Planning My Future

Today’s Topics:

• Summer Internships
• Working at a Firm After Graduation
• Building my Own Firm

Ever since I started college I could not stop thinking about architecture. I am a futuristic thinker and I constantly have my mind on what mine will be like. I have done this to the point where I even have a vision board so I can physically see where I want to be over the course of my education and career.

Summer Internships

The summer prior to starting college is where I majorly began investing in my future. I completed two internships so I could start school with knowledge from the field and connect it to what I learn in school.

I then planned out what I want my remaining summers to look like. I know that I am an architecture major, but I have also developed an interest in the construction process that is tied into architecture as they go hand in hand.

My plan was to have a construction internship my first summer, to learn more about the built environment. Unfortunately because of COVID-19 it has been pushed back to be in my second summer. So instead I spent time developing this website and soon to be business while learning more software to understand more than just creating a 3D model.

My third summer I am not as certain with what I want to do. It will be dependent on my experience with working at a construction firm and where I feel is best to proceed from there with my interests.

Going into my fourth summer I want to work for an architecture firm to apply all of the skills that I have learned and find out more about the workings of an architecture firm.

Working at a Firm After Graduation

Graduating from Virginia Tech is the next major milestone for my life. By this time I will have made great contributions to my school through the multiple leadership positions that I currently am in and will take on. I will also be at the top of my class because of my desire and dedication to learning.

Graduating in May 2024 I will work for a firm that fosters growth and development through continued education or as mentorship for me to excel.

Even though it takes others at least 7 years to become a licensed architect, I plan to complete all of my requirements for licensure in 2 years through countless hours of studying and preparation.

Just as I have been heavily involved in architecture organizations in college, I will continue my involvement throughout my career to further my profesional development, help my community and to have networking possibilities.

Working at a firm, I will build success with my leadership, design and collaboration skills, while also learning about different concepts involved with running a firm.

Building My Own Firm

My most exciting prospect, one that I am always dreaming of is starting my own firm!

Having your own firm comes with a lot of risks, but potentially a lot of rewards. Thinking of it now it has been a very daunting experience because it truly does take a lot to run a firm.

A question that I always find myself asking, is “why is architecture and construction always separate?”

I have gotten the experience as a student to collaborate with all of these other majors involved with design construction and engineering so what is stopping that kind of collaboration from stopping in one office?

This is where my idea of having a Modular Construction Firm comes in. Being part of the FutureHaus design team has really opened my mind to help me see the possibilities that using this method of design can have.

One of the problems that has stopped us from making this available for commercial use is mass production. It encounters problems that we can not exactly solve on a university level. Not many people have been interested enough to tackle this problem head on as a career path.

Doing this would be a chance for architects engineers and construction workers, possibly even developers to all work under the same roof to produce the next innovations of the world.

There are very few modular construction companies in the world today as this is an emerging method into the industry. It does have its challenges, but when done right, it can be much more productive and effective than traditional building methods.

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Thank you for tuning into this weeks’ blog. I hope you enjoyed it and if you have any questions or comments, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! As always, Dream Big!