to 10 percent are entry-level and internships; over 60 percent consist of upper-level positions including Project Architects, Project Managers, and Job Captains, Senior Designers are also in this group; and about 35 percent of the remaining openings are in the intermediate skill category with opportunities for Designers, Interior Designers, and Project Staff.
The majority of firms hiring are medium (7-49 people) and small (1-6 people) firms with most working in the residential sector.
“We do mostly complex residential work where each person is in charge of their own project, and we are a small team,” Joseph Vance, founder, and principal at New York-based Joseph Vance Architects told Archinect. “So those on the team need to have the experience needed to navigate a project by themselves,” he continued. The practice has just hired a new team member, filling a recent opening for an experienced Architect, but Joseph says he anticipates the studio will be looking for a more junior level staff member in the coming months, someone who will need to have at least three years of experience as a minimum requirement to be considered. With a focus on high-end residential renovations, Joseph says the team works on projects ranging anywhere from $2 million to $12 million in budget.
“We are seeking Intermediate Architects & Designers with 5 to 7 years of experience working in a major international architecture firm,” writes MAD Architects’ Los Angeles office. “West coast experience, particularly on completed corporate offices, mixed-use developments, and/or large-scale cultural projects, is highly preferred.” The practice is a good example of a larger more internationally focused enterprise, a type of firm that tends to have its hands in multiple market sectors. MAD Architects just recently shared its designs for the Shenzhen Bay Culture Park, due to be completed in roughly two years time.
Embarking on a job hunt in our current landscape can be daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. While it is true that fewer firms are hiring there are still jobs, they are just more scarce, which means candidates must be more exceptional. Statistically speaking, the job seeker is less likely to land a job, but regardless of the probabilities, there is still a chance, and so, how does one heighten their chances of getting a job in today’s market?
Archinect has a plethora of resources to help provide the job seeker with some tips, best practices, and help during this time.
Archinect has a plethora of resources to help provide the job seeker with some tips, best practices, and help during this time. If you’re looking for some insight into how you might go about your search for a new job, you might like our 3-Step Guide to Choosing Your Next Architecture Job; Tools of the Job Hunt is another good one. Or if you’re interested in fine-tuning your application package, you’ll definitely want to check out The Architecture Job Application Hints & Suggestions from Employers. Also, you won’t find a better resource online than our How to Get a Job At ____ series. These articles offer an inside look into practices like OMA, Studio Gang, Barbara Bestor, and countless others. You’ll get to discover insights and secrets right from the hiring decision-makers in each firm.
And don’t forget to regularly check back to our job board for new opportunities, and create a custom job alerts to be notified when the perfect opportunity is posted for you. We will continue to monitor what we see happening in the market and update our readership as we learn more.
Sean Joyner is a writer and essayist based in Los Angeles. His work explores themes spanning architecture, culture, and everyday life. Sean's essays and articles have been featured in The Architect's Newspaper, ARCHITECT Magazine, Dwell Magazine, and Archinect. He also works as an ...
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I think you're such a great Architectural family and hope to be part of your team someday. I'm Tobiloba Odeyinka from Nigeria, an architectural student and a prospective learner in the USA or Canada. Hope to find a suitable working space with you someday.
Thanks and God bless you.
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