I completed a 5 year program @ NJIT a few years back and have been working ever since for Gwathmey Siegel and now Rietveld Architects (a partner @ Richard Meier's office). Recently, I have been considering going back to school for my masters, but I am not sure if its worth the financial burden.
The reasons for going back are to expand my experience while also receiving a degree from a more prestigious school in hopes that this will somehow benefit me later on down the road.
What do you all think? Is a graduate degree worth the excess money?
Being that I have completed all my IDP hours, would it be more beneficial for me to pursue my license instead?
Any input and/or suggestions would be of great help.
what exactly will you be studying that you think will benefit you later down the road?
I would think that a licensed architect would be more attractive to potential employers than a grad from a "prestigious" (I'll assume you mean ivy league/ "name" school) grad program
But it all depends on what you plan to do with your graduate work i suppose
Jun 26, 12 10:23 am ·
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In dollar terms, you'll have a hard time justifying the expense of a degree from a "prestigious" grad school.
If you have to go into debt, then no, don't do it. Get your license and keep working.
If the school coughs up a generous aid package (grants, scholarships etc, but not loans) and your costs are minimal, then maybe it is worth it from the expand your experience angle. This is why it can't hurt to at least apply before making a decision.
If you have the ca$h to pay for school yourself, then by all means, it's your call. However, at the hefty tuition prices that are now being charged it might be more experience expanding to self-fund a few voluntary internships with top architecture practices. That six figure tuition bill might be better spent on a year in Tokyo, a year in London, Paris, whatever. Adding a globetrotter's list of starchitects and references to your resume is probably better than just being another kid with an expensive degree.
You and I are more or less at the same point in our careers. Get your license - you have two well know firms on your resume already, grad school wont help much if recognition is what you're worried about.
If you want to be the best, go for it. I'm not saying you will learn more, but getting into the top ivy's is like being accepted to a club or fraternity. Everything will come easier for you than a person without a graduate degree. Perhaps it is why people without a graduate degree speak so resentfully of it.
The benefits or a prestigious school is priceless. I have struggled with many of the same dilemmas you're having right now. After talking to many renowned architects, and practitioners, not one regretted the decision to go back to graduate school. Especially if you plan on running your own firm, it allows you get the best selection of architects and workers. Not to mention the ability to teach part time. You are also put into leadership role, as your degree is great for marketing.
Getting your license is obviously very important. However, you wouldn't truly benefit from it until you open your own firm which would be a few years down the road, at least. Even then it would be very difficult to design at the level you want unless you're lucky. Therefore, if you're goal is to design at the highest caliber then graduate school would be your ticket into top firms such as DSR, H&DM, starchitects, etc. The network you build from any of the most prestigious graduate programs will take very far, especially if you're talented.
I sure you have looked at my of the firms that you love and checked out the principals resume i assume? 9/10 have a graduate degree from the big names. You are defined for rest of your life by the school you went too. Not the many firms you worked for.
Some simple questions.. what are your aspirations? Who is your role model?
Sorry for not getting back sooner to a discussion that I started. I had a DD set due for a house renovation in London last night that I'm currently working on.
As of now, I'm studying for the CDS portion of the ARE (my first section). Ideally, like many of you, I would love to own my own business/firm. I'm trying to take the proper steps to improve my chances of running a successful business.
A former employer/mentor/professor suggested I work for a while, gain work experience and if I get bored of the office environment, go back for my graduate degree.
I also wonder if I would be better off getting a graduate degree in say, structural engineering, civil engineering, environmental engineering, acoustical engineering, sustainability, business, etc. Rather than focusing on just (using that word VERY lightly) architecture, expanding my experience, making me a more rounded individual. I am an individual who has many interests; music, science, food, nature. Because of this, I feel I would be better suited for a position within an architecture lab where ideas can be created and explored. I’m sure these types of positions are highly sought after and extremely difficult to get.
As for role models…. Peter Zumthor is a huge role model given his passion regarding materials, details and environment. He’s much more about quality than quantity and he brings a real sense of honesty and realism to the profession. While I know it’s extremely difficult to achieve his stature and relevance it’s worth pursuing and admiring. He brings a real sense of humanistic quality to architecture.
I thought a graduate degree is required to obtain your license these days, in most countries atleast.. unless you wanted to go the very long way. Where are you from?
Graduate program or License? (Graduated 09 from NJIT )
I completed a 5 year program @ NJIT a few years back and have been working ever since for Gwathmey Siegel and now Rietveld Architects (a partner @ Richard Meier's office). Recently, I have been considering going back to school for my masters, but I am not sure if its worth the financial burden.
The reasons for going back are to expand my experience while also receiving a degree from a more prestigious school in hopes that this will somehow benefit me later on down the road.
What do you all think? Is a graduate degree worth the excess money?
Being that I have completed all my IDP hours, would it be more beneficial for me to pursue my license instead?
Any input and/or suggestions would be of great help.
Thank you all!
what exactly will you be studying that you think will benefit you later down the road?
I would think that a licensed architect would be more attractive to potential employers than a grad from a "prestigious" (I'll assume you mean ivy league/ "name" school) grad program
But it all depends on what you plan to do with your graduate work i suppose
In dollar terms, you'll have a hard time justifying the expense of a degree from a "prestigious" grad school.
If you have to go into debt, then no, don't do it. Get your license and keep working.
If the school coughs up a generous aid package (grants, scholarships etc, but not loans) and your costs are minimal, then maybe it is worth it from the expand your experience angle. This is why it can't hurt to at least apply before making a decision.
If you have the ca$h to pay for school yourself, then by all means, it's your call. However, at the hefty tuition prices that are now being charged it might be more experience expanding to self-fund a few voluntary internships with top architecture practices. That six figure tuition bill might be better spent on a year in Tokyo, a year in London, Paris, whatever. Adding a globetrotter's list of starchitects and references to your resume is probably better than just being another kid with an expensive degree.
Yo!
You and I are more or less at the same point in our careers. Get your license - you have two well know firms on your resume already, grad school wont help much if recognition is what you're worried about.
If you want to be the best, go for it. I'm not saying you will learn more, but getting into the top ivy's is like being accepted to a club or fraternity. Everything will come easier for you than a person without a graduate degree. Perhaps it is why people without a graduate degree speak so resentfully of it.
The benefits or a prestigious school is priceless. I have struggled with many of the same dilemmas you're having right now. After talking to many renowned architects, and practitioners, not one regretted the decision to go back to graduate school. Especially if you plan on running your own firm, it allows you get the best selection of architects and workers. Not to mention the ability to teach part time. You are also put into leadership role, as your degree is great for marketing.
Getting your license is obviously very important. However, you wouldn't truly benefit from it until you open your own firm which would be a few years down the road, at least. Even then it would be very difficult to design at the level you want unless you're lucky. Therefore, if you're goal is to design at the highest caliber then graduate school would be your ticket into top firms such as DSR, H&DM, starchitects, etc. The network you build from any of the most prestigious graduate programs will take very far, especially if you're talented.
I sure you have looked at my of the firms that you love and checked out the principals resume i assume? 9/10 have a graduate degree from the big names. You are defined for rest of your life by the school you went too. Not the many firms you worked for.
Some simple questions.. what are your aspirations? Who is your role model?
Sorry for not getting back sooner to a discussion that I started. I had a DD set due for a house renovation in London last night that I'm currently working on.
As of now, I'm studying for the CDS portion of the ARE (my first section). Ideally, like many of you, I would love to own my own business/firm. I'm trying to take the proper steps to improve my chances of running a successful business.
A former employer/mentor/professor suggested I work for a while, gain work experience and if I get bored of the office environment, go back for my graduate degree.
I also wonder if I would be better off getting a graduate degree in say, structural engineering, civil engineering, environmental engineering, acoustical engineering, sustainability, business, etc. Rather than focusing on just (using that word VERY lightly) architecture, expanding my experience, making me a more rounded individual. I am an individual who has many interests; music, science, food, nature. Because of this, I feel I would be better suited for a position within an architecture lab where ideas can be created and explored. I’m sure these types of positions are highly sought after and extremely difficult to get.
As for role models…. Peter Zumthor is a huge role model given his passion regarding materials, details and environment. He’s much more about quality than quantity and he brings a real sense of honesty and realism to the profession. While I know it’s extremely difficult to achieve his stature and relevance it’s worth pursuing and admiring. He brings a real sense of humanistic quality to architecture.
I thought a graduate degree is required to obtain your license these days, in most countries atleast.. unless you wanted to go the very long way. Where are you from?
Access I live in New Jersey but work in NYC. I went to NJIT which has a five year accredited program, eliminating the need foR graduate school.
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