Top 4 Concerns with Current Architectural Education
Top 4 Concerns of Architectural Education
I was recently inspired by reading a call to arms for the education of future architects. (inspiration post). I felt the need to provide some of my own thoughts on the state of the architectural educational system.
I would like to make a few points first. I operate a small firm in a college town that just happens to have College of Architecture with over 1800 students. . So I feel as though I have some relevance to this matter, as I interact with a range from first year to graduate level students on a fairly regular basis. I have a fair amount of students and recent graduates that either work in my office or look for work in my office Also I am making a critical review of the system. Part of being an architect is critical thought. I do not think that the current system has no merit; quite the contrary. I think it has much to offer, but should be offering more as it relates to the profession of architecture. Therefore this is a list of items that I feel need to change if our profession is to persevere into the future….
1. Provide Reality
This is quite possibly the largest and the toughest issue. Many in academia believe it is not their duty to create graduates that are ready for the workforce. They believe that their sole purpose is to produce creative thinkers. Dreamers. Innovators. I partly applaud this effort. But what does this do for the profession? It places a heavy burden on the professionals to educate new graduates about the actual practice of architecture. And in the current trend of faster production times, (not just this economy) it’s a monumental task for professionals to undertake. This lack of realism also creates impractical expectations within the students about the profession. This often makes new graduates turn to another field entirely. We are losing some of the best minds in this manner. I have seen this firsthand. Even among those that I graduated with over 16 years ago. The problems stems from the lack of realistic work being created in schools. Student projects have no budget, clients, regulatory agencies, and often gravity. This type of design for the sake of design is better known as art. Art… free of any limitations other than its chosen media. This is not architecture. Yes, I hear you and agree, architecture is part art. But it is also part science, part reality, part negotiation, part limitation, part frustration, and part beauty. By having students only create art masquerading as buildings, this skewed illusion about the profession is established. Disillusionment then becomes easy. Great architects can create meaningful, beautiful, artful projects within all the limitations of reality.
2. Increase Construction Knowledge
This is the second largest issue. Architectural graduates seem to know little about the physical and material aspects of construction. I have a few small tests I give to possible employees; basic architectural stuff. Over the years, my inquiries have evolved. I like to ask questions about construction materials in my interviews. What are the dimensions of a typical CMU? What is membrane flashing? I have been known to hand an interviewee an unlabeled detail and ask them to keynote it. Shown them a set of drawings and then ask them to find information. What material is this wall? How about this door? Etc.. My results over the years have been astonishing to say the least. There is a lack of fundamental construction knowledge required to even begin to participate in the profession. Why?
FILL IN THE BLANK ARCHITECTURE!!
3. Architecture as Business
This is another very weak link in architectural education. I am, more times than I prefer, hindered by this fact. My education had no business instruction. None. No business classes. No management. No marketing. There was a professional practice class, but its relevance was lost on me at the time. Many of the teachings were nonsensical to me since I had never been in an architectural work environment. This is a desperately needed area of emphasis if our profession is to endure into the future. We are letting others with better business sense operate, manage and market our firms. No! We need to be able to adapt standard business practices to meet our unique needs. But without the business knowledge, we are at a disadvantage. I would wager that most of us learned by experience (i.e. fire) or example (i.e. this is how we’ve done it for years). Both of which can be counterproductive and stagnant, keeping us from being the innovators we are capable of being. (see #1)
4. Collaborate with others (in meaningful ways)
This is a tough one. It is a difficult task to collaborate across colleges and departments within the University setting. But some of this needs to occur. It’s difficulty is often compounded because it could be the uneducated collaborating with the undereducated. But it is also the possibility for a great innovative approach to the AEC world. Too often students are being pre-programmed to see contractors, engineers, etc. as adversaries from the beginning of their education. This does not benefit our profession. (nor in the end, our clients projects) But this is collaboration needs to be attempted. Work with others and understand what they bring to the process and how it could change the process itself.
So that is my rough summary. Please feel free to share comments. Start the dialog. Next up I will espouse on the best bits of the architectural education.
I truly want to thank you, not only for taking the time to read my modest post, but for your in-depth perspective regarding this issue.
It does worry me. Greatly. Because the end of the effectiveness of academia undeniably equals the end of the effectiveness of the profession… and I truly believe our current conditions, and statistics, are only early proof of this condition.
Andrew, I imagine that Tabitha’s original post will spark even more posts like this as others begin to critically think about not just their own education (past tense) but the education of future architects that they may one day hire as interns. I agree emphatically with everything you’ve stated here, especially #2. Why have I never thought of that before?! And more importantly, I’m amazed that no prospective employers in my past have put me through such a basic interview “test”. I’m actually a little disappointed now. :-\
For me, one of the best “lessons” I was ever taught was not in academia, but in professional practice (though it should have been drilled into us in studio) and that is “if you draw a line, no matter by hand or mouse, know what it is, what it does and how it relates to the drawing as a whole”.
If we’re going to succeed as a profession, our education has to evolve and move forward just as practice does every day. I think adding some better professional practice and basic business management courses to the curriculum would be an amazing step in the right direction. But more than that is teaching students not just to DESIGN but to teach them to design within limits. Some of the most successful projects, and most enjoyable, that I’ve worked on professionally were the ones with the most limits. It’s in those limits that we find wiggle room for innovation and experimentation.
Great post! Cheers.
I had the pleasure of being in the original conversation with Tabitha that sparked the “Call to Action”.
My knowledge on the subject comes from having just graduated in a undergrad, trying to find a job, finally finding one and now I am going to begin graduate school.
Let me just say that you hit it pretty much right on the head. After graduating I felt completely useless in the real world. I had done two co-ops, but they were nothing more than internships for one semester each. After 4 years of college I felt as though I had no actual “architecture” knowledge. I had no idea how a building was put together or even how to do construction documents.
I agree with everyone of your points, although I would like to add a little to the last. I know that we did not do this in my undergrad program, but I can not speak for others. While collaboration across multiple disciplines should be required another thing is the act of leading. I believe that an important part of working as a team is also learning the different “roles” that need to be filled. Such as Project Manager or Detailer. Very often in medium to large firms you get placed into a specific role and must adapt to your peers. Now Im not saying everyone should be stuck drafting CAD, but I think that every student should have the experience of being a Project Manager, where they must manage not only a whole project but a staff of people as well.
Just my two cents.
You are not alone. And this is not a new phenomenon in architecture education. Had I not worked in construction prior to college and then in grad school, I would have been less knowledgeable coming out of school. That knowledge is critical. And it’s something we lost along the way in our education. It takes construction knowledge to become the master builder. But right now you should be glad to have obtained employment. I have some students who graduated in the past two years and are still seeking employment. Be grateful you have that opportunity to continue to learn.