Often when people find out I’m an Architect, they think I spend a lot of time designing buildings, drawing floor plans and looking at building sites. And often that’s the case. Designing is a massive part of being an Architect, and it’s also what we all love. It’s the reason why we spend seven years studying to gain our professional qualifications.

Did you know it’s possible to qualify as a medical doctor quicker than it is an Architect?

But, there’s more to it than designing — a lot more in fact. I’m always intrigued when people tell me they would love to be in my profession. As architects, we spend a surprising amount of time in spreadsheets, reading detailed construction contracts, working out tiny details of buildings to keep rainwater out, talking to engineers, surveyors and planning consultants. The list is endless, and there’s a lot more to it than design.

When I recently came across an organisation called ViewVo, I jumped at the chance to get involved. ViewVo organises job shadowing opportunities for people to explore and find a new career direction. As it says on its website: “We’re on a mission to make it easy and exciting for people to explore new careers before they take a brave step forward”.

According to recent research, the average person changes their career between 5-7 times during their working life. So, before you make that next change, it might be useful to check that you’re moving in the right direction. And that’s what VewiVo is all about.

I’m always happy to help people decide if architecture is for then. I love being an Architect and if I can help others to join the profession – and make a considerable investment in time and money required to do so – then I’m happy.

We had our first ViewVo candidate join us recently. He’s employed in a very fast paced, global and stress-filled role within the world of sports, and is looking for a change of pace to something more creative. I’m sure architecture can provide him with just that.

If you’d like to find out about a career change and moving into architecture, why not check out ViewVo. If you’re in school and thinking about a career in architecture, please get in touch directly. We often take on work experience students to help them decide if this is the right career path too.