What An Architect In Boston Wishes They Had Known Before Entering Architecture
Nima, a Boston-based architect, advises aspiring architects to carefully consider the demanding nature of the field, noting that "it's a rather intense field," with long hours and significant mental investment. The career path also requires strategic planning regarding location preferences, as the type of firm and project scale often dictates where one must live, a consideration Nima found important to their career trajectory.
Industry Realities, Workplace Challenges, Career Exploration, Work-Life Balance, Long-Term Career Planning
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Nima Shariat
Architect
Boston Architecture Firm
University of California, Santa Cruz
Harvard University, Graduate School of Design, Master of Architecture 2022
Computer Science, Economics, Fine Arts, Music
Arts, Entertainment & Media, Architecture, Construction & Design
Creative
Video Highlights
1. It takes a significant life investment to become an architect.
2. The field demands a lot of time and mental energy; a 40-hour workweek is uncommon, and the work often extends beyond office hours.
3. Consider your desired work-life balance and lifestyle when choosing an architectural firm and location; working on large-scale projects typically means living in a city, while smaller, community-focused projects may offer more regional flexibility.
Transcript
What have you learned about this role that you wish someone had told you before you entered the industry?
I actually got a lot of insight from my aunt, who is an architect. She graduated in the eighties and has gone into tangential fields of campus planning for biotech firms. She gave me a very pragmatic and real picture about both the pros and cons of the discipline, which I've carried with me.
She did the same thing that I've seen many other architects and mentors do: she told me not to do it. This was the very first direct response because passion and knowing that this is explicitly for you needs to be confirmed internally before you can make the dive, especially given how much of an investment of your life it takes.
I continue that practice of saying, "Don't do it," at least the first couple of times I'm approached. But once it clicks in, I think you get a sense of the reality that it's a rather intense field. There aren't many practices with a clean 40-hour work week.
Especially for a lot of projects, you also mentally take a lot of the work home with you. The way you think about projects really comes with you regardless. I teach on the side, and a lot of that design thinking bridges the gap where it comes into the work. I can bring some of those ideas back, but I also hold them with me when I bring them into teaching.
That kind of carryover and blurring is something to be aware of and cautious of if that's not a target for your life. Aside from that, I think it's pragmatic to acknowledge that it is a bit of a rough field.
The other piece I'll say is to be honest about what kind of firms you want to work with ahead of time. If you really want to work with intense or very large projects, you're probably going to be living next to or in a city. If you want to work in high-end residential or community-oriented things, you can find a region that suits you.
I moved after grad school and stayed in Boston, in a city rather than returning to the suburbs. Those kinds of life decisions have been pegged to my career in a way that was already clear to me going into it.