Architecture vs Architectural Engineering Degree

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Q. Greetings. 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.

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. 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 usually means 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, 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 rationally abstract concepts, if you know what I mean, than do architects. Architects usually have a billion interests while engineers have few. Architects are often pretentious, overconfident, overeducated, skeptical, and very observant. Engineers are often boring, two-dimensional, focused on the task at hand, yet still ambitious and concerned about fair remuneration. The stereotypes for each profession can be exaggerated, but still they are somewhat accurate. 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. 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? -In addition to the comments from rktectcdm: Ask the school what professional registration is possible with the architectural engineering degree they offer. I worked with a very nice fellow with that degree which essentially allowed him to do residential scale work. It was not acceptable as a base for a professional license of either PE or RA. The book "Architect? A Candid Guide to the Profession" by Roger K. Lewis would be a worthwhile reference at this point. It can be ordered from Prarrie Avenue Books. There are a lot of different skills and career paths within "architecture": Renderers, working drawings producers, specifications writers, site managers. Although it may be the long way around, many colleges and universities offer a Masters of Architecture which begins with an undergraduate degree and then a two year masters program. This would give your daughter some time to become familiar with the schools of architecture and of engineering. I inadvertently followed that course and feel I gained much from my liberal arts courses that those who went through a 5 year B Arch program missed. The two most financially successful grads from my class never practiced. They sold high end furnishings. My two daughters also followed rather winding educational paths: One graduated college with diplomas in print making and in politics. After 5 years doing art, she put her self through law school. The other, who we thought might not graduate high school, ended up with a BA from University of Redlands near LA and two MS from Columbia University in New York. -This is a choice that could go many ways. I am an intern architect working in a Architectural/engineering firm. I currently have a degree in design of architecture and will go onto to get a masters of Architecture, I am assuming this is what you calling "a traditional architecture degree". From my experience, it seems the choice your daughter needs to make is if she wants to design the overall aesthetics of the building and coordinate the engineered systems, or to work with the architect to develop the structure with the design the architect has envisioned. From my understanding, a student with an A/E degree would be resolving more technical problems and designing more "strictly functional" buildings, i.e... warehouses and strip malls. If she is not artistically inclined, this might be the answer. I suppose the best combination would be to get an accredited degree in Architecture (5 year pre-professional or 4 year Bachelors and 2 year Masters of Arch.) and a BS in Structural engineering. Another possibility would be to get a degree in Structural engineering with heavy emphasis in architectural design. This option would not allow your daughter to become a licensed architect without further education, but if she becomes a licensed engineer she could legally build buildings. One thing to look at is who this A/E degree is setup for, someone who will continue there education or someone who just wants the degree to start working. Look at this page for requirements on architectural accreditation http://www.ncarb.org/. In short, if she is not so interested in the arts, avoid architecture. I have seen many people drop out of architecture the first year because they did not realize it is a professional art full of creative design problems. I suggest structural engineering. A good Architect understands the principles of engineering and a good engineer understands the principles of architecture. Engineers make more money starting out as well (if this is important). I would avoid the A/E degree if it does not set you up for a professional degree. She should also look at a degree in Construction Science and Management. This is a fairly new degree that is popping up everywhere. Basically it prepares people to become construction administrators and contractors or to run a very popular Design Build firm. In this degree you do some design work and a lot of engineering. When I was in school about 30-40% of the CSM students were female ( just insuring you this is not a "bubba" type major). Oh well, I hope this gives you some insight. I have not seen any predictions of decline for the need of architects and engineers in the future. There is actually a great need for experienced architects right now.

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