Hi, I will be in New York City in a few weeks, in order to see the city. I also think it would be a good idea to hand out my resume to a few firms I enjoy. So my question is : In the US, is it fine to drop by an architecture office in order to give an unsolicited application, or is it frowned upon?
Khaled, in the U.S. everything is in play. Like said you won’t get to see anybody without an appointment but it will be fun, you’ll see many beautiful women at the reception desks and get a glimpse of the offices of the firms you enjoy. Paper resumes are a favorite strategy of mine and will not be frowned on.
Is your resume the most awesome, amazing, mind-blowing thing in the world? Have you worked for two or more Pritzker winning architects? Did you graduate from an ivy league school with a starchitect as a thesis advisor?
No? Yeah, they probably don't want to see your resume. And like RIAAA said above me, you will probably feel/ be made to feel quite embarrassed. Probably a waste of paper, time, and energy.
You should spend your extra time trying to leverage professional contacts to grab a meal, or try and get someone you know professionally or through school to take you on a tour of an office they work at.
Getting a job is about meeting people, not your resume. Well, you need a solid resume, but there are very few places you can impress someone with your resume so much that they just hire you. And most job postings get 100s to 1000s of responses.
If it was a smaller city then it might be okay, but NYC! I'm sure that most receptionist have been coached to escort you to the door.
I remember one of my old bosses sending me all the applications and resumes that were cold emailed to the firm (which was 20-40 a day), interestingly enough, most good looking woman started to have a picture of themselves on the cover of their resume... it was quite entertaining.
My question is, how long can universities have stable architecture colleges before it is a running joke that it is a dead career field. You would think with the internet's wealth of information it is sooner than later.
I have at least noticed that more job posting are being 'more' honest in their titles. CAD operator, architectural drafting position, Revit tech, etc... It is crazy to see such over qualified individuals applying for these jobs thinking there is a ladder to climb, and then they are reminded at their review of the job position they applied to, and that there is always a fresh batch of monkeys to drop into the ball pin.
Entertaining replies (and sad too a bit, maybe?). I plan to visit a couple firms that do not accept emailed applications, so I can justify it that way if needed. And while I realize they recieve tons of applications, the worst thing they can say is "no" ...
Application etiquette
Hi, I will be in New York City in a few weeks, in order to see the city. I also think it would be a good idea to hand out my resume to a few firms I enjoy. So my question is : In the US, is it fine to drop by an architecture office in order to give an unsolicited application, or is it frowned upon?
Thank you !
Shouldnt be a problem, I'd call them first.
Khaled, in the U.S. everything is in play. Like said you won’t get to see anybody without an appointment but it will be fun, you’ll see many beautiful women at the reception desks and get a glimpse of the offices of the firms you enjoy. Paper resumes are a favorite strategy of mine and will not be frowned on.
“Yo, don’t forget to pick-up an Egg Crème”
Good luck.
Thanks a lot for your answers !
Firms like BIG and OMA are very annoyed by this. You'll feel embarrassed.
Is your resume the most awesome, amazing, mind-blowing thing in the world? Have you worked for two or more Pritzker winning architects? Did you graduate from an ivy league school with a starchitect as a thesis advisor?
No? Yeah, they probably don't want to see your resume. And like RIAAA said above me, you will probably feel/ be made to feel quite embarrassed. Probably a waste of paper, time, and energy.
You should spend your extra time trying to leverage professional contacts to grab a meal, or try and get someone you know professionally or through school to take you on a tour of an office they work at.
Getting a job is about meeting people, not your resume. Well, you need a solid resume, but there are very few places you can impress someone with your resume so much that they just hire you. And most job postings get 100s to 1000s of responses.
Economics 101_
High supply equals low demand.
If it was a smaller city then it might be okay, but NYC! I'm sure that most receptionist have been coached to escort you to the door.
I remember one of my old bosses sending me all the applications and resumes that were cold emailed to the firm (which was 20-40 a day), interestingly enough, most good looking woman started to have a picture of themselves on the cover of their resume... it was quite entertaining.
My question is, how long can universities have stable architecture colleges before it is a running joke that it is a dead career field. You would think with the internet's wealth of information it is sooner than later.
I have at least noticed that more job posting are being 'more' honest in their titles. CAD operator, architectural drafting position, Revit tech, etc... It is crazy to see such over qualified individuals applying for these jobs thinking there is a ladder to climb, and then they are reminded at their review of the job position they applied to, and that there is always a fresh batch of monkeys to drop into the ball pin.
It is almost like having a college that teaches you how to be an Arby's manager.
Whooo, I just got accepted to AST! Whoop whoop, The Arby's School of Technics!
Entertaining replies (and sad too a bit, maybe?). I plan to visit a couple firms that do not accept emailed applications, so I can justify it that way if needed. And while I realize they recieve tons of applications, the worst thing they can say is "no" ...
Yeah, very true. Might as well try, definitely couldn't hurt!
Do let us know if it is fruitful!
Best of luck!
Thank you DeTwan !
Any luck Khaled? Would you please update us ? I am facing almost the same dilemma .. lol
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