How to Get Your First Architecture Job After Graduating (Without Any Experience)

As part of Sarah Lebner’s book launch event, an anonymous question we received was “How can I get a job as an architect after graduating my masters, without any previous work experience in the industry?”

I found Sarah and Warwick’s responses extremely useful and wanted to share it with any students struggling to find a job in architecture after graduating.

Find all the episode’s resources in the show notes:

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Someone who is a Master’s graduate but has no work experience. Do you have any suggestions on how to land your first job?

S:
I would say just apply. It’s not it’s not necessary to have experience. If you check out, there’s a free job seeker workbook on our website, that that covers a lot of these things in those I stress that employers are usually looking for inherent, soft skills and the right personality and potential, possibly even more than relevant work experience. Would you agree with that Warwick?

W:
The number one factor that influences who we eventually employ, this is not who we interview. Graduates get an interview because their application and portfolio is great. That means when you’re sitting down for the interview, you’re already competing against other people who do great work that gets you in the door.

The person who gets employed is the person who feels like they’re going to be the best cultural fit. Basically, am I going to like working next to this person five days a week for a whole bunch of years? If the answer is yes, they get the job. The first thing you can do is to treat your potential boss like a person which means no sirs or madams. No generic applications.

Try to understand who you’re applying to and why you want to work there and why they might want to have you working there.

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[Funcentric]

The truth? Here it is:

1. Hustle. Spring break is only for students. That means companies don't get that time off. If you're tired of waiting for return calls from places you've applied for, guess what? Some companies make it a point to never call you back. They're waiting for applicants to call and get updates. I spent my spring break cold visiting 8 firms a day. Yes, that means just showing up and asking the office if there's someone you can talk to about the firm. Obviously know about the firm first, determine what interests you about that place over others. If they turn you down, they'll have to do it on the spot since you're standing right there. Worst case scenario, is you leave your resume and it's not stacked on top of others b/c you're the only nut who just spent his spring break dropping by firms w/o an invitation. Yes, I did end up ringing the doorbell of a guy who worked out of his house and he answered the door w/o socks on.

2. At the interview, ask these questions not b/c you're more likely to get the job b/c they're seriously questions you'll want to know before working there if you're offered.

a. Where would I sit if you found that I was a good fit for the office. Trust me, you'll want to know. The office arrangement or your seat could really suck and you'll want to know ASAP.

b. Can I talk to someone who works here. If the employer hesitates to offer you that chance, it's not the place for you. If they offer before you ask, then that's a big green light. Means a lot. You'll learn a lot about the firm from an employee's perspective. You won't be offered to talk to his person, but ideally, you'll also want to talk to the underling, a CAD monkey. If they're happy, that's a good sign. If they're not, observe if that's similar with the rest of the culture.

3. You're interviewing them too. Look at the parking lot. If you see one or two Audi's and BMW's and the rest are Honda Civic's, don't expect to be paid much there. Seriously, check out the lot. It sounds superficial, but you'll really want to know. Just do it.

4. If you sense that people there are really defensive about not having
their architecture license and feel they don't need it b/c they've got
so much experience, get out. Just get out. You want to be surrounded by
people who are trying to better themselves academically too.

 5. Observe male/females and their interaction. I worked at a firm before where girls had a tough time moving up. There was just a lot of sexism even though one of the higher ups was a female. I was the only male who offered to help serve cake when it was someone's birthday. It was only girls who served the cake apart from me! WTF? I'm glad they fired me, b/c I didn't have the @#$*&^ to leave on my own.

6. Take it easy. Have a sense of humor. Don't be the guy who sits with the perfect posture and your hands folded in front of you on the table. You'll just look nervous or you're brown nosing. Relax. Don't act entitled, but act like you're one of them to a degree. It's okay to lean back in your chair with your legs crossed and have a casual conversation.

7. This first job is temporary. You don't want to be there 10 years. Size matters. If it's small, you need to change your expectations to have this place be a very temporary place. You're not moving up in a small place b/c those higher up on the ladder aren't giving up their spots.

[NHSSHINOBI]

I am graduating this summer and I am uncertain about the specific job title to search for in order to find an entry-level position in architecture. I am interested in pursuing a career in architecture, but the variety of job titles within the field makes it challenging to pinpoint the exact role I should be looking for.

[shoutxiao]

Hi hire me sister, and I can believe what you said is true.