done it, it really depends on the situation both at the firm and at school. They really do play a tug of war and Ive had friends who end up choosig one or another and then regretting it. Either their school product is shit or they are constantly under presure at work. You have to see what your boss would think and if your schedule at work can flex around school ie final reviews.

I interned all the way through undergrad and grad school - it worked out fine as far as my own school/work schedule was concerned, but the firms are pretty quick to let part-time people go if there's a slowdown - so it wasn't always the most dependable arrangement.
My current firm has a policy of allowing part-time work ONLY if the intern has previously worked fulltime (usually for a summer.) This is because it's very difficult to train someone and really get them into the swing of things in the firm if they're only there 10 hours a week or so. If you really want to be integrated into projects (rather than just picking up redlines in CAD) I'd suggest that you try to build a long-term relationship with a firm by working there for a summer first.

i work ~22 hours a week with 16 units. i'm a redline picker-upper and by friday i'm to either go postal at work or hope i can make it through traffic for a well deserved beer.... (enter old archinect discussion about architects + drinking)

you only start drinking on friday??!
my wednesday bender sails me right into the weekend.

i was refering to the well deserved beer... the 1st of the day, not the week.

I worked ~20 hrs a week during school at a firm and have to say once I started doing firm work I really quit putting my all into school. I also got pretty worn out because I would always be coming in odd hours to try to get my work done, but it was definetely worth it for how much you learn practicing and seeing your work get built.

But then I kept having dreams about forgetting to goto a course all semester and then remembering I was enrolled in a course a week before finals...

it all really comes down to time management. i worked all last year for a loft 12 hours a week while taking a standard 15 credits. i didn't have as much time to myself but it wasn't any big deal; my projects still all came out well. i recommend working during school actually because it provides one with the opportunity to focus on something else, which i feel is a beneficial lesson for architecture students. don't over do it though; school is voluntary, costly, and this is the only time in your life you'll really get to speculate on your own about design. in the end, your schooling is more important.

Le Bossman has a good point, you only get to do school once or twice. I only stepped up to 20 hours a week my last couple years of school, and by that time my course load had dropped to around 14 hours/semester so it wasn't that bad...but weeks when I had deadlines at both work and school were very difficult. Luckily my bosses were really cool and understanding and let me have off when it got to be too much (like finals and such).

I may not be taking studio in the fall, that may help.

you have your entire life to work, architecture school is intense and really fun, put all you can into it and enjoy it.

but...I'm broke as hell. i don't have any money, and I most likely am only taking 2 classes next semester. I need to do something with my time.