Becoming an architect as a professional is a difficult and thorny path. An unprepared applicant will not be able to just take and enter this speci alty, since already at the first stage he is required to know the basics of drawing and painting. Let's take a closer look at the named profession and its prospects.
About architecture
Architecture is a speci alty that requires full commitment from the student. It is not for nothing that students-architects in universities can be distinguished by circles under their eyes and by a tired, sleepy look. Their curriculum is very rich and consists mainly of practical work: projects, drawings, creative assignments.
Usually a student has to learn on the fly to work in such programs as ArchiCad, Photoshop, Artlantis. I don’t want to scare applicants, but when entering this direction, you need to be ready to complete a large amount of tasks in a short time, which means at night. One thing is for sure - you will not be bored.
The difference between an architect and an engineer
Speci alty "architecture" and "construction" are different things, radically different from each other. Architects mainly develop creative solutions, draw up project documentation, visualize projects, layout, evaluate structures. A good specialist must know building structures and materials, be able to correctly distribute the loads acting on the building.
Engineers, on the other hand, calculate and implement architects' projects into working documentation.
About landscape architecture
This science is a branch of urban planning. A landscape architect works with open urban spaces: squares, embankments, streets, boulevards, parks, squares, etc. That is, the improvement of the named area should be the responsibility of these specialists. But, as experience shows, the concept of "landscape architecture" is perceived in Russia as the same as "landscape design", although the latter is only a small part, a tool of the named speci alty.
This profession is quite popular in the USA, Canada, Europe. All developed countries have long since switched to a sustainable urban development program: improving the environment is possible only by bringing nature into the urban environment.
Landscape architecture is a speci alty that is available in some universities of our country (in St. Petersburg, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, etc.). She combinesengineering beginning, botany and architecture. The trend towards the development of this industry exists in Moscow - new landscape objects are being built here, historical garden and park ensembles are being reconstructed, greening is gaining momentum. But in a crisis, unfortunately, such specialists are forgotten, they are not required.
Landscape students work no less than their fellow architect students. The advantage is that creative tests are usually not carried out in this direction. Basically, graduates working in the direction (architecture - speci alty) get jobs in private landscape bureaus, designing gardens for customers.
About creative challenges
As mentioned earlier, applicants are required to pass creative tests in order to enter a university. The speci alty "architecture" is at the intersection of creativity and engineering, which is why upon admission they are checked:
- creative orientation - the ability to draw from nature. Applicants usually draw the plaster heads of Apollo;
- knowledge of composition. This is also a drawing of geometric shapes arranged in a composition;
- engineering orientation - drawing. Usually, the applicant must manually draw a detail, assembly (front view, top view, side view) and build it in axonometry or perspective.
It is possible and possible to prepare yourself for such tests, but in practice, applicants who attended preparatory courses at the university receive higher grades.
Bachelor's and Master's programs
Modern education at the university has switched to a new system: the majority of graduates are now graduating not as specialists, but as bachelors. The so-called level system has also affected the study of architecture.
Bachelor studies on a reduced program, 4 years. Unfortunately, they are often considered "dropouts" with higher education. A master's degree allows you to get an initial academic degree (usually in 2 years). All this is done to save time in order to produce more "practitioners", but everyone knows that quality takes time, and the less it is spent, the lower the student's level of education.
Architecture is a speci alty related to construction, art, design. It is quite prestigious, but it requires great efforts and skills both from the creative side and from the engineering side. Great competition should not frighten a real architect, because only professionals rise to the top of the career ladder.
