Your right. Your young enough to work for next to nothing and experienced enough to be productive. Expect a lot more of this as we are expected to shoulder the financial burden of owners' vacation homes and wife's shopping sprees.

My experience is really varied and mostly in interior architecture and design and I've had my own firm for 6+ years and have worked for myself for 10 years total. So I understand your frustration. I have run into the same type of resistance but I've also begun to get interviews and a 2nd interview (today as a matter of fact) with a big firm offering a lot of money. So I guess it's possible but also I think it depends on how well you market yourself and your skills.

On my resume, I did a "functional" resume rather than a typical chronological. Functional resumes highlight your skills and experience rather than job titles and how long you were there and all that. It shows potential employers how you could fit in - your skill set - to their firm and what you bring to the table.

I think it's about differentiating yourself somehow - find what makes you different and highlight that and some firm will have a need for it.

That's my 2 cents.

What a load of crap.

Every market is different but locally to me I've heard that the only open jobs are for specalists, i.e. someone with only 6 years experience would be picked up for probably software experience, and little else.

Production Architects with a relatively diverse background of work exeperience are basically dime a dozen these days. Since firms have literally the pick of the litter with any open positions they are filling them when someone who matches their current needs 100%.

If this trend continues might we be rethinking the old trusted paradigm of working in small firms to learn/do everything to become the jack-of-all-trades Architect? Was it a mistake to ask to work on several different types of buildings with different clients?

I will defend owners of firms -- some of them took 100% pay-cuts during the recession so that others could keep their jobs.

Last year, my firm did pay freezes for all principals and senior associates.

We have heard of more greed and selfishness from other business sectors - banking, finance, insurance, auto, etc.

While I don't mean to thread-jack here, I think a lot of this us vs. them attitude has to do with perspective. I for one fully know that most managers have taken a bigger % pay cut and made larger sacrifices in the wake of the downtown. That said, younger staff are much more likely to be living in a paycheck-to-paycheck situation and under a heavy debt burden. I do know a relatively green Architect with roughly 5 years experience that has lost a home to foreclosure thanks to pay reduction. Granted, that individual shouldn't have burdened herself with such little breathing room, but, for example, it looks bad when a manager (who is also working w/pay reduction) buys a new luxury automobile at the same time.

Younger Architects have the massive blow of reductions in pay/benefits while being at times in their life when expenses are high and financial security is low. How many have postponed or second guessed starting a family, buying a house, etc.? Not to say that every generation hasn't had to deal with something similar, but when things are as bad as they currently are a little more compassion might be in order.

By in large the more senior Architects that do post on Archinect do seem to care and understand the situation that young architects are facing these days. That said, many senior people in this profession do not appear to care. Actions like purchasing new vehicles, taking exotic vacations, or spending sunny afternoons at the country club make very visible and bad impressions on financially burdened staff. So, expect a little backlash such as the comment from JoeyD above. It's probably exaggerated, but not 100% untruthful.

Reflexive Space,
I also have about the same number of years in the profession, but as you know we all have different experiences, I have worked for 3 different offices, one was very unique, it was its own architect, and developer and its own GC, so they controlled everything, another one was a small firm where i really busted my teeth doing everything from printing to sending out for bids, another one was a big time firm specializing in healthcare, it turned out to be more of a boutique shop because by the time i got to that firm i ran circles around everyone because of my varied experience, but it was nice.

Well to make a long story short, I think offices are not really looking for a specialty as much as someone who can fit within their office culture, although if you know how to put a project together from A to Z it will help. You mentioned you are not licensed and do not know Revit, Get familiar with Revit now! and get licensed I'm familiar with all programs from formz to Revit, and am almost licensed, but no one seems to be interested. At the moment I don't think many firms are looking though, so you have to show them what makes you unique and be persistent.

Me personally I'm just going to get my license save up some money and open my own shop.

Dallas, how much did the insurance run you when you opened your own shop?

This probably won't get the thread back on track but there are always both types of owners and employees in everything. This comes up again and again because both types exist. I'm not sure why everyone feels the need to bash/defend the owner or employee side every time, when it's clearly a situational thing. Arguing over what percentage is higher is purely circumstantial and is no one can win so we should probably just move on.

DisplacedArchitect,
Thanks for the response. I'm learning Revit on my own but nobody really cares if you are familiar with the software and did tutorials, they want you to have gone through projects with it. Until I have gone through projects I'm not sure I'd really say I know it anyway.

I've worked 6 years in the same firm. I'd like to get out, but really I'm trapped, who gives up an architecture job in this climate? I'd have to be an idiot right? What I'm really worried about is this isn't the direction I want to go with my career but I'm already being cornered into it with a lot of experience in areas I'm less interested in. Experience transfers over, but at a certain point no one wants to higher someone with 10 years of experience in affordable housing to design museum. (just throwing those types out there randomly)

I realize how lucky I am to have a job in architecture at all so it feels ridiculous and although I'm looking for input I'm at not at all complaining. I'm just curious about others experience as it relates to employment at a similar amount of experience.

You're in a tough spot, just survive for now, and later on consider working for a General Contractor it did me a lot of good to have worked out at the jobsite, not just at an office environment.

regarding Revit trust me when I say this Firms are way behind in using Revit to its full potential. The word of the day is BIM, but it should be be IPD what is IPD? Integrated Project Delivery. the aia already has a mockup contract for IPD. Its just funny how architects use BIM when what they really are trying to say is IPD. They just do not know its sad.

just keep your job for now and a year from now go work for a GC, or a different Architect office, trust me it will do you good. Its not good to stay at the same office right after college as far as experience goes. Especially if you want to be your own boss one day.

NYC is gonna burn all your life savings before you even get an interview!

Ah, great experience of internet. Problem.... SOLVED!