<p>Hello! I will be starting my college this August and I still haven't chosen my Major yet. Let me give you some background info.. I'm planning to choose either Architecture (B.Arch) or Civil Engineering(B.S). I had set my mind on architecture some time ago but now i have sort of changed my mind because whichever architecture student i've met has said that u need a lot of passion and creativity for the stream. The problem is that I'm horrible at drawing and I really don't know if I have passion for it. I mean i love looking at floorplans and sometimes drawing them and whenever I enter a building I start admiring the structure but everybody i meet comes up with this clause of passion and creativity and art and i don't know if i will survive it. I've always considered myself to be more technical than creative. I think that one of the things that is also driving me towards architecture is the possibility of opening your own firm.
So I thought why not look at Civil Engineering. and then maybe do a masters in Structural Engineering. This way maybe I could still be in the design process and if i don't like it i can always move to project management and to the corporate world. Also I want to know what are the chances of opening your own firm in Structural Engineering(not just after passing college but say after 10 years?)
(I also know i should post this in engineering section also but i don't know how to post it in 2 sections together)
I'm asking this right now because I'm going to go to college in India and well I'm going to choose between specific Engineering and Architecture Colleges and once I choose a stream, there is no U-turn(Your choose your stream before you join college and you can change it in the 1st year only in engineering, and you can't go back from architecture because they are pure architecture colleges).</p>
<p>I was hoping I could have the opinion of the users rick12 and aibarr since they seem to have the expertise in structural engineering and architecture and of course all other users who can give me any sort of information.
And rick12, I know from your posts that your an architect, So can you tell me how much you deal with structural engineers, do you hire them or do you outsource your work to another structural engineering firm, how important are they for you to survive in architecture( im more interested in high rise buildings and structures but not bridges and roads). How much do they earn compared to architectural firms?</p>
<p>If you’re more technical than artistic, I’d recommend structural engineering.</p>
<p>It’s possible to start your own firm with experience, once you get licensure, but like starting most businesses, it’s a difficult thing to do and sometimes it’s unsuccessful.</p>
<p>In the States, at least, most structural engineering consultant firms are independent, and are hired by architecture firms to do structural design for their architectural works.</p>
<p>I believe that in general, structural engineers are paid more than architects (though both are usually paid a good wage), and that architecture is more difficult to get into as a professional. The path for architects, from my understanding, is rougher than the path for structural engineers.</p>
<p>I enjoy being a structural engineer because I like taking part in architectural projects and being able to add my technical expertise to the project. I still get to be creative, in a way, but it’s more of a technical creativity.</p>
<p>Being an architect in the public sector, we outsource much of our engineering work as we don’t have the full capacity to do all of it ourselves (we own almost 3,000 buildings).</p>
<p>It’s somewhat rare that we hire civil engineers. We do, almost always, hire MEP engineers.</p>
<p>If we need a civil engineer, it usually is the consulting architect that we hire, who turns around and hires the civil engineer. </p>
<p>This is most likely because we do very little new construction. It’s nearly all rehab work.</p>
<p>So, if there will be very little construction the next few years or even decades, I will venture a guess and say that civil engineers will be in less demand than MEP’s.</p>
<p>But…a lot of cities (like NY) are rebuilding bridges and tunnels instead of building new ones because of cost constraints. So, there are niches where CE’s will certainly be needed…but not as much as in the past.</p>
<p>Namaan, sorry I did not see your question. An architect is a generalist who spends a great deal of time dealing in ambiguity. Does this design look good or bad, what does the owner mean when he says he wants a spiritual building, given the budget which are the most important programmatic needs? All of these can have multiple answers. I always envied engineers, when the owner would ask ‘can we make this duct smaller?’ they got out a calculator, punched in a few numbers and then said ‘no’. Wish I could do the same when my designs were questioned. Even if you have not taken art, are you attracted to the aesthetic qualities of objects? Like the curves of an Aston Martin, or the design of a Mac Book Pro case? If you have little or no aesthetic curiosity than maybe architecture is not the right choice.</p>
<p>Civil engineers are involved in fairly complex 3D calculations of road layouts, site slopes, and even developing the most efficient layouts of suburban housing lots. In this country it can be very lucrative if you get involved with highway design. If you like solving problems and knowing that you are either right or wrong, then engineering is for you. We have quite a few engineers in our firm who started out in architecture, but the seemingly arbitrary nature of their professor’s judgements drove them to engineering. You need to take a hard look in the mirror and decide what your real personality type is and what will make you happy.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for all your inputs…
I think I am inclined to design but I think im just getting discouraged because im horrible at drawing and studio work in the architecture program involves hours and hours of drawing if im not wrong…
I’m shadowing an architect for a week and I’m going to check out the real thing and then hopefully it will get a lot clearer.
and aibarr…what kind of projects do you work on…high rise buildings?</p>
<p>I have done high rise buildings, but there is not much of that going on in the US right now. Our biggest projects at the moment are large urban churches, three in Korea and one in Dallas. We also do a fair amount of theater and entertainment work as well as healthcare and higher ed.</p>
<p>My office window overlooks Ground Zero - the structure of the Freedom Tower is unbelievable. The way the structure twists, and how it is being cross-braced for maximum strength is truly a sight to see. Add to that all of the other construction going on including the memorials (where the WTC used to stand), the new transportation center, and the fact that the whole site is cut in half by a subway line makes you think how civil engineers can be incredibly valuable!</p>
<p>thats actually partly why i feel maybe i should go into civil…if i specialise in structural engineering i might get a chance to work in these kind of projects ( im mad about sky scrapers)…but then again ive heard that the need for structural engineers for sky scrapers wont be much(because the design is similar for many buildings now days) as compared to bridges and highways…and i really have no interest in bridges… i just love tall buildings…
on the other hand if i go into architecture i might have to start of with small houses…</p>
<p>Every building is different. Even if designs are similar, they all have to be engineered separately (unless you’re talking about small modular homes or houses for a tract development) so the need for engineers won’t go down.</p>
<p>Whether you work on small building or skyscrapers won’t depend on if you’re an architect or engineer. Both are needed in either case. It will depend more on your location and the firm you’re working for.</p>