Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Mechanical Engineer to Architect

I have a B.S. and M.S. in Mechanical Engineering and will sit for the PE examination in April. I am also a naval officer, currently working in academia, though I am nearing the end of my obligated service and thus am considering a significant career change.

I have long been interested in architecture, though the Navy has little need for their officers to have such an education, thus I have not had the opportunity to pursue this interest in any meaningful way.

To the point, do architecture firms hire engineers in any significant numbers? Or, should I take this G.I. bill and go back to architecture school?

Thanks for your time.
_________

I would say that architecture firms do hire engineers but not necessarily in significant numbers. As you will learn, most architecture firms are relatively small and probably simply consult with engineers instead of having them on staff. Those firms that do have engineers on staff will be much larger, perhaps above a staff of 100 or so. You may also wish to inquire with engineering firms that have architects on their staff.

Regardless, the true question is if you wish to become an architect or not? With your degrees, you are eligible to pursue the professional Master of Architecture (3-4 years) designed for those that have an undergraduate degree in another discipline.

Best!

Dr. Architecture

3 comments:

soulsearcher said...

multi-degree..cool..you must have multiple intelligence..when you get board dealing with machines and gears you can also look at buildings and some stadium fence

Unknown said...

Hi I am Kunal....I am a B.Tech in Aerospace engineering...can i get a M.Arch degree now because i dont have a bachelors degree in architecture ?

Dr. Architecture said...


As noted in the post above, you may obtain a Master of Architecture with an unrelated degree.

With your degrees, you are eligible to pursue the professional Master of Architecture (3-4 years) designed for those that have an undergraduate degree in another discipline.