I am a British architect who is moving from London to BA next year. My girlfriend has been offered a job there (hence the move), and now I need to find a job!
I know the economy is in a bad state and I am very aware that finding a job wont be easy, but I do need to try. I am 3 years post full RIBA qualification. My Spanish is getting there although I am still only beginner/intermediate. I am however learning intensely and plan to fully conversational by the time I arrive in BA (and hopefully fluent by the time I leave).
Any advice about where to look for jobs, who to apply to, what salary I can expect, whether my qualifications will mean anything over there etc etc would be massively appreciated.
Are Brits welcome in Argentina? Didn't the two countries fight a nasty little war not long ago, one which didn't go well for Argentina... Or did they agree to forgive and forget after the junta got dumped?
No not really. I don't really want to take career break as I am very interested in learning how architecture functions in other counties. I have worked overseas before and I found the whole experience was very informative.
Although I would prefer a paid position, I could probably survive from my savings and the rental income from my flat in London. Perhaps charity work is more realistic.
Can anyone recommend any good construction/building/architecture charities operating in BA?
There is definitely some work in Buenos Aires, I would even guess that you could easily find a paid position with your experience. It's not going to be well paid, but it definitely is going to be something. I knew foreign architects who found jobs with pretty good salaries by local standards (that was a few years ago though).
Now your British qualifications probably won't mean anything there, but your experience and expertise will.
As to how to apply, it would help if you knew somebody there, but even if you do not, just apply to the firms you would not mind working for and see what they say. It's really not that complicated of a process.
When I was looking for a job there last year, I literally applied to 5 firms that I liked the most out of the ones I saw on the internet. I heard back from 4 of them, 2 offers. Even the ones who did not make an offer, very extremely nice and offered some advise about the job scene at that moment and other firms who were busy/could be hiring. Argentinians are very good and open people, I am sure you will hear from them one way or another.
On the question of "construction/building/architecture charities", I know Sergio Palleroni runs an interesting practice with multiple community projects. I don't know where his office is, but he is Argentinian and he had a few projects in and around BAs, so chances are, he has an office somewhere there.
I did not speak Spanish at first and it was tough, there is no point denying it. I mean, I could have gotten by without it, almost everybody in my office spoke English, but it helps so much if you at least understand. Nobody is going to translate a client, engineer or contractor meeting to you. That being said, once you are there, it's A LOT easier to learn the language and Argentinians are generally very excited that you are trying and will try to help you. I got significantly better mostly thanks to my colleagues and it was a game changer, I could fully participate in the meetings, my opinion seemed to matter more and more, I could speak to engineers and clients directly. I am still not fluent, but it's not required. As long as you understand and can communicate you are not gonna miss out on anything work-wise.
Oh, and by the way nobody hates Brits there, at least smart people don't. Just make sure you don't call Malvinas "Falklands", it is still very much a sensitive subject.
I understand that my comments come off as too positive (rather unusual for this forum), but so was my experience and I hope yours will be just as good.
Working in Buenos Aires
Hello all,
I am a British architect who is moving from London to BA next year. My girlfriend has been offered a job there (hence the move), and now I need to find a job!
I know the economy is in a bad state and I am very aware that finding a job wont be easy, but I do need to try. I am 3 years post full RIBA qualification. My Spanish is getting there although I am still only beginner/intermediate. I am however learning intensely and plan to fully conversational by the time I arrive in BA (and hopefully fluent by the time I leave).
Any advice about where to look for jobs, who to apply to, what salary I can expect, whether my qualifications will mean anything over there etc etc would be massively appreciated.
Thanks,
Al
Are Brits welcome in Argentina? Didn't the two countries fight a nasty little war not long ago, one which didn't go well for Argentina... Or did they agree to forgive and forget after the junta got dumped?
No, I guess they didn't.
Surely all Argentinians can't hate all Brits......can they?
Argentines are, rather strangely, still very into "their" Malvinas.
setting that aside, the country is yet again in default. The economy is a disaster. Have you thought about teaching English instead?
No not really. I don't really want to take career break as I am very interested in learning how architecture functions in other counties. I have worked overseas before and I found the whole experience was very informative.
Although I would prefer a paid position, I could probably survive from my savings and the rental income from my flat in London. Perhaps charity work is more realistic.
Can anyone recommend any good construction/building/architecture charities operating in BA?
There is definitely some work in Buenos Aires, I would even guess that you could easily find a paid position with your experience. It's not going to be well paid, but it definitely is going to be something. I knew foreign architects who found jobs with pretty good salaries by local standards (that was a few years ago though).
Now your British qualifications probably won't mean anything there, but your experience and expertise will.
As to how to apply, it would help if you knew somebody there, but even if you do not, just apply to the firms you would not mind working for and see what they say. It's really not that complicated of a process.
When I was looking for a job there last year, I literally applied to 5 firms that I liked the most out of the ones I saw on the internet. I heard back from 4 of them, 2 offers. Even the ones who did not make an offer, very extremely nice and offered some advise about the job scene at that moment and other firms who were busy/could be hiring. Argentinians are very good and open people, I am sure you will hear from them one way or another.
On the question of "construction/building/architecture charities", I know Sergio Palleroni runs an interesting practice with multiple community projects. I don't know where his office is, but he is Argentinian and he had a few projects in and around BAs, so chances are, he has an office somewhere there.
Thanks for the advice Sam, much appreciated.
Do you speak Spanish fluently? If not, did you find the language barrier to be a problem?
I did not speak Spanish at first and it was tough, there is no point denying it. I mean, I could have gotten by without it, almost everybody in my office spoke English, but it helps so much if you at least understand. Nobody is going to translate a client, engineer or contractor meeting to you. That being said, once you are there, it's A LOT easier to learn the language and Argentinians are generally very excited that you are trying and will try to help you. I got significantly better mostly thanks to my colleagues and it was a game changer, I could fully participate in the meetings, my opinion seemed to matter more and more, I could speak to engineers and clients directly. I am still not fluent, but it's not required. As long as you understand and can communicate you are not gonna miss out on anything work-wise.
Oh, and by the way nobody hates Brits there, at least smart people don't. Just make sure you don't call Malvinas "Falklands", it is still very much a sensitive subject.
I understand that my comments come off as too positive (rather unusual for this forum), but so was my experience and I hope yours will be just as good.
Sam, your positivity is most welcome! Thanks for taking the time to respond, it really is greatly appreciated.
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