Preparation:

The first question I would ask myself is, why am I considering architecture as a career? Do you have a clear reason why you’re thinking about it or are you parents forcing you into it? Are you doing it because a friend is doing it? Are you thinking about the money (if you are I would be thinking about something else)? Or, are you considering it because of the freedom of location it can provide by working remotely? Do you have a passion for buildings? Do you have a passion for design and creative pursuit? What are the reasons you’re considering architecture as a career? This question alone should solve a lot of concerns for you.

The second question I would ask myself is, what do I think architecture would involve? Write down what you think being an architect would mean for you. Visualise it – see yourself doing it. Can you see yourself doing it every single day? Do you even know what an architect does? If not, that’s ok, now you can research about it. Visualisation is so powerful, if you can visualize yourself 10 years in the future, being an architect, do you see yourself enjoying what you’re doing?

Skillset:

Are you creative? – you don’t necessarily have to be good at drawing, painting, or that – but do you have a creative mindset? Do you think outside the box, do you enjoy problem solving, which stems from creativity? Architecture is a field of design, ultimately it’s a job that requires you to solve problems for a client. Are you creative? Are you a good problem solver?

Are you a people person? – if not, that’s ok. In fact, I’m a pretty big introvert. There’s such a wide scope to the profession that there’s a place for everyone. However, architecture has never been a sole person profession. The idea of the “head architect”, managing a team below them, controlling every decision is no longer relevant. Architecture is now a team game. It’s unavoidable that you’ll have to work with people and be able to do it effectively. It’s a service-based industry. You are a servant to the people you work with and to the client. In both situations, with the “head architect”, and the “team architect”, you are dealing with people.

I don’t mention having to be good at maths or science because I don’t believe you need them to study architecture. Any mathematical or scientific equations or methods you need to know, which are very minimal, will be learnt once you start your architecture education.

The final question to ask yourself is, do you think you’ll be willing to not only put in 110% effort into your education and career, but sustain that effort of the course of your education and career?

A job shouldn’t just be something you do 5 days a week to pay the bills. You can get paid to do anything you want, anything you’re passionate about. If you’re choosing architecture because it’s a safe career and pays well, you might want to reconsider why you’re doing it.

It’s when you get paid to do what you love that it isn’t regarded to as work. That’s when you can sustain a 110% effort for the next 50 years, because you wake up, fired up to do what you’re getting paid to do. That’s much more rewarding than doing something to pay the bills, go home, wake up, and start again.

That’d be my advice and the final question – are you willing to sustain a 110% effort for the next 50 years to do architecture?

And I’m not going to claim that I’m like that. I definitely couldn’t answer this question with a yes before I started architecture. But over time, you can find that passion. You can build it up by actually doing it and finding what you like about it – running with the things you love and ignoring doing the things you don’t love. I always think it’s best to focus on your strengths, rather than your weaknesses. If you’re not good at maths and you hate it, but you’re good at art and you love it. Drop maths as a subject and double down on art. Don’t do what your teachers push you to do and let your passion for art drop off so that you can practice your maths and balance it out. Double down on what you love doing and you’ll become the best at it, you’ll find a way to make money doing it, and you’ll attract success.