Hi. I'm an thirteen year old girl and I deeply worry about my future career. I know a lot of you are wondering why i'm thinking way ahead of time even though I'm just a kid. There are this school performance task in our values education about our dreams. Of course i need to be honest. Also, this question is bugging me because my parents want me to become an accountant to handle our family business and to take my dads place. But, that's not what i want.
I'm good at: Designing,measurements,planning, math, science, leading people, and communicating
I am: patient, extrovert, perfectionist, good at controlling anger and a strategic thinker.
I want to become an architect because, I love to design structures and rooms. But now that i got curious about it, i searched online about what's better and got hooked up to the story of one of the person in here.
I worry about the job because she stated that architects are paid low, can be unemployed and architect isn't a stable job. Im thinking of handling a business tho while i don't have any projects yet.
My parents knows that i want to become an architect and they said that they would support me but, it doesn't looks like it. They would still insist about becoming an account and i felt bad thinking only about myself . I know my dad is sad that i want to become an architect not an accountant that's why every day, every night, it's bugging me.
I didn't say i hate accounting. It just seems boring to me. I don't want to regret my future. Please help me. I don't know what to do...
Non Sequitur
Mar 11, 21 12:36 pm
Pro tip no1: Don't listen to your parents if they try to force you into a career path.
Pro tip no2: Don't put too much weight on the opinions of anonymous internet wankers.
Pro tip no3: There can be a metric shit-tonne of accounting and related tasks in architecture. Most find this tedious and a bore. Those people complain non-stop and should be ignored. Buildings are complicated and not everything is fancy designs and glittery ideas.
Pro tip no4: Arch market can sway drastically depending on your location... and you're too far from the profession at 13yo to make predictions. If you're looking at finances and stability, look elsewhere if those are sensitive topics.
Pro tip no5: Architecture is a long process. Consider first why you want to get into this line and ask yourself if you can see yourself loving designing buildings and construction equally.
bowling_ball
Mar 11, 21 7:33 pm
Pro tip no6: There are no 13 year old girls on the internet. Ha!
SneakyPete
Mar 11, 21 12:45 pm
Definitely do more investigation about the actual tasks people do day-to-day before deciding on a choice of how to gather money and resources by donating most of your daylight hours. If you choose what to do with your life based on a feel-good idea like passion or "following your dreams" then the required efforts will quite possibly cause you to eventually resent that dream or passion.
If you're realistic and honest about what daily work you're willing to do (enthusiastic is even better) then you can have a real and positive effect on your mental health and the efficacy of the hunt for what you want to do for "a living."
I'm coming up on 15 years in the profession and, while I enjoy some aspects of the job (seeing my ideas realized in physical form, talking to clients, visiting job sites, making details work,) if I had looked more into the actual day-to-day tasks of a successful architect I may have chosen to do something else.
I had a thought the other day as I drove home from a meeting and saw a helicopter overhead. I wondered who was in it and why. The reason I point this out is that choosing to become an architect because you are passionate about design is like choosing to go into tech because you like to ride in helicopters. Sure, some tech moguls get to, but the rank and file rarely, if ever, get to.
atelier nobody
Mar 11, 21 2:13 pm
If you're good at math and your goal is to make the most money for the easiest work, accounting would be a good choice (although you will have about 3-4 months every year of 60+ hours a week during tax season). Since you mentioned accounting seems boring to you, you would almost certainly find your suspicion to be correct.
Architecture is a good profession for people who love architecture and a terrible profession for people who don't love architecture. The lower pay and instability are often highly exaggerated - most architects are reasonably comfortable - but it does pay less and is more vulnerable to the slings and arrows of the economic cycle than many comparable "white collar" professions.
As others have said, the thing you need to do is get a realistic view of what the profession really entails before you can know whether you actually love it or just love the part of it that makes the covers of magazines.
randomised
Mar 11, 21 3:04 pm
The fact you’re considering architecture already disqualifies you as an accountant, you are clearly terrible with numbers and money ;-)
Hannahw91
Jul 25, 21 3:31 pm
I do not agree at all I’m brilliant with numbers I’m almost 30 with two children I’m following this post as I’m in the same situation.. my dad has always wanted me to do accountancy as I’m brilliant with numbers and money however He also took me to work with him doing dry lining plaster boarding
randomised
Jul 26, 21 2:08 am
People good with numbers and money wouldn’t even think of touching architecture with a 10ft pole.
quizzical
Mar 11, 21 5:14 pm
Nobody ever lived a happy life doing work they despise. Nobody ever went broke doing work they can do well and enjoy.
SneakyPete
Mar 11, 21 5:41 pm
I disagree very strongly with this. This sort of shit belongs in vinyl on badly redone kitchen walls, not in response to genuine requests for advice.
Miles Jaffe
Mar 11, 21 5:44 pm
'Pete nailed it. Ask any struggling artist how well-off they are doing the work they love. Or any struggling architect, for that matter.
atelier nobody
Mar 11, 21 6:05 pm
But, what if I want to be the Jean-Michel Basquiat of architecture?
Miles Jaffe
Mar 12, 21 11:10 pm
Overhyped?
SneakyPete
Mar 13, 21 9:12 am
Apkouv, your lack of class is showing.
Miles Jaffe
Mar 13, 21 11:27 am
@apkouv, what exactly do you know about my father, his practice, and me? What did I inherit? Please use your great reservoir of hidden knowledge to inform us.
Miles Jaffe
Mar 13, 21 11:46 am
As an aside, one of the reasons I left Archinect was the profound ignorance trumpeted by often anonymous assholes. Not that I was insulted - you have to respect someone before their opinion can possibly mean anything - but rather because I have no tolerance for idiots and their bullshit.
Miles Jaffe
Mar 14, 21 10:38 am
Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one. You seems to have been blessed with more than one. GFY
Miles Jaffe
Mar 11, 21 5:46 pm
Why the narrow pool of choices? And why two such shitty choices?
At 13 there is no tush to define your future. Try lots of different things and see what works for you.
Somenumbersix
Mar 13, 21 11:41 am
I believe you should follow your dream especially when you are 13. Just give it a try. Most likely you will be able to switch to accounting later in your life. I am one of those who switched from architecture to another field because of money and work life balance but I never regretted my time with architecture. Switching fields is also much easier than people think.
Jaetten
Mar 13, 21 2:00 pm
There's a joke/stereotype about accountants having no sense of humour... :)
You're 13 and your thinking about your career, maybe too much so, but it shows that your head is screwed-on and you're able to think of the future.
Do you have career fairs/days at your school? If you have the option, try both. You can go back and forth between career choices forever and a day, but without trying different things you will never know.
You could even look to going into different companies over summer.
James Bragg
Mar 14, 21 2:07 pm
Pro tip number 7: don't waste your time on threads where OP only posts once and disappears.
curtkram
Mar 14, 21 5:25 pm
there are benefits to inheriting a family business that you might not get by starting over from scratch. perhaps look into how you can fulfill your design passions within the context of the family business?
geezertect
Mar 14, 21 8:43 pm
Do architecture as a hobby and accounting as a income source. Loving buildings doesn't necessarily translate into loving the work of putting one together.
The opportunity cost of being an architect is huge. Look up that term if you're not familiar with it.
Anagram Mayor
Mar 15, 21 12:29 pm
I decided to become an architect when I was about your age, too. It sounds like the level of consideration you're giving this is way more sophisticated than mine; you probably can find a way to be happy and successful wherever you go. Here's some things I wish I had known going into it-
1. The education is long and expensive- I started school in 2004, and I'm still not a registered architect. There are many paths into the profession, and it varies depending on where you live. If your state government allows it, I strongly encourage skipping Graduate School and going the apprenticeship route. For many architects, the amount of time spent before taking the many tests is years- I work with people 10 years older than me who aren't registered architects yet.
2. Going to a prestigious school is not worth the money- unless you can get it mostly paid for in scholarships. You get out of it what you put into it. You'll find that even amazing firms you dream of working for hire from state schools.
3. Learn to set boundaries between work and life. Probably true everywhere. You can practice in school by doing as few all-nighters as possible. Having a life, hobbies and interests outside of architecture will make you a better architect even if your favorite thing in life is architecture.
4. It doesn't pay well. Another reason not to take on student debt with graduate school. If you're not saddled with student debt, you'll find it a lot easier to live a comfortable lifestyle.
5. Hand drawing is a skill you should learn and maintain, even as you're becoming a pro at all things digital. Hand-made things stand out in job interviews, and later they will help you communicate during meetings.
6. Ask lots of questions. Listen to the kinds of questions your older colleagues ask, too, and think about why they're asking. (coworkers or teachers/classmates)
Anagram Mayor
Mar 15, 21 3:03 pm
More thoughts on the many routes to a professional life in architecture- if your state doesn't allow a "Journeyman's route" to licensure, make sure to get a 5 year architecture degree instead of a 4 year. It's called a professional degree. Look for events to go to locally through organizations like AIA and NOMA, take classes in high school if you can, ask to tour local architecture firms, and look for portfolio reviews to take part in as you create art in high school.
James Bragg
Aug 6, 21 1:55 pm
Pro tip no7:
Assuming you're really a 13yo girl, get your parents to watch this, it's 20mins long
Hi. I'm an thirteen year old girl and I deeply worry about my future career. I know a lot of you are wondering why i'm thinking way ahead of time even though I'm just a kid. There are this school performance task in our values education about our dreams. Of course i need to be honest. Also, this question is bugging me because my parents want me to become an accountant to handle our family business and to take my dads place. But, that's not what i want.
I'm good at: Designing,measurements,planning, math, science, leading people, and communicating
I am: patient, extrovert, perfectionist, good at controlling anger and a strategic thinker.
I want to become an architect because, I love to design structures and rooms. But now that i got curious about it, i searched online about what's better and got hooked up to the story of one of the person in here.
I worry about the job because she stated that architects are paid low, can be unemployed and architect isn't a stable job. Im thinking of handling a business tho while i don't have any projects yet.
My parents knows that i want to become an architect and they said that they would support me but, it doesn't looks like it. They would still insist about becoming an account and i felt bad thinking only about myself . I know my dad is sad that i want to become an architect not an accountant that's why every day, every night, it's bugging me.
I didn't say i hate accounting. It just seems boring to me. I don't want to regret my future. Please help me. I don't know what to do...
Pro tip no1: Don't listen to your parents if they try to force you into a career path.
Pro tip no2: Don't put too much weight on the opinions of anonymous internet wankers.
Pro tip no3: There can be a metric shit-tonne of accounting and related tasks in architecture. Most find this tedious and a bore. Those people complain non-stop and should be ignored. Buildings are complicated and not everything is fancy designs and glittery ideas.
Pro tip no4: Arch market can sway drastically depending on your location... and you're too far from the profession at 13yo to make predictions. If you're looking at finances and stability, look elsewhere if those are sensitive topics.
Pro tip no5: Architecture is a long process. Consider first why you want to get into this line and ask yourself if you can see yourself loving designing buildings and construction equally.
Pro tip no6: There are no 13 year old girls on the internet. Ha!
Definitely do more investigation about the actual tasks people do day-to-day before deciding on a choice of how to gather money and resources by donating most of your daylight hours. If you choose what to do with your life based on a feel-good idea like passion or "following your dreams" then the required efforts will quite possibly cause you to eventually resent that dream or passion.
If you're realistic and honest about what daily work you're willing to do (enthusiastic is even better) then you can have a real and positive effect on your mental health and the efficacy of the hunt for what you want to do for "a living."
I'm coming up on 15 years in the profession and, while I enjoy some aspects of the job (seeing my ideas realized in physical form, talking to clients, visiting job sites, making details work,) if I had looked more into the actual day-to-day tasks of a successful architect I may have chosen to do something else.
I had a thought the other day as I drove home from a meeting and saw a helicopter overhead. I wondered who was in it and why. The reason I point this out is that choosing to become an architect because you are passionate about design is like choosing to go into tech because you like to ride in helicopters. Sure, some tech moguls get to, but the rank and file rarely, if ever, get to.
If you're good at math and your goal is to make the most money for the easiest work, accounting would be a good choice (although you will have about 3-4 months every year of 60+ hours a week during tax season). Since you mentioned accounting seems boring to you, you would almost certainly find your suspicion to be correct.
Architecture is a good profession for people who love architecture and a terrible profession for people who don't love architecture. The lower pay and instability are often highly exaggerated - most architects are reasonably comfortable - but it does pay less and is more vulnerable to the slings and arrows of the economic cycle than many comparable "white collar" professions.
As others have said, the thing you need to do is get a realistic view of what the profession really entails before you can know whether you actually love it or just love the part of it that makes the covers of magazines.
The fact you’re considering architecture already disqualifies you as an accountant, you are clearly terrible with numbers and money ;-)
I do not agree at all I’m brilliant with numbers I’m almost 30 with two children I’m following this post as I’m in the same situation.. my dad has always wanted me to do accountancy as I’m brilliant with numbers and money however He also took me to work with him doing dry lining plaster boarding
People good with numbers and money wouldn’t even think of touching architecture with a 10ft pole.
Nobody ever lived a happy life doing work they despise. Nobody ever went broke doing work they can do well and enjoy.
I disagree very strongly with this. This sort of shit belongs in vinyl on badly redone kitchen walls, not in response to genuine requests for advice.
'Pete nailed it. Ask any struggling artist how well-off they are doing the work they love. Or any struggling architect, for that matter.
But, what if I want to be the Jean-Michel Basquiat of architecture?
Overhyped?
Apkouv, your lack of class is showing.
@apkouv, what exactly do you know about my father, his practice, and me? What did I inherit? Please use your great reservoir of hidden knowledge to inform us.
As an aside, one of the reasons I left Archinect was the profound ignorance trumpeted by often anonymous assholes. Not that I was insulted - you have to respect someone before their opinion can possibly mean anything - but rather because I have no tolerance for idiots and their bullshit.
Opinions are like assholes, everybody has one. You seems to have been blessed with more than one. GFY
Why the narrow pool of choices? And why two such shitty choices?
At 13 there is no tush to define your future. Try lots of different things and see what works for you.
I believe you should follow your dream especially when you are 13. Just give it a try. Most likely you will be able to switch to accounting later in your life.
I am one of those who switched from architecture to another field because of money and work life balance but I never regretted my time with architecture. Switching fields is also much easier than people think.
There's a joke/stereotype about accountants having no sense of humour... :)
You're 13 and your thinking about your career, maybe too much so, but it shows that your head is screwed-on and you're able to think of the future.
Do you have career fairs/days at your school? If you have the option, try both. You can go back and forth between career choices forever and a day, but without trying different things you will never know.
You could even look to going into different companies over summer.
Pro tip number 7: don't waste your time on threads where OP only posts once and disappears.
there are benefits to inheriting a family business that you might not get by starting over from scratch. perhaps look into how you can fulfill your design passions within the context of the family business?
Do architecture as a hobby and accounting as a income source. Loving buildings doesn't necessarily translate into loving the work of putting one together.
The opportunity cost of being an architect is huge. Look up that term if you're not familiar with it.
I decided to become an architect when I was about your age, too. It sounds like the level of consideration you're giving this is way more sophisticated than mine; you probably can find a way to be happy and successful wherever you go. Here's some things I wish I had known going into it-
1. The education is long and expensive- I started school in 2004, and I'm still not a registered architect. There are many paths into the profession, and it varies depending on where you live. If your state government allows it, I strongly encourage skipping Graduate School and going the apprenticeship route. For many architects, the amount of time spent before taking the many tests is years- I work with people 10 years older than me who aren't registered architects yet.
2. Going to a prestigious school is not worth the money- unless you can get it mostly paid for in scholarships. You get out of it what you put into it. You'll find that even amazing firms you dream of working for hire from state schools.
3. Learn to set boundaries between work and life. Probably true everywhere. You can practice in school by doing as few all-nighters as possible. Having a life, hobbies and interests outside of architecture will make you a better architect even if your favorite thing in life is architecture.
4. It doesn't pay well. Another reason not to take on student debt with graduate school. If you're not saddled with student debt, you'll find it a lot easier to live a comfortable lifestyle.
5. Hand drawing is a skill you should learn and maintain, even as you're becoming a pro at all things digital. Hand-made things stand out in job interviews, and later they will help you communicate during meetings.
6. Ask lots of questions. Listen to the kinds of questions your older colleagues ask, too, and think about why they're asking. (coworkers or teachers/classmates)
More thoughts on the many routes to a professional life in architecture- if your state doesn't allow a "Journeyman's route" to licensure, make sure to get a 5 year architecture degree instead of a 4 year. It's called a professional degree. Look for events to go to locally through organizations like AIA and NOMA, take classes in high school if you can, ask to tour local architecture firms, and look for portfolio reviews to take part in as you create art in high school.
Pro tip no7:
Assuming you're really a 13yo girl, get your parents to watch this, it's 20mins long