Want to work in london. I have done 5 years of architecture from India and have 2 years proffesional experience. Starting my own studio in a months time. What are the prospects and requirements?
Does working in a place before doing your further studies there help? (Financialy) I plan to
Yes I do pump cad and am well veresed with 3ds max.7 and maya 6. The office I was working used alot of rihno also. I was one of the lead modellers there.
Things are getting weird for immigrants to UK now and have been for the past few years thanks to a bit of self-serving fear mongering. Still not sure how that is going to affect the situation ultimately but isnt a good sign. Maybe that is what TED is getting at?
I started looking for work in London shortly after 9/11 and couldn't get a bite long distance. Finally saved enough to make a trip to London and had 3 offers after 2 weeks of searching. i was looking for a small design-led firm willing to sponsor a work-permit, which narrowed the options a bit, but once I was on the ground in London things went rather easy.
As far as background goes I had worked for about 4 years + as intern then project architect in Japan before heading to London. Several of my classmates also found work round the same time but much lower wages because of lack of experience. Only one fellow that i know of went back home without getting a job though I couldn't say why.
btw, CAD skills are useful but I wouldn't hire anyone if that was all they had to offer. Much better to have job-running experience.
for me high because i had a family; but in general rather high. Rent is the big killer, and taxes are insane. I was living in zone 2 in London to be near the office but it is possible to find cheaper places if you live farther from the center, or do a flat share thing, something many of my friends do/did.
Once you are being paid in pounds the cost of living is not so different from north america in terms of purchasing power, and life is pretty comfy long as you don't want to be too lavish.
yeah it is worse than london, but a few foreigners are working here and doing ok; very small community though. Unlike the business-folk, who seem to have an easy time getting a visa, most of the architects here are married to a Japanese or went to/currently attend the Japanese equivalent of an Ivy league school. Those contacts make an enormous difference when it comes down to it.
I speak Japanese fairly well. Enough to do drawings and talk with contractors and such, but still not as well as I should, embarassing as it is to say so. Luckily the xenophobic thing works both ways and they don't expect foreigners to speak properly.
I was under the impression that London is genuine a Cosmopolitan City. Does it mean that my skin color and nationality will have a greater impact on my prospects of getting a job than my capabilities? Would this effect my pay scale? Pardon me for my ignorance but I have heard that a brown man/woman is often paid lesser than his/her Caucasian counter parts for the same job description and responsibility level, is this true to any extent? I was generally under the impression that Londoners have out grown bigotry long time back. This is the first time I am coming across the idea of Londoners being xenophobic.
If you are going to practice as an architect in Britain you have to be registered. If you're an ethnic minority and female then the stats say that you may be paid less.
London for rude people, crap public transport, bad air pollution, being ripped off by higher prices.
Haha. Mostly true BOTS. But people still shift here in droves. Your sad statement may be true if you work for some crappy old-boys-club type office (and who wants to really). This is such a diverse city I can't see it being that big a problem as long as you are competent and speak good english. The office I work in is staffed predominantly by foreigners.
I wouldn't say that Lonon is necessarily a xenophobic city. I think jump is proably referring to the upcoming general election which is shaping up to be decided around immigration issues. Added to this recent government and registration body kick-in-th-nuts decisions has made it much more difficult for foreigners to register here.
There is lots of work here. It can be really shitty to start with, but once you've proven yourself with 'London experience' it becomes a lot easier.
Thank you antipod for your reassuring reply. It has boosted my morale in regards to applying to London. Though I will try to keep in mind what BOT has said also. What is the procedure for applying and registration? Could you help me out with that part too, an idea will suffice. I used to work in an office which has a collaborating office in London.And the partner is a professor in the AA would it be better for me to come to London through them?
Thank you antipod for your reassuring reply. It has boosted my morale in regards to applying to London. Though I will try to keep in mind what BOT has said also. What is the procedure for applying and registration? Could you help me out with that part too, an idea will suffice. I used to work in an office which has a collaborating office in London.And the partner is a professor in the AA would it be better for me to come to London through them?
Try out an agency called bespoke- it is run by a qualified architect- and is used by quite a lot of companies too. In terms of geting a job- the offices are full of people from everywhere- and the legal qualification thing isn't really so much of an issue because you can still work as an architect- in an architects office, but just not offer the legal side of architecture. My last place had loads of qualified architects(in their own countries) but not uk qualified- and i think it just meant that an architect had to sign off their work. come and join the party. Its expensive but you get paid at a higher rate. win win and great for travelling.
and who needs public transport when we can all be on bikes....
very scary. never did work up the nerve to try it. underground sucks hind teat though, so i made sure i could walk to work, or take a bus. not much better but at least i didn't get stuck sitting in the middle of the earth for thirty minutes while they figured out what was wrong with the tracks THIS time...
i am back in tokyo now where cycling is an even scarier prospect, but the tubes are amazing.
Apr 20, 05 9:36 pm ·
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HELP AND SUGESTIONS TO GET A JOB IN LONDON
Want to work in london. I have done 5 years of architecture from India and have 2 years proffesional experience. Starting my own studio in a months time. What are the prospects and requirements?
Does working in a place before doing your further studies there help? (Financialy) I plan to
Sorry submited before completing. I plan to do go there in 2-3 years. What is the scope?
let me get this straight as it does make a difference.
are you talking April 2007 or april 2008? or perhaps may?
Do you pump cad?
http://www.coroflot.com/public/main_frame.asp?individual_id=6719
I am planning for 2008 may.
I am planning for 2008 may.
Yes I do pump cad and am well veresed with 3ds max.7 and maya 6. The office I was working used alot of rihno also. I was one of the lead modellers there.
depends on the economic and political climate.
Things are getting weird for immigrants to UK now and have been for the past few years thanks to a bit of self-serving fear mongering. Still not sure how that is going to affect the situation ultimately but isnt a good sign. Maybe that is what TED is getting at?
I started looking for work in London shortly after 9/11 and couldn't get a bite long distance. Finally saved enough to make a trip to London and had 3 offers after 2 weeks of searching. i was looking for a small design-led firm willing to sponsor a work-permit, which narrowed the options a bit, but once I was on the ground in London things went rather easy.
As far as background goes I had worked for about 4 years + as intern then project architect in Japan before heading to London. Several of my classmates also found work round the same time but much lower wages because of lack of experience. Only one fellow that i know of went back home without getting a job though I couldn't say why.
btw, CAD skills are useful but I wouldn't hire anyone if that was all they had to offer. Much better to have job-running experience.
Thank you jump for the info.
What are the living expenses of london like?
for me high because i had a family; but in general rather high. Rent is the big killer, and taxes are insane. I was living in zone 2 in London to be near the office but it is possible to find cheaper places if you live farther from the center, or do a flat share thing, something many of my friends do/did.
Once you are being paid in pounds the cost of living is not so different from north america in terms of purchasing power, and life is pretty comfy long as you don't want to be too lavish.
No that's not my aim (i.e. to have a lavish life.) my main reason is to get some good exposure which is rare in INDIA.
Was it hard finding work in Japan jump? I've heard that they are even more xenophobic than the UK is rapidly becoming. Do you speak the language?
yeah it is worse than london, but a few foreigners are working here and doing ok; very small community though. Unlike the business-folk, who seem to have an easy time getting a visa, most of the architects here are married to a Japanese or went to/currently attend the Japanese equivalent of an Ivy league school. Those contacts make an enormous difference when it comes down to it.
I speak Japanese fairly well. Enough to do drawings and talk with contractors and such, but still not as well as I should, embarassing as it is to say so. Luckily the xenophobic thing works both ways and they don't expect foreigners to speak properly.
I was under the impression that London is genuine a Cosmopolitan City. Does it mean that my skin color and nationality will have a greater impact on my prospects of getting a job than my capabilities? Would this effect my pay scale? Pardon me for my ignorance but I have heard that a brown man/woman is often paid lesser than his/her Caucasian counter parts for the same job description and responsibility level, is this true to any extent? I was generally under the impression that Londoners have out grown bigotry long time back. This is the first time I am coming across the idea of Londoners being xenophobic.
genuinely....sorry
If you are going to practice as an architect in Britain you have to be registered. If you're an ethnic minority and female then the stats say that you may be paid less.
London for rude people, crap public transport, bad air pollution, being ripped off by higher prices.
Haha. Mostly true BOTS. But people still shift here in droves. Your sad statement may be true if you work for some crappy old-boys-club type office (and who wants to really). This is such a diverse city I can't see it being that big a problem as long as you are competent and speak good english. The office I work in is staffed predominantly by foreigners.
I wouldn't say that Lonon is necessarily a xenophobic city. I think jump is proably referring to the upcoming general election which is shaping up to be decided around immigration issues. Added to this recent government and registration body kick-in-th-nuts decisions has made it much more difficult for foreigners to register here.
There is lots of work here. It can be really shitty to start with, but once you've proven yourself with 'London experience' it becomes a lot easier.
Good luck.
has anyone has experience with arch employment agencies in london... there seems to be quite a few of them floating around... any recommendations?
It often depends who you get in the office. Some people i dealt with were great and called me every day when i first got here.
The trick is to just register with as many as you can. And don't stop there. Keep applying for all the ads in the BD and on the RIBA site.
It can all be a real pain in the ass to start with. Just keep pluggin away.
Thank you antipod for your reassuring reply. It has boosted my morale in regards to applying to London. Though I will try to keep in mind what BOT has said also. What is the procedure for applying and registration? Could you help me out with that part too, an idea will suffice. I used to work in an office which has a collaborating office in London.And the partner is a professor in the AA would it be better for me to come to London through them?
Thank you antipod for your reassuring reply. It has boosted my morale in regards to applying to London. Though I will try to keep in mind what BOT has said also. What is the procedure for applying and registration? Could you help me out with that part too, an idea will suffice. I used to work in an office which has a collaborating office in London.And the partner is a professor in the AA would it be better for me to come to London through them?
I got my job with Hays-Montrose, the week after I registered with them - so try them out!
ok
any point in applying to starchitects? (financially)
Try out an agency called bespoke- it is run by a qualified architect- and is used by quite a lot of companies too. In terms of geting a job- the offices are full of people from everywhere- and the legal qualification thing isn't really so much of an issue because you can still work as an architect- in an architects office, but just not offer the legal side of architecture. My last place had loads of qualified architects(in their own countries) but not uk qualified- and i think it just meant that an architect had to sign off their work. come and join the party. Its expensive but you get paid at a higher rate. win win and great for travelling.
and who needs public transport when we can all be on bikes....
bikes in London?!
very scary. never did work up the nerve to try it. underground sucks hind teat though, so i made sure i could walk to work, or take a bus. not much better but at least i didn't get stuck sitting in the middle of the earth for thirty minutes while they figured out what was wrong with the tracks THIS time...
i am back in tokyo now where cycling is an even scarier prospect, but the tubes are amazing.
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