by H. Ross Clements, AIA

Summary: Initially, the purpose of this article was to focus on the importance of our profession’s acceptance of non-traditional architecture career paths. However, as I considered the subject further, my thoughts focused as much on being prepared for architecture career opportunities, as on whether those opportunities present themselves in traditional or non-traditional architecture positions.

As architects, we have many career options and, while traditional architecture positions offer many rewards, non-traditional architecture positions can offer additional rewards that traditional positions do not. Choosing between traditional or non-traditional architecture positions depends on your own interests and expectations.

The chance
Think back to when you started architecture school. We each had ideas about the type of architecture work we would be doing, or at least some notion of what our careers would be. The reality is our architecture careers evolve through a variety of opportunities and chances to be an adaptation of what we initially had in our minds. Fortunately, it is due to those moments of chance that our real opportunities exist.

An old friend and advisor to the college said to me: “Your architecture career can be whatever you want it to be.”

When I was an architecture student at the University of Tennessee, in a moment of chance, an old friend and advisor to the college said to me: “Your architecture career can be whatever you want it to be.” At the time I really wasn’t sure what he meant. My career expectations at that time were limited to finishing architecture school and starting the Intern Development Program.

As time went by, I had the opportunity to work for several years in traditional design firms and I began to think more about my career. I remembered that chance encounter with my friend and I began to understand what he meant. He meant that I should not settle for architectural work that everyone else expects of me. Instead, I should follow my own interests and expectations and seek architectural work that is personally fulfilling and stimulates my growth as a design professional.

The preparation
We have no way of knowing when chance will present us with a career opportunity. Therefore I believe it is important to prepare ourselves by becoming registered architects. Passing the ARE is a positive affirmation to the public of the knowledge we gained over the course of our careers to date. Without passing the ARE, there is no other confirmation we have gained the knowledge.

Becoming registered architects means we are worth more and we are better prepared to accept opportunities that present themselves

Too many times, our status as emerging professionals has been devalued by colleagues who say, “Why do I need to get registered? My responsibilities and compensation will not change” or by an employer who says, “Just because you passed the ARE, does not mean you know any more now than you knew before.”

The bottom line is, regardless of whether our work status changes, or whether we know more now or not, becoming registered architects means we are worth more and we are better prepared to accept opportunities that present themselves.

The opportunity
More than a year ago, I became a registered architect. At the time, I was working in a traditional design firm and I did not believe the architecture position was meeting my expectations. I began to search for a position where I would have the opportunity to learn more and develop as a design professional. My search included traditional and non-traditional architecture positions.

My opportunity came in a non-traditional architecture position, working as a forensic architect at Construction Science and Engineering, Inc., Westminster, S.C.. Choosing to work as a forensic architect has been a solid decision that has afforded me and my family many opportunities that we would not have otherwise had.

I serve as an expert witness in construction litigation cases and being a registered architect is integral to my ability to serve as a credible “expert.”

Professionally, forensic architecture has allowed me to attend more training courses and therefore gain specific knowledge about the building envelope to supplement knowledge gained while working in a traditional design firm. Additionally, since forensic consulting firms do not typically provide traditional design services, I have the opportunity to pursue my own design projects which, as we all know, is a luxury.

As a forensic architect, I have the opportunity to investigate many types of construction and/or design deficiencies and am therefore introduced to many different building materials and wall systems. I serve as an expert witness in construction litigation cases and being a registered architect is integral to my ability to serve as a credible “expert.”

Personally, forensic architecture has afforded me the opportunity to work from home, depending on project demands and my travel schedule. Working from home has provided me the opportunity to spend more quality time with my family.

The expectation
Recently, there has been more discussion in industry publications about the various generations in the workplace. Marsha Littell’s essay “Generations at Work: Why They Won’t Grow Out of it,” published by AIArchitect, does a good job of describing the expectations of the different generations currently employed in traditional design firms. Additionally, she quoted Bruce Tulgan of RainmakerThinking as saying, of Generations X and Y, “…they have high expectations, but they have the highest expectations of themselves.”

We should pursue registration because it increases our worth and it provides us with additional career opportunities

As emerging professionals, we should have high expectations of ourselves and we should pursue registration because it increases our worth and it provides us with additional career opportunities. Being registered is the best way for us to be prepared for those opportunities, whether they present themselves in traditional or non-traditional architecture career paths.

Despite our individual architecture career preferences, we are fortunate to belong to a profession that affords us so many employment opportunities. As a profession, we should embrace the many employment opportunities for architects in traditional and non-traditional architecture positions and we should recognize that our profession benefits from the exposure generated by architects pursuing non-traditional architecture career paths.