After all do you people still think that choosing architecture as career is right the right call . and any one feels that our problem is going to be more hard or is there any hope .....
I am just about to make a switch from a reasonably high-paying and prestigious business job (yes, still employed) to work for very little pay as an intern at an architecture firm in Europe and then go on to graduate school.
yup right call, if you aren't willing to suffer for your art why bother. Think of the war stories we'll have in the next couple of years. I know it must be hard for those with families but I am really happy with this decision
Yes, definitely happy with my decision to stick with architecture. The life long career path professions are diminishing as the world gets more mobile and changes more rapidly, but I think architecture is one that you can still stick with your choice for the long haul.
Having said that, I think it's great the breadth of skills architecture gives you, so its a good career to jump into related design fields - furniture, landscape, 3d, graphics, lighting etc. Which is what I'm thinking I may do in the near future. Architecture will always be there to fall back on.
gee, now that you ask - and believe me, i've been waiting for someone to ask - no, i should parlayed my considerable skills and became what my mother always said i would/should be - A Circus Geek.
It is a tough call if you measure everything in dollars. I have never worked in design, but became pretty good in construction as a project consultant (7 years and counting). I'm quiting my decent paying job early next year to go for my second master's degree and hopefully start working in architecture within a few years. Note that my decision is greatly based on my financial ability to quit my job. Otherwise, it would be unthinkable since I'm 35.
I think that where I am and where I am going would not have been possible without my architectural education. From that perspective, I have no regrets - though I do not work in orthodox architectural practice [by choice].
The architectural profession is submerged in a chain of dependencies.
I think you have to be content with providing a service and meeting your clients needs. You have to neogtiate with many parties. You have to produce a result that you are proud of, and your client appreciates.
If you can mediate all of these relationships and constraints, and be content with that, then that is good.
(( AND FROM THE ARCHINECT JOB BOARD...
What recession?! Firms are hiring... here's proof... ))
looooooooooooool welll i have to disappoint u i just got an e mail today from one of the job offering studios tellin me to jog on in da name of recession :)))))))
Here's my 2 cents (probably naive and idealistic):
I think despite architecture being very susceptible to recession (as well as economic booms), the economic curves and shifts, it's in one way a good place to be.
Here's why: in any industry, career path, the unpredictable, the contingenct events are *experiences*. These experiences are what makes up your knowledge and develops thoughts, wisdom, strengths, and memories. The good and the bad are valuable.
Architecture as a profession touches many things. *Everyone is touched by architecture*. Your client may be a dentist, a nurse, an accountant, a lawyer, an entrepreneur, a restauranteur, a corporation, an institution, a for profit or a not-for profit... We care about the big picture and the tiniest detail. We work with cities and sometimes with landscapes urban and rural and suburban, we work with public and private spaces, deal with environments that people *live* in, from the retail chain to the private home, to the piece of furniture to the urban scale development.
We have stories in our day to day work that may be interesting, to just about anybody... We may get to deal with things purely conceptual, and things heavily grounded in reality. Our work affects our lives even when we are not at work: we notice things in the spaces around us, in day to day life, and in play and in travel, that we might otherwise miss, or might not appreciate as much.
We have thoughts about infrastructure, about policy, about economy, about physics and costs, about art, about craft, about fashion, about technologies, about social developments, about cultural developments, about creativity and process, building performance as a social and technical spect, about history, about stories in people's lives, about finances, about constrction, about process, about design, about how things work, as well as how people get things done: in the *real world*.
Yes, we *can* change our world, we can affect the lives of people. Some people do so with policy or political action, some people do so through commerce, some people do so through facilitating societal functions, some people do so through education. Architects do so through affecting the physical and cultural and social spaces that people live, work, and play in.
We get to work with a diverse group of contractors, consultants, private and public entities, we get to touch and poke at many things, even if we are not ultimately as singular in our focus or dedication.
We may not make the most money or be the most robust as an industry, we may get laid off and we may never make as much money as some of our friends who have less or equal education behind them, and we will experience ups and downs, but in the end, you only live once, and every day develops you as a person.
Even if we quit architecture, now or in the future, move on to other career goals, what we have learned makes us who we are, and our diversity is a strength... In fact, in doing architectur, I think the exposure to diverse things is a process for discovery of othe interests... In few other jobs are projects done by colleagues as diverse and interesting, and in few other jobs is there as great (non-monetary, although you can certainly make enough to live well enough as an architect) rewards for the struggle and sometimes tedium and anal retentiveness... The comradery that is built, the friendships we develop through work with diverse and interesting people we meet.
We can get laid off, but we never lose our experiences. "They can take our lives but they can never take our FREEEEEDOM!!"
And you only live once, so best to try what you've got a passion for, even if you struggle or fall... How many people do you know who say "I would have liked to have been an architect" or "If I wasn't a (blank) I would have been an architect."
There are certainly more stable and financially rewarding things to do out there, but IMHO, few things more interesting...
once i had the same ideas but after i graduated even before i do ... but when i start work i found the realty somethin eles :( ... i dont know maybe coz of where i am ...
well said bRInk... I don't get when people complain there aren't enough jobs in this industry or they aren't getting hired blah blah... You can do almost anything in this industry if only one will put on the entrepreneur hat.
i think quondam would like this thread. it's a somewhat exciting look at how much things have really stayed the same despite the turmoil created by the recession over the past few years.
I think an architecture education can be useful in many careers. It teaches you how to see things conceptually, be innovative, communicate well and think outside the box. Just don't get in too much debt, because that's just irresponsible and silly. If you are willing to self educate yourself in other skills (economics, business, real estate) you will not only become a great architect but someone who can leave the arch field and still fare well. No one goes to school to become a president, it's all individual effort, (think: networks, charisma, talent and hard work).
If I could go back and do it again, I'd skip college all together and learn a trade, the union jobs are the way to go. I seriously think this was a mistake, 3 years after graduation, no progress on paying off my loans, a job I could care less about and a waining desire to design pretty much sums it up for me.
@Znaika™ - I do alot of things. I run 2 companies - one is a design management consultancy, and one is a prefab r&D company. I also look after http://www.arkit.com.au in NZ.
After all do you people still think that choosing architecture as career is right the right call
After all do you people still think that choosing architecture as career is right the right call . and any one feels that our problem is going to be more hard or is there any hope .....
i'm cool with it.
Me, too.
aha dats the spirit ... lol
now is the time to separate the men from the boys
So long as I'm still employed why bother second guessing.
lool @ now its time to separate the men from the boy s sadly the boys who still have they jobs lol no offince anyone :)
I am just about to make a switch from a reasonably high-paying and prestigious business job (yes, still employed) to work for very little pay as an intern at an architecture firm in Europe and then go on to graduate school.
So yes, for me it is the right call.
Yeahhhhh !!!! well done all thewn plz i dont want see any complains about being un employed ever again ere :PPPP hehe
yup right call, if you aren't willing to suffer for your art why bother. Think of the war stories we'll have in the next couple of years. I know it must be hard for those with families but I am really happy with this decision
9 years and counting
lately, i'm certainly thinking that way.
come to think of it, i've never really been happy w/ my employment because it has never lived up to the interview discussions.
so yeah, lately i wish i had gone into engineering and could afford to dabble in this messy sh*t
when i graduated in 99, i was offered 10 bucks an hour
my friends that graduated in 99 with a mechanical engineering degree, started at 65gs a year plus a few g's as a bonus
Should have been a Doctor...
Should have been a president ....oh wait!! ..... OBAMA CAN WE SWAP?????? I think (YES WE CAN) wasn’t including this LOL
I am very happy with my education (although I wish I had an MBA) and also very happy I switched career paths.
Yes, definitely happy with my decision to stick with architecture. The life long career path professions are diminishing as the world gets more mobile and changes more rapidly, but I think architecture is one that you can still stick with your choice for the long haul.
Having said that, I think it's great the breadth of skills architecture gives you, so its a good career to jump into related design fields - furniture, landscape, 3d, graphics, lighting etc. Which is what I'm thinking I may do in the near future. Architecture will always be there to fall back on.
gee, now that you ask - and believe me, i've been waiting for someone to ask - no, i should parlayed my considerable skills and became what my mother always said i would/should be - A Circus Geek.
It is a tough call if you measure everything in dollars. I have never worked in design, but became pretty good in construction as a project consultant (7 years and counting). I'm quiting my decent paying job early next year to go for my second master's degree and hopefully start working in architecture within a few years. Note that my decision is greatly based on my financial ability to quit my job. Otherwise, it would be unthinkable since I'm 35.
.
I think that where I am and where I am going would not have been possible without my architectural education. From that perspective, I have no regrets - though I do not work in orthodox architectural practice [by choice].
A few more thoughts:
The architectural profession is submerged in a chain of dependencies.
I think you have to be content with providing a service and meeting your clients needs. You have to neogtiate with many parties. You have to produce a result that you are proud of, and your client appreciates.
If you can mediate all of these relationships and constraints, and be content with that, then that is good.
lool any one looked at archmart :
(( AND FROM THE ARCHINECT JOB BOARD...
What recession?! Firms are hiring... here's proof... ))
looooooooooooool welll i have to disappoint u i just got an e mail today from one of the job offering studios tellin me to jog on in da name of recession :)))))))
ohhh and the international bank said the financial crisis going to be worse in 2009 and GM is about to be history soonish :)))))))))))
Here's my 2 cents (probably naive and idealistic):
I think despite architecture being very susceptible to recession (as well as economic booms), the economic curves and shifts, it's in one way a good place to be.
Here's why: in any industry, career path, the unpredictable, the contingenct events are *experiences*. These experiences are what makes up your knowledge and develops thoughts, wisdom, strengths, and memories. The good and the bad are valuable.
Architecture as a profession touches many things. *Everyone is touched by architecture*. Your client may be a dentist, a nurse, an accountant, a lawyer, an entrepreneur, a restauranteur, a corporation, an institution, a for profit or a not-for profit... We care about the big picture and the tiniest detail. We work with cities and sometimes with landscapes urban and rural and suburban, we work with public and private spaces, deal with environments that people *live* in, from the retail chain to the private home, to the piece of furniture to the urban scale development.
We have stories in our day to day work that may be interesting, to just about anybody... We may get to deal with things purely conceptual, and things heavily grounded in reality. Our work affects our lives even when we are not at work: we notice things in the spaces around us, in day to day life, and in play and in travel, that we might otherwise miss, or might not appreciate as much.
We have thoughts about infrastructure, about policy, about economy, about physics and costs, about art, about craft, about fashion, about technologies, about social developments, about cultural developments, about creativity and process, building performance as a social and technical spect, about history, about stories in people's lives, about finances, about constrction, about process, about design, about how things work, as well as how people get things done: in the *real world*.
Yes, we *can* change our world, we can affect the lives of people. Some people do so with policy or political action, some people do so through commerce, some people do so through facilitating societal functions, some people do so through education. Architects do so through affecting the physical and cultural and social spaces that people live, work, and play in.
We get to work with a diverse group of contractors, consultants, private and public entities, we get to touch and poke at many things, even if we are not ultimately as singular in our focus or dedication.
We may not make the most money or be the most robust as an industry, we may get laid off and we may never make as much money as some of our friends who have less or equal education behind them, and we will experience ups and downs, but in the end, you only live once, and every day develops you as a person.
Even if we quit architecture, now or in the future, move on to other career goals, what we have learned makes us who we are, and our diversity is a strength... In fact, in doing architectur, I think the exposure to diverse things is a process for discovery of othe interests... In few other jobs are projects done by colleagues as diverse and interesting, and in few other jobs is there as great (non-monetary, although you can certainly make enough to live well enough as an architect) rewards for the struggle and sometimes tedium and anal retentiveness... The comradery that is built, the friendships we develop through work with diverse and interesting people we meet.
We can get laid off, but we never lose our experiences. "They can take our lives but they can never take our FREEEEEDOM!!"
And you only live once, so best to try what you've got a passion for, even if you struggle or fall... How many people do you know who say "I would have liked to have been an architect" or "If I wasn't a (blank) I would have been an architect."
There are certainly more stable and financially rewarding things to do out there, but IMHO, few things more interesting...
once i had the same ideas but after i graduated even before i do ... but when i start work i found the realty somethin eles :( ... i dont know maybe coz of where i am ...
I second bRink. Architects build environments. Sure they don't get paid much, but don't do something for the money.
As long as you can sustain a family, you should be okay.
well said bRInk... I don't get when people complain there aren't enough jobs in this industry or they aren't getting hired blah blah... You can do almost anything in this industry if only one will put on the entrepreneur hat.
3 years on still happy, if not happier.
But I don't work as an architect.
One thing for sure, I don't have time to craft such overwrought sentences as my previous.
i think quondam would like this thread. it's a somewhat exciting look at how much things have really stayed the same despite the turmoil created by the recession over the past few years.
I think an architecture education can be useful in many careers. It teaches you how to see things conceptually, be innovative, communicate well and think outside the box. Just don't get in too much debt, because that's just irresponsible and silly. If you are willing to self educate yourself in other skills (economics, business, real estate) you will not only become a great architect but someone who can leave the arch field and still fare well. No one goes to school to become a president, it's all individual effort, (think: networks, charisma, talent and hard work).
@dia- what do you do? Just curious.
If I could go back and do it again, I'd skip college all together and learn a trade, the union jobs are the way to go. I seriously think this was a mistake, 3 years after graduation, no progress on paying off my loans, a job I could care less about and a waining desire to design pretty much sums it up for me.
@Znaika™ - I do alot of things. I run 2 companies - one is a design management consultancy, and one is a prefab r&D company. I also look after http://www.arkit.com.au in NZ.
@dia- Did you find your architecture education beneficial in the non-architect profession?
Well its all architecture - just different aspects. Its all a continuum.
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