<p>"You may also be at a firm where the design pricipal is an insecure and miserly individual who will never share the design responsibility."</p>
<p>Now that's the statement that rings true with my experience. I think that's a big part of the reason that young people are attracted to large corporate firms- at least in that situation, there's a structure to the firm that spreads the design tasks out among several people and they feel they have the chance to be one of them. With smaller firms, you either get a situation where you can learn a ton and see and do everything, or you're just a draftsperson for some older guy that doesn't let people who've been with him for 20 years design, much less someone right out of school.</p>
<p>There seems to be a huge discrepancy between some of these comments-- high pay/ low pay and design responsibility/no responsibility. Do most firms start grads at 45K/ what is the norm?</p>
<p>'There seems to be a huge discrepancy between some of these comments'</p>
<p>Tzar, this is because there is a huge discrepancy among different firms and different regions. If we were located in Detroit then perhaps our salary structure would be different, and if we wanted average graduates perhaps we could pay less. Among the graduates we target, the ones we lose have been to firms like KPF, SOM, OMA, and Polshek. Everybody wants the top graduates. If there are other architects on this board who hire new graduates, I would love to hear what they are paying.</p>
<p>The job fairs were crazy this year. At places like UT Austin, K State and Iowa State, there were more firms than students interviewing. Surely there are some current arch students on this board who have been to their job fair who can talk about what they have seen.</p>
<p>I think we need to enjoy it while we can, because the building industry is overheated right now and I don't think this can be sustained.</p>
<p>As for sharing design...anticipate the next best step in the design and make the suggestion. How do you do this? First, you quickly finish all assigned tasks, then you quickly put together a mini-presentation/sketch/model of your idea. Quickly is the imperative word. If you spend all your time obsessing over your assigned tasks, you won't have the energy to reach for unassigned design tasks.</p>
<p>I have certain methods to my madness, as did the architects I once worked for. It's not rocket science to figure out how I generally like to lay out certain types of spaces, curtain wall configurations, materials. My draughtsmen have it sorted and they can fly through a project with minimal input--for all but a few areas of what I call boundary-pushing, areas of the design where I am pushing the boundaries of the space, or massing or materials.</p>
<p>Likewise, I am a materials junkie. Tell me something I haven't heard before. Show me some new material, some new way of using an old material, some new sculpture with architectural possibilities--and suddenly you'll seem like a bloody genius. (Hint: Sculpture magazine is a great source). My addiction is one of the reasons I like to work with Cooper grads. They are trained to hunt for new uses of materials and new craftsmen. </p>
<p>Tzar, you should hit the Chlesea/Soho galleries on Saturdays. Let some cnceptual artists expand your notion of what is possible.</p>
<p>If you don't get a design opportunity in the first six months, you have done something wrong. Move on to another firm and try to establish yourself as a designer.</p>
<p>When you do get a design opportunity, sort it out thoroughly--so that it won't be turned on it's head in 15 seconds. Think through the constructability.</p>
<p>So Cheers, what are you paying these Cooper grads? Where are you seeing the salaries in your office? What do you pay for intern architects 5 or 10 years out of school?</p>
<p>Would that I could get a few Cooper grads to relocate. Maybe I will ask Tzar to post a few recruiting ads on the Cooper BB next spring, haha. I have had Cooper grads in the past--at two different locations. One was the best employee to date. She left the profession after she had kids (she had her own office).</p>
<p>We pay by the hour. $15 to $20 for every hour worked, for 1 to 3 years of CAD experience.</p>
<p>well known city, yes. But then again, you'll also have to be spending more on living there, so it balances.</p>
<p>more prestigious firm = more money? not always. Some of them are good and pay more to attract the best employees, but some big name people think that they can pay peanuts because people will want the firm's name on their resume. And they're right, so far they've been getting away with it.</p>
<p>Will you get to 90k faster by working in a prestigious office in a major city?
Perhaps, but probably only after you leave the prestigious firm and cash in on its reputation.</p>
<p>I have not seen significant differences in salary between New York, Dallas, Chicago, Boston, or Atlanta. I do not have much experience with California salaries. </p>
<p>It's more about the experience overall, and how you present yourself and network. The starchitect name can get you into the door though, especially if your experience there involved more than just some time in the model shop or 3D studio.</p>
<p>The Starchitect name on your CV is a massive boost to efforts to launch your own career. We still draw in new clients with the Starchitects names/projects on our CVs. However, there is Starchitect like Norman Foster and Starchitect like Tod Williams. One is well known world-wide--one is well-known in certain New York circles.</p>
<p>AS for making more money at Starchitects...haven't seen that. I have heard of friends being asked if they wanted to go on the 'work for free' pile or the 'paid a fee' pile--at Le Corbusier's office even. Nowadays the market is tighter.</p>
<p>The biggest reason to work in a Starchitect office is because you will be surrounded by very talented peers and you will get a chance to work on well-designed work. It can be an excellent education.</p>
<p>^Agree. In terms of getting clients, etc., however, you would typically need to have a more significant experience there than just a couple of years doing 3D renderings. It is true that many if not most of the "hot" young firms were started by talented architects who left Starchitect (or at least very reputable) offices after 5-10 years of working there as mid/senior level designers and after realizing that it would take another 10-20 years before they could ever move up in the organization. Sometimes a Starchitect will give one of his "spin off" firms their first project, just to be nice.</p>
<p>corporate firms like SOM or KPF typically work in small teams with each on a different project. because it is so well structured, interns typically have a good exposure to different responsibilities of a firm, including design responsibilities</p>
<p>Yes it’s quite busy. But I’m also minoring in const. management (which kind of overlaps an architects job) and an accounting minor.</p>
<p>Most folks in the studio are wasting time, as people have already mentioned. I don’t really socialize with anyone. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m active and laugh at whatever, but I don’t focus on the “party planning” or night games.</p>
<p>I’m taking 22 hours this semester. Plus I have a private tutor. Which helps a lot, unlike the “study groups” most students tend to take part in. I think a big part of me not being interested in bs is simply because I’m almost 30. So if I were to party, I’d just be wasting more time. I’m also married, so I stay away from most flirty activities.</p>
<p>I’m in the studio as much as I can be. But at the same time I stay there only to get the job done. College is so simple as long as you stick to the reasons why you’re there. I know many folks that are there wasting their parent’s money. Maybe my military experience plays a big role in being disciplined -and then maybe it’s because I pay 40% of it myself.</p>
<p>Architecture is fun. I love designing everything from a birdhouse to a plane. It’s a very open-minded, relaxing place. However it also involves individual effort. If you don’t strive, you are sure bound to either anger someone or do mediocre and regret it at your job interview.</p>
<p>“Most folks in the studio are wasting time, as people have already mentioned. I don’t really socialize with anyone.”</p>
<p>Rob, it’s good to be efficient and not waste a lot of time, but socializing with classmates would not fall under my definition of wasting time. As many of us learn the hard way; technical/design skills will get you only so far, to really get to the top of an organization you need strong social/collaborative skills (with your fellow workers as well as with your clients). The kind of skills you pick up working collaboratively with your fellow students.</p>
<p>I’m just about to finish my first year in an architecture program and have a couple concerns…you guys seem pretty helpful. I wish I would’ve known about this site before I committed to a school and program - architecture and my school were kind last minute choices, but even though this site is mainly for pre-college kids I was still hoping someone could help me out.</p>
<p>So, yeah, I’m just finishing my first year and kind of feel like I might burnout of this program. Is every year as insane as the first? I mean, it’s hard to even tell if I like architecture yet since all our projects are so abstract and seemingly pointless, almost like busywork, feels like the professors just wanna put us all through hell in studio. I feel like I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing or what I’m even supposed to do, and I know better than to ask the professor to explain it better or to ask another classmate to explain it to me. I mean, at the end of all our project “explanations,” our prof says, “Vague enough for you?”…Will it always be like this?! Or does it get clearer as you go along? And is there a way to stay sane?</p>
<p>Also, I don’t even know if I’m good at it. It’s not like they pat you on the back when you do something right. Unless you’re the studio pet, which my friend is…friggin lame. So how do I know if I should stay in the program if I don’t even know if I’m good at it? I don’t want to waste five years and then get no results because I suck…</p>
<p>Don’t get me wrong, I like it a lot. As in, the studio environment, the other kids in it, the related classes, and the freedom that most other majors don’t get - I know it’s better than reading a text book all day, memorizing terms, and having written exams every week.</p>
<p>But I’m so lost in this major. Is it normal to not understand anything studio-related? Other than the fact that because of it, we have no life, and never will have a life…which our professors so kindly lectured us about the other day, about a week into our final project development.</p>
<p>@tagalong11
I am also currently nearing the end of my first year of architecture. For me, this year has always been theoretical, but it’s something that builds up slowly through constant exposure and practice. More and more, I’ve felt that architecture is more about integrating everything into a single, basic idea that defines your project, if that makes sense. It’s this idea that you should develop and argue to its fullest, even if your professors try to dissuade you. Because in the end you will only get people to agree with your concept if you can defend it properly.</p>
<p>As for not being exposed to anything outside of architecture, does your program not require you to take any courses outside of arch? They’re useful in expanding your interests and possibly beginning to create a corpus of knowledge that you can apply to your work. </p>
<p>That being said, the five year program is supposed to be intensive, but you need to be decisive and choose whether or not you are willing to commit 100% to it. Because if you’re not, some other field might be better.</p>