Hey man, Congrats on the admission! I graduated from the M.Arch program last year. If you know what kind of work you want to do after graduation, the department is super responsive and resourceful. RISD's over all career services are also helpful but cater to helping you find a "job". A lot of the professors at the BEB have a lot of professional connections in NYC and Boston, and is where most of the students end up. I personally got my dream job at SOM in nyc right after graduation thanks to my department advisor's friendship with one of the partners (both RISD alumni) 

As far as Providence..Yes, it doesn't compare to NYC, but it's definitely worth the education and resources that RISD will provide you while there. (plus everything's significantly cheaper). It's also a town that will inevitably grow on you. 

Hope this helps, Good luck m8!

Congrats there!

I m a recent RISD alumni too and definitely loved this school and the program. It is unique in a lot of ways thanks how the department is embedded in a really wonderful community of artists and designers.

i assume your main concern there is about where you would be living and working after your graduation. (maybe you are not, but at least that is the question you are trying get answers for in this post).Talking about job situation and being conceptual, you have to know, there are different people looking for totally different things out there.

Some will be flipping through your portfolio scanning for evidence of fluent Adobe, rhino or even simply rendering skills and that's it for them. There are also people out there would reject or love certain school without looking at anything too.And personally, I have encountered potential employers who loved the most conceptual work in a line of different project in my portfolio. And there are many people out there who, whether you believe or not, really appreciate the conceptual work and touch of "hands-on/making" in RISD people.

I think, ultimately, you have to decide for yourself what type of designer /architect you want to become and if you feel really connected to the RISD vibe, i hope you would enjoy Providence as much as I did !

Best of luck!

Hi Haisum! Congrats on your admission! I am currently a first year M.Arch student at RISD and was in a very similar situation to you not so long ago. A little background--along with RISD, I was accepted into Pratt and Parsons, two competitive design schools in the heart of NYC, also a place where I intend to work after this masters. 

So firstly, I feel for you! I went to school in NYC and felt that the only opportunity to work there was to be there (not true). I will try my best to answer your questions to the best of my ability--

1) Are they respected in job market or they are in demand? How much helpful are RISD Career Services?

From my understanding, the RISD name holds a lot of weight since it is a top tier design school known all over the world. I had a mentor who reviews applications/portfolios at a NYC firm tell me that they look for people who have read widely, can think deeply, and draw beautifully--all attributes RISD will give you. As for the career services, RISD has great resources in finding internships and jobs in the field. For example, every spring RISD has a portfolio review where they invite firms from varying sizes from around the globe to review portfolios and conduct interviews. It is a great way to received feedback about your portfolio from reviewers and a wonderful way to network for the future. A few of my peers have gotten their summer internships through this way. Another great opportunity is a local firm crawl that the club AIAS conducts usually in the fall. You can firm "hop" and see the work of local firms while networking and learning more about different career paths. Aside for job fairs/events RISD has career services to help you with CVs, resumes, and applications. Also, the department is constantly sharing fellowship and grant opportunities that you could apply for.

2) Do you think location of school matters considering career opportunities.

In regard to RISD, Providence is a great city. It is actually in a great location due to its proximity to two major cities (NYC and Boston). Many professors commute from those cities to teach at RISD and in general RISD is very well connected.

3) how was your experience when studying at RISD? Did you like it? How was life like in Providence?

It is my first year and I really like it. The studio culture is extremely collaborative and inspiring. We all just want to help each other reach our potential whether that is talking through design concepts, seeking advice and peer review to further your project, or staying a little later in the studio to help someone finish up their work. Everyone is extremely encouraging. As for Providence as a city (this may be a little biased), I think it a great place to do your masters. Architecture is a very demanding and requires a lot of your time in the studio. Prior to RISD, I was living in NYC and it is a very fast-paced and stressful city. I figured, if I'm already going to be stressed in school, why not be in a peaceful place? Providence is really a charming New England town with great restaurants and scenery.

I really hope some of this is helpful for you! I remember this decision process very clearly. My last bits of advice are see how you feel after the admitted students day for each school and look at student and faculty work (school websites and instragrams). To me, RISD is a place that nurtures a free artistic spirit, encourages radical exploration, and pushes to expand the boundaries of the discipline.

hi haisum-

risd alum here who graduated a few years ago. to answer some of you questions:

-the risd name does seem to carry far. it's quite a respected institution (historically more so for other majors, but recently arch has caught up.) this proved to be true when i was looking for jobs in NYC- most of the firms i have worked for were due to direct risd connections (professors, past employees, etc.) tbh i did not find career services very useful, at all. again, word of mouth carries further.

-providence is a wonderful place to be a student. there's just enough to do to keep you entertained on top of your course load, but it's not overwhelming like your fear about NYC (i couldn't imagine trying to live here while being a student, but plenty of people do).

-i loved studying at risd; i think it was a great match for me, but particularly because of the fact that i was able to take many courses outside of the department. imo, this is the greatest strength of the program: its real inter-disciplinarian nature (unlike the lip-service most programs pay to the idea). in that way it has both enriched and strained my relationship with practice.. this is a complicated subject but if you are interested in the quickest, least painful path to becoming an architect, risd is not the best program. if you're interested in pursuing ideas tangential to and beyond architecture (specifically in the arts, obviously), there's not a better program.

-one last consideration: if you were given advanced standing to risd and not other programs, then it's a no-brainier. student loan debt is a real thing to consider. it's all funny money until that first bill comes in- i would have pushed harder for advanced standing had i been more aware of the reality of the crushing debt burden (though obviously this is an issue not unique to risd). happy to answer more questions about that on the side.

good luck

Some will be flipping through your portfolio scanning for evidence of fluent Adobe, rhino or even simply rendering skills and that's it for them. There are also people out there MyCFAVisit would reject or love certain school without looking at anything too.And personally, I have encountered potential employers who loved the most conceptual work in a line of different project in my portfolio. And there are many people out there who, whether you believe or not, really appreciate the conceptual work and touch of "hands-on/making" in RISD people. 

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Yes location matters, but RISD is a better school with a better program in every aspect but location, so this is an easy one.

Hi! 

I'm in the midst of 3-year M.Arch applications and I feel a little stuck in executing my portfolio especially since I'm not from a design background. Since I'm integrating some abstract art work, urban sketches, urban watercolours and architectural photography, I'm wondering how to have a narrative in the portfolio?

Could someone help me out with this?