1. probably around 2-3 months before you would want to start

2. yes, as long as you're not looking for a fancy apartment

3. there's no desired format..as long as it is less than 2mb

I dont have a work permit to work in either hong kong USA OR Rotterdam.
Neither do i have any previous work experience. How will this affect my chances?

it depends on your nationality and the office you are applying to but generally you apply for a work permit only after you have received an offer.

all the best,

j

3. a f'ing amazing one.

iheartbooks-Why do u say that??

How many applications do you think they get a week? 100, 1000? The small, local office i work for in NYC gets probably 50 a week.

The online application process makes it very difficult to stand out from the crowd, so unless you know someone working there or your portfolio is amazing you will just end up lumped in with thousands of other applicants. Even if it is amazing there are no guarantees. Great portfolios seem to be the minimum in such a competitive market.

Not to play debby-downer, but good luck jack.

The least you can do is try.
I sent stuff through their website and got an interview.
It took them about 2 months though.

I know of a student who printed their portfolio on several rolls of toilet paper, and then subversively deposited them in the bathroom of his practice of choice.

He got a job with them on that alone.

Try something different.

Are you being serious diabese? Because if you are, then that's a story I'm going to have to start retelling.

or are you a principal trying to test the sanity of future applicants? >!>

I once broke into my favorite architect's house and plastered labels containing images from my 'folio on every item I found in the fridge.

It didn't go over too well...

The judge was understanding...

I once sent a group of circus clowns to my favorite firm, where they assembled my portfolio out of meat products and sausage in the lobby. Then they lit it on fire and served it up as barbeque.

I got the job.

Try something different.

jacklawyer-

i will start their trainee program this september at Rotterdam. I also didn't have any work permit. As far as I see, they don't bother for only 3 months. *of course it depends. Because it takes at least 2 months to process the work permit. And if you consider being there at summer time, you need to apply as soon as possible.

you will be paid 700 euros.

since it is only 2 mb, put a variety of your very best work. at the cover letter, do not overstate any architectural discourse, rather be a motivated third year b.arch student who is eager to learn.

There is a famous story from Vignelli's office in the 1980's. A graphic designer shows up to work there one morning. Massimo thinks Lella hired him and Lella thinks Massimo hired the guy. A week goes by and one of them says to the other...that new guy you hired is really good. The other one says "I didn't hire him, I thought you did!" They confront the new employee and he says that he wanted to work there so badly that he just showed up. They ended up hiring him for real!

A few quick questions to those who have already interned at OMA, Rotterdam:

- Did you do a phone/iChat interview? or did you have to fly in to Rotterdam?
- Do they somehow help foreign interns securing housing? or they just don't give a f*ck?
- Is the stipend really 700Eur? WTF can you do with 700Eur in Rotterdam? (how much do/did u spend on housing, food, ...)

Any input will be highly appreciated. Thx!

kwdll
i am sorry, but i am to understand that you expect them to both pay you more and organise housing??
wtf?

kwdll, you live in Cinderella Castle if you think they are gonna pay you more or give you housing.

I agree that 700 euros (roughly USD 1000) is a low salary for an internship in any area, but it is not below the standard for architecture, specially in this economic situation. And you are talking about OMA which is the most famous architecture office in the world, nonetheless. That means that every single week they receive hundreds of resumes from all over the world.

Check the thread about Japan if you are not happy.

Regarding your questions:

- You don't need to fly there to get in (for an internship). Skype should be enough.
- They obviously don't give a fuck, like any architecture office in the world (hello, you are an intern). You are not an expat for Chevron in Lybia.
- Honestly you can survive on that. Rotterdam (at least housing) is not a very costly city, specially if you compare it to where most starchitects are based (NY, LA, Tokyo, London, etc.). Working basically 24 hours a day you won't have much free time plus you have free food in the office. You can even save on that (unfortunately, I am not joking).

You got me all wrong! I didn't say any of that...

I've just asked if 700Eur is still the correct value (it might have changed) and what can one do with it... In other words: How expensive is Rotterdam?

Is that uncommon to have the office to somehow help foreign interns securing housing? I don't know... All I know is that if you intern with JDS Architects and you're not from Copenhagen, they'll help you... so I asked!

actually in NL €700 is about twice what by law they have to pay interns.
and remember in NL an intern is someone who has not graduated, it isn't the same as a US intern architect (although alot of non-NL grads try and get internship positions here - well, thats their choice)

p2an is right, usually in Europe intern is someone who is not graduated. Obviously at OMA they can play with that, they get so many resumes, they can easily get recent graduates for the same price.

Housing shouldn't be very expensive. Around EUR 400 for a flatsharing.

Again if you live close to the office (Rdam is not a megalopolis after all, get a cheap bike like everyone else in NL), you save on transport. If you "live" in the office, you save on food and leisure. You will even save 300 euros x 6 months = 1800 euros, enough to pay your plane ticket back home and to print your new portfolios/resumes with the flashy OMA name on it ;).

Alright guys, I've never said I expected or wanted more than those 700Eur, so there's no need to jump on me about it...

@p2an
I'm European, so I know that... ;)

@Hawkin
Now this is weird! You think I'm nuts when I ask if they help interns with housing and then you tell me you can literally eat at the office? lol Can you tall me more about that? What kind of food? Do people actually do that? Only interns? (it looks surreal to me... really!)

Saving 300Eur/month? Are you serious? I was thinking about how much it would cost me to move there... and now you're telling me that I can even save money? Have you interned there? I would really like to hear from someone who had actually been an intern there...

If I go there, I wanna suck up everything I can! literally!!! So "living in the office" aka putting long, long hours is not a problem... actually is kind of "all that I want"!

kwdll, keep in mind that the following is mostly second-hand knowledge and somewhat dated, but...

Yes, they used to feed people. Very often lunch and sometimes dinners are covered, and its supposedly pretty decent food. Just realize that this always comes with a price... When the boss arrived at the office with bags of take-away, we always knew that a very long night was ahead of us!

700 euro sounds about right, which is double what they and similar firms (UN, etc) used to pay (and are legally required to pay in NL). It's not much, you won't save a thing, but you should be able to live off it. A room in a shared flat might run you 350-450/month. Transit should be cheap/negligible (walk/ride + bus/tram when necessary), and entertainment likewise (forget bars or clubs...if it's anything like my "starchitect" experience, your "nights out" will probably consist of hanging with other impoverished architects at house parties, in the park, at the architecture school, or anywhere else where copious amounts of supermarket wine can be consumed). It's not a glamourous life, nor is it particularly good for your health/sanity, but you'll learn a ton (if nothing else, just to see what these "high end" offices are all about, how to deal with stress, and how to produce like a machine), make a lot of friends, and have memories to last a life-time.

As for finding housing.... In my experience, it's pretty common practice for these types of firms to be reasonably helpful. Just ask in your interview (AFTER they offer you the job ;-) ). Who knows?... One of their current employees might have a vacant room, or perhaps another intern is leaving and you can take over her place.

Despite what Hawkin says (though he's correct, this ain't Chevron), the least you can do is ask. My former employer offered me a place to stay, an old colleague of mine was given an apartment to share with other interns in Copenhagen, another had the same arrangement in Shenzen, and a friend of mine even lived with his boss for several weeks until he could secure his own accommodation, so yeah, this stuff does happen. At the very least, they'll most likely point you towards online classified listings or other resources to help you out.

@IamGray

Thank you so much for your reply!

So, looks like one can not count on eating at the office... right? 'cause if the food's coming it means you're probably not going home for the night. This is kind of what I expected... and common practice. The only question remaining is: how frequently does that happen?

Regarding housing: that's exactly what I was talking about! When i moved to NY the office helped me with that. They got me in touch with the guy who was leaving and I took over his place. They didn't have to... but they did it anyway! I also know of a friend who interned at JDS in Copenhagen and had help from the office.

Just another question: They don't ask for letters of recommendation. Should I include them in my application? Do they usually call/email your previous employer to check up your story? It would be good to know as I would like to let them know they're gonna get a call/email from OMA in advance.

Thx!

Can somebody help me with these questions?

They don't ask for letters of recommendation. Should I include them in my application? Do they usually call/email your previous employer to check out your story? It would be good to know as I would like to let them know they're gonna get a call/email from OMA in advance.

Be prepaired for a very aggressive environment, or so I've heard.

A direct quote from a colleague who used to work there: ''Whenever I saw his car outside, I knew it would be a bad day.''

kwdll... just relax. They're OMA, not God almighty. It's just another interview.

They didn't ask for references, so obviously you don't need them right now.

If for whatever reason, you think your chances are improved by adding some references though... go right ahead and add them.

This stuff isn't rocket science!

If you've spoken to your previous employers before about getting a reference, that's good enough. They won't be caught off-guard by any inquiries.

hello hello,
they pay you depending on where you are coming from. so it ranges from 500- 700 euros.
and you don't need to fly to Rotterdam, just skype conversation.

500 Euros if you're dutch and 700 if you're foreigner? Is that it?

Just so this can save everyone's time and sanity, once you get the offer and move to Rotterdam, avoid renting from classic apartments on Scheikade.

I had a horrible, horrible experience with them and didn't make my time in rotterdam any easier. I had to threaten them for 6 months to get the deposit they promised. 

They target expats in the area and Im pretty sure their outrageous rate is illegal anyways.