Why I want to be an Architect

Ever since NCARB sunset the term “intern” to describe a professional in the pursuit of an architectural license, a large group of emerging professionals have found themselves titleless as they try to figure out where they fit within the industry.

As the previous Region Associate Director for the state of NJ, I was inundated with questions from professionals asking how they should describe themselves as they pursued new careers. Frustrated with the lack of title myself, I began to think more about where I fit in as well.

Last year, the AIA National Associates Committee and the Center for Emerging Professionals proclaimed August as Associates Month and ran the We Are campaign. The effort was to highlight the many talents of our titleless generation and show that we have a future as leaders within the industry as not only draftspeople, but photographers, modelers, civil servants, etc. Most importantly we highlighted that we were animal lovers, family members, and people, people who are generally optimistic about the future, and the fact that we can make an impact in it.

Throughout school, aspiring architects are trained with feet in two buckets. Science and art, focused on critical thinking where the end result of the product we create serves people around the world. To me, this has led to my interest in writing and talking about the things we can do to make the way we work, live, and play better for everyone. After all as a design professional of the future I know the better I can serve my end user the happier, healthier, and better lives can be. Just take a look at Gensler’s Design Forecast, which we publish every year, that takes a hard look at design and the impact it can have in the future.

So I'm an optimist. I resonate with the #ilookup campaign that the AIA just released their second installment of. I want to be a thought leader who shares and creates discussions that challenge the status quo. I want to help design a world where people live in sustainable and resilient architecture. I believe that as leaders of the built environment we have the power to change the world and I'm very excited to be a part of this movement and eventually call myself an architect one day.