Some degrees do not lead to a specific job – the best examples include degrees from the humanities or arts – while other degrees such as medical degrees or law degrees lead to particular roles. An architectural degree is somewhere in the middle, offering excellent career prospects but also an element of flexibility.
Statistics from Prospects suggest that just over 6.3 per cent of architect graduates in the UK are unemployed with the majority of them working or continuing their studies – or a bit of both. If you are one of the few unemployed architecture graduates and seeking a job, you can find frequent opportunities listed in your field on Jobrapido.
But what are those opportunities? Below you can find the alternative career paths taken by fresh-faced architecture graduates.
Property Developer
The other side of an architect is their knowledge of property and the markets. With the skills and knowledge picked up during their degree, they are in a better position than most to start their property portfolio. Many architects do this on the side, but there is no reason why this cannot be a full-time gig for a knowledgeable young professional. Using your skills and contacts in this area can save on costs and make properties more profitable for you too.
Consultants
The other option is to get your hands slightly less dirty and become a consultant for building companies or even interior designers. Some architecture graduates in this are working as self-employed within their own company, enabling them to achieve a fantastic work-life balance – and work remotely.
Product Designer
If an architect isn’t going to be an architect, they still have a wealth of skills to offer in the design space. Design is everywhere around us and presents lots of opportunities for architects to show their talents. One of the biggest and most profitable is product design. Architecture graduates can look to work for companies offering product design services to ensure the product is structurally sound, functional and aesthetic – sound familiar?
Photo-Realistic Specialist
It was back in 2013 when we first reported that a wave of photorealism was sweeping over the architecture industry. Today, that trend has blossomed into a crucial part of the process for clients. They want unbeatable insights into how their future building will look, right down to the smallest detail or plant pot position.
This part of architecture has become so developed that architects are now employed full-time to create these digital drawings. It is one room in the architecture house that is appealing to more tech-savvy graduates, especially architecture ones.
An architecture degree is one of the special ones that set you up for a specific and usually well-paid role. However, as the above options illustrate, there is also room for flexibility. Don’t worry if you are one of the estimated 6.3 per cent – opportunities are out there.