Home Architecture Talk
architecture & Interior designer?
Can you Tell me the basics about being an architecture? How about becoming an interior designer? Can you recomend some good colleges in California for those jobs?
Public Comments
- The basic thing you need to know is how to draft by hand and how to use CAD. I went to a top ten architectural school in NY studying Interior Architecture. There was less math involved than other architecture students had, but a lot. You should also know how to draw - especially in perspective. Expect a ton of all nighters - projects are always due. It is a tough major. Both are great careers, very challenging and great incomes. Cal Tech is a top ten architecture school in Cali. Most of the top ten are on the East Coast. The best is by far Cooper Union in NYC. It is completely tuition free and only the best of the best get in. Pax - Cj
- And don't forget color theory. Why would you design a restaurant in deep red? I makes people feel hungry!!
- Hi, 1. I went to architecture school in Southern California, and I have had a firm and career here every since (for over 20 years) 2. CALTECH DOES NOT HAVE AN ARCHITECTURE PROGRAM!!!!!!! And, even if it did, you wouldn't want to go there because it would be too technically (and less design) oriented. 3. Your #1 goal should be to get accepted into AN ACCREDITED B-Arch program. This is a very prestigious degree, no matter what school you get it from. 4. There are only a few schools in California which offer that degree: Cal Poly Pomona Cal Poly San Luis Obispo USC Stanford THAT"S IT!, believe it or not. That's why the degree is so prestigious. Besides those schools, there is a smattering of super-small private schools: SCI-Arc Woodbury And a few more. REMEMBER, I'm talking about THE ACCREDITED B-Arch degree, not some worthless piece of garbage you won't be able to get a job with. 5. The best school for you, I think, will most likely be Cal Poly Pomona. It has a good balance of design to technical aspects. All the other schools are imbalanced one way or the other. 6. The worst Accredited B-Arc school in California is USC (It also happens to be the most expensive!) Forget about it.... 7. If you can't get into an accredited B-Arch school, then try for interior design. >>>>>>>>>>>>EDIT>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 8. There's no one I love more here at Y/A than PAX C...so no hard feelings? She was the first one to answer my first question about Shakespeare's Hamlet. 9. B-Arch means a "Bachelor's of Architecture." That's the degree I have. It's not a B.S. or a B.A. It's a separate achievement which takes a minimum of 5 years to get. The hitch is that you have to have that degree in order to get a license. And, prospective employers will take you FAR less seriously if you don't have it. 10. Other schools in California offer "architecture." The problem is that the degree is not B-Arch, or the school only offers M-Arch, which is kind of a joke in the professional world. Focus on the FEW schools I mentioned. 11. Don't go to a community college. You'll end up dragging out how long it takes to get the elusive B-Arch. Try to get into a program right out of high school. It'll probably still take you more than the minimum 5 years to get. There are pobably only a few hundred graduates per year who got in right out of high school and completed the program in the minimum 5 year allotment. 12. I know how daunting this seems, and I remember how daunting it was for me. But this is an incredibly rewarding career to be in.
- You can throw a stone in most places in CA and hit an art school. My sister-in-law is an architect and a darned good one, she was accepted at Columbia U for grad school. I had thought of it briefly but according to her, t's a VERY demanding focus that's only as rewarding if you have a deep passion for it (which she does and I could not). Interior design is a lil bit different, the house is already designed so you're just doing the inside after the framework has been decided on. I think you should call an architecture firm and ask for a few moments of their time and do the same for an interior design firm. They are almost always willing to take a few moments to help someone decide if the career is right for them. They can also recommend schools and are the best to ask for such info.
