Ladies and Gentlemen , this week I'm going to discuss with you a popular yet prestigious career - Architecture. I'm going to elaborate a bit about the following aspects:
1. What do actually architects do ?
2. What does it take to be an architect?
3. What are advantages of a career in architecture?
4. What are the disadvantages of a career in architecture?
What do actually architects do
So what does it actually mean "to be an architect":
1. Realizing the customer's requirements in a professional design i.e the customer details the requirements or the vision for the house or flat to be built, and the architect translates those requirements to a thorough set of designs and specifications.
2. Inventing the creative idea of a structure (a house, a chapel, a mall, a school etc.). By that I refer to the esthetic realization of a structure: taking the requirements for a structure and adding creativity and esthetics to it in order to make the structure qualitative for a decent use and not only a bunch of blocks structured together.
3. Supervising the implementation of the design at the construction site - making sure that the design actually gets implemented physically at the construction process, which means that the architect needs to make sure that the construction manager doesn't defy the design and the construction license given to the project.
What does it take to be an architect?
So, what does it take to be a good architect, one that survives in this career for decades without being totally burnt-out and contemplating about a career change every other week? In my opinion, a proper architect should have the following:
1. A genuine attraction to the construction industry i.e. a person that while walking the street, can't help himself looking on new buildings or on special structures. A person that given the choice to watch an architecture show or a comedy show, would choose the first one.
2. A clear tendency to the design and esthetics world. One can't be an architect with a mind of an accountant. It takes a certain personality to fit this niche, as most people wouldn't find special interest in how a building is built or how the interior of an apartment is designed.
3. Capability and desire to study long years of undergraduate studies (about 5 years) and then start working in relatively low wages compare to engineering fields. This career is for long range runners and not for sprinters. An architect reaches maturity after about 20 years of work, but then he/she may work until the age of 70 (at least).
What are advantages of a career in architecture?
1. Independent work - architecture is one of the most independent and self reliant careers. The architect can be self employed more or less from the beginning of the career, a fact which is very rare in academic (including technical) professions.
2. Combination between art and practice - this is one of the few careers that makes profit from art. Making a living out of painting or sculpture is usually difficult, while practicing architecture opens a variety of job prospects and sometimes a fine level of wages.
3. Relevant to other occupational fields - architecture has much in common with neighboring such as: interior design and product design. This means that the architect may widen the career by moving partially to engage in such fields, which increases the job security and earning prospects.
What are the disadvantages of a career in architecture?
1. This is a field either you're very good at or you hardly survive. No middle way. The talent needed for it combined with the long years of experience needed to become really professional as an architect take a heavy toll which few people can bear. Thus this career is for people who "were born architects", somewhat like a career in medicine.
2. Long and bothersome studies - 5 years of study heavy in hands on technical training (about 45 hours combined a week at class + at home) are not for everyone. Thus you need to be sure that you're capable of putting in such workload for a long period of time.
3. Low wages compared to other academic technical fields, at least in the first 4-5 years. The learning curve in architecture is slower than in other technical fields thus the wages tend to grow up slowly in the first years of the career.
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