Archinect - News

A group of UK architects is pushing for youth movement at the top of RIBA’s leadership

2022-03-24T15:11:00-04:00

Petitioners in the UK are bidding to have an early-career architectural worker elected as the next RIBA president as a change of direction for the 188-year-old organization which they charge as “losing touch with architects, students, and the next generation of talent.”

In an open letter obtained by AJ, the group of signatories, led by Future Architects Network founder Simeon Shtebunaev, the architecture union UVW-SAW, and the Future Architects’ Front, which has been a vocal critic of RIBA’s inability to tackle the industry’s “culture of exploitation” since its inception last year.

“As student loans increase and the length of architecture courses stay the same, people are asking if the unethical working conditions merit the payoff,” RIBA’s VP for students and associates Maryam Al-Irhayim, who is also a co-signer of the letter, told the publication. “There is a lack of job security, too, as seen in the pandemic where most young people were first to be let go.”

Related on Archinect: A...

Explore 13 paid internship opportunities listed on Archinect Jobs

2022-02-02T18:03:00-05:00

For designers stepping into the workforce, looking for a viable internship opportunity can offer many benefits. In November 2021, we focused on paid internship resources for students and emerging professionals to navigate potential job listings.

At Archinect, we frequently highlight the importance of paid employment opportunities and the discourse surrounding fair and equitable practices. As the job market continues to unfold for 2022, firms seek skilled designers who have recently graduated or are looking to expand their experience in professional practice.

Below is a collection of 13 internship opportunities posted on the Archinect Job board with listings that outline compensation details and benefits.

West Coast Opportunities

Wakecrest Residence by ShubinDonaldson. Image © Benny Chan/Courtesy of ShubinDonaldson.

Otherworks seeks a Part-Time Intern: Rendering and 3-D Printing Focus
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Details: "Otherworks is seeking a local part-time intern (10-20 hours a ...

Archinect's Internship Watch: Resources for searching paid internship opportunities

2021-11-29T09:11:00-05:00

Talk of architecture internships has been an ongoing discussion at Archinect. With the rise in fair and equitable work practices for designers at various levels, we've frequently opened our platform to organizations and individuals aiming to shed light on best internship practices, specifically paid internship opportunities.

In December 2019, former Archinect team member and contributing writer Sean Joyner outlined in Archinect's Guide to Job Titles the position of Intern. "Internships act as a salient supplementation meant to deepen the practical education of the up and coming pupil, with an aim for growth and development. But what exactly does an intern do? What do firms look for in an intern? And what characteristics make up a good internship?"

Feix & Merlin Architects. Photo by Ellen Hancock

Firms have been teaming with organizations to increase access and work opportunities for students, specifically students from marginalized groups. While the needle is moving, addressing equi...

Automating busy work with a 'robot intern'

2016-07-21T15:27:00-04:00

If you're a designer who works with clients, here's something you're probably familiar with: the project that never ends. The actual designing may take a matter of hours, but presenting the idea to a client, making little tweaks and edits, finding a middle ground between your vision and theirs? That process can take months [...] For his graduate project, Ingemann Breitenstein spent time in product design studios across London researching the inefficiencies in that designer-client process.

"The result is an algorithm that takes a basic idea for a product and generates countless variations on its design—as directed by a physical controller. Ingemann Breitenstein calls the machine the Unpaid Intern—a tongue-and-cheek nod to the mindless photoshopping and last minute tweaking it could conceivably reduce."

For more on the automated world-to-come, check out these links:

A day in the life of a (fictional) architecture intern

2016-04-06T13:50:00-04:00

7:31 am Ugh, forgot I’m working for a dude. 7:34 am I wonder if the dude has a family. 7:36 am Weird how I know all the female architects’ parental statuses but I don’t know the dudes’. 7:37 am I should stop referring to GREATEST ARCHITECT OF ALL TIME as “dude,” even in my head. Begin referring to him as GOAT. (Greatest Of All Time.) 8:00 am Why is the subway late? Should I walk? If I walk I’m gonna get sweaty.

While this fictional young architecture intern may confuse pandas with penumbras, she doesn't seem to have any problems affording her new internship for the "Greatest Architect of All Time."

That's not the case for all interns, however. For a look at the economics of interning in 2016, check out The internship test or: why even become an architect at all?

And for even more on architecture internships, here's some more Archinect coverage: