Architecture vs Architectural Engineering Degree

Edwards Finance > Architectural Engineering

Q. > My daughter is a senior in high school and is interested > in pursuing an education in architecture. A teacher recommended she > look at arch eng since she is strong in math and science, and less so > in the arts. She visited the Milwaukee School of Engineering which > has an arch eng program and is now interested in attending there. I'm > more inclined to suggest she pursue a traditional architecure degree. > Does anyone have any comments on an arch eng degree? If she wants to > head more in the eng direction, should she pursue a civil eng degree > instead? I guess my main concern is the employment opportunities once > she graduates. Any comments would be welcome. Thanks.

A. If your daughter wants to become an architect, she should get a degree from an accredited architecture program rather than settle for an architectural engineering degree, which is basically civil engineering with an emphasis on the structural design of buildings. For example, I know a very talented man who became an architect with the arch eng degree, and though he could produce fine construction documents and details, he couldn't design his way out of the proverbial paper bag. His education hadn't given him any studio design experiences or cultural perspective to understand the issues involved in design. By the way, being strong in the arts actually has less to do with being a good architect than you may be assuming. Being good in math and science implies that she is a logical problem solver and a clear thinker, which are the most important qualities an architect can possess. On the other hand, there are lots of structural engineers out there who might have become competent architects, but were more perfectly suited to structural design and generating calcs. She might be successful at either profession, actually. To be clear about the differences between the two professions though--and saying some of this may get me into some hot water--architects must have leadership abilities to take charge, command respect, and direct others--abilities that aren't typically required of engineers. While both architects and engineers typically live "inside their heads", engineers live more in a world of rational abstract concepts, if you know what I mean, than do architects. Architects usually have a billion interests while engineers have fewer. Architects are often pretentious, overconfident, overeducated, skeptical, and very observant. Engineers are often boring, long-winded, two-dimensional thinkers, focused on the task at hand, yet very ambitious and concerned about fair remuneration. As you may assume after reading this, the stereotypes for each profession can be exaggerated, but still they are somewhat accurate for the purposes here of helping you determine your daughter's occupational potentials. Your concern for your daughter's employment opportunities is understandable. I have a 20-year-old son who is majoring in Chemical Engineering, so I am feeling good about his future. Architects and structural engineers are highly employable, but the construction industry feels the ebbs and flows of the country's economy to an extreme degree. Thus, job security is not always so secure. But, since it is her decision ultimately, all you can do is gather the facts and hope that she pays attention to them so she can make a wise and informed decision, eh?

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> My daughter is a senior in high school and is interested > in pursuing an education in architecture. A teacher recommended she > look at arch eng since she is strong in math and science, and less so > in the arts. She visited the Milwaukee ...

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