architect looking for a career change...

August 4, 2008 9:27 PM

i have an architecture degree and a few years of work experience, but i am not sure its for me... can i make a family-friendly career change without going back to school?

i have been working for about 5 years as an architect, but am not really satisfied with this career. maybe it is my current place of employment, but i am looking for a possible change to something outside of the field.

i enjoy some aspects of my job (working with clients, being creative, problem solving, project management), but i would like a more family-friendly option that would allow me to either work from home on occasion or have a more flexible work schedule (four ten-hour days, etc.). i've found that leaving at 5pm (even after a 8-9 hour work day) is looked down upon. i am tired of feeling guilty for not being an architectural ego-maniac and i would like to have a life outside of my job!

i was hoping to something design-related, but not sure what (not interior design). any ex-architects out there that have made a switch? any thoughts or recommendations? or if you have stuck with it, any advice on how to balance career & family? should i just find a new firm?

posted by dityfleur to work & money (8 comments total)

Urban design consultant to cities. Some department of a city with expertise in design. City planning is super family-friendly -- all city and county planning departments I've ever worked in are full of people who leave right at 5 pm.
posted by salvia at 9:29 PM on August 4, 2008

Graphic Designer. You probably already know photoshop, illustrator and indesign. Additionally, you might know Maya and 3dstudio. All skills that can be used in this field.

Also, I have several friends that strictly do freelance 3d rendering and modelling for other architects. They work from home, have flexible hours, and they make much, much more money.
posted by unlicensedarchitect at 10:03 PM on August 4, 2008 [2 favorites]

You probably already know photoshop, illustrator and indesign. Additionally, you might know Maya and 3dstudio

Oh, I don't know about that. I know photoshop, but that's it out of your list. Maybe if you're working for a more high-falutin' firm that puts a premium on graphic presentation, or if you're doing your own marketing; but as a production guy in a decent size firm, just about all I use is AutoCAD. Soon it'll be Revit, but my main concern is making working drawings.

Anyway, it seems like most of my classmates who burned out on architecture for all your totally valid concerns ended up doing something with real estate. One guy was a property evaluator for a company that bought up apartment buildings. You might also be able to get work in a residential construction company as a drafter or designer; possibly even a permit runner if they offer that kind of service.

Also, I think you might be able to find a better fit with a firm, but it'll probably be pretty hard, just due to the architectural culture. The only problem with jumping to another design career is that they all seem to have that same kind of culture, at least from what I've seen. But, just about anyplace you go in my town, you work 4.5 days a week (nominally 40 hours, but actual hours may vary), so there might be someplace you'd be happy. I'd try looking around for another job first, but just be more open to things outside architecture when you're looking at the classifieds.
posted by LionIndex at 11:02 PM on August 4, 2008

Do you have your license?

You could hang up your own shingle... that could certainly allow you to work from home eventually... or live at the office. But it probably wouldn't lessen the number of hours you put in.

Where do you live?

There are tons of city and state jobs here in New York City for which they want to hire architects. And often architect is just one of the qualifying degrees or licenses (e.g. you can also be an engineer, or often even someone with say 10 years of construction experience). Many of them are in project management, inspection, etc.
posted by Jahaza at 12:48 AM on August 5, 2008

I know many architects with family friendly jobs. You just need to go out and find it. (Although this might not be the time.) I also know many architects who no longer practice the craft. Many employers are looking for people with highly developed skills in analysis and synthesis -- aside from the details of the subject, this is essentially what architects are trained to do.

But jumping to graphic design? Graphic design has its own unique set of skills which a trained graphic designer (e.g. Mrs. Paris) does not dismiss lightly.
posted by Dick Paris at 4:48 AM on August 5, 2008

I'm not in the US so the path in might be very different to how I imagine, but it seems like a spectacularly good time to be getting into consulting or assessing around building energy ratings, if that interests you at all.
posted by carbide at 11:38 AM on August 5, 2008

Yeah, get LEED-certified if you aren't already. Would your company pay for it? :)
posted by salvia at 7:24 PM on August 6, 2008

thanks for the suggestions! i am about to start my licensing exams this fall and probably LEED as well. unfortunately, my company will not pay for any testing.
posted by dityfleur at 8:55 AM on August 12, 2008