Top 9 Alternative Careers Beyond Architecture & Design

Table of contents

• Is There An Alternative Career Option for an Architect?
• Where will architecture be in 10 years?
• Explore More About Architecture and Design

 

They say architecture opens doors for endless opportunities. As the mother of all arts, architecture is more than designing. It fosters a vibrant ecosystem of disciplines where academicians guide aspiring architects, journalists spark critical discourse, illustrators translate realities, and photographers capture unseen perspectives.

Architecture blends logic and creativity, offering a surprisingly broad career path.  While building design remains a core function, architecture's skillset extends to diverse fields like architectural photography and video game design. The question remains: are we fully aware of this breadth of opportunities?

Architecture, a blend of creativity and logic, allows you to enter diverse fields, from photography to gaming, in addition to the conventional role of designing buildings and interiors. But do you know about these alternative careers? 

Let’s learn about all the choices lying outside mainstream architecture. 

Is There An Alternative Career Option for an Architect? 

Chasing deadlines, all-nighters, restrictions from the building codes, coordination, and much more– the nitty-gritty of architecture can make you rethink your career choice. One of the best parts of being an architect is that it makes you a jack of all trades.

Whether it’s about narrating compelling spatial stories or capturing the right perspectives, an architect is equipped with the knacks to pursue several untapped paths. Let’s look into the top 9 alternative career choices that demand the skill set of a honed architect. 

1. Architectural Illustration Comics

Do you like talking about architecture but don’t know which path to take? Or is the visual art of your interest? Here’s an exciting career path—one where you can mix fun and knowledge to create something meaningful for the community. 

An architectural illustrator holds the ability to tell stories through drawings or comics. If you’re an architect or a designer, you must have encountered the famous illustrations from Leewardists while scrolling through Instagram or other social media or reading on Archdaily. Doesn’t this simplify the process of learning about architecture and design? Also, learning becomes so much easier! In a world with an attention span so short, architectural illustration is the modern-day medium to convey complex concepts. 

An illustrator needs comprehensive architectural knowledge, the art of storytelling, and refined illustrating capabilities to breathe life into comics. You can pursue this career apart from architecture jobs through freelancing opportunities or collaborate with architectural firms to craft educational comics. 

2. Architectural Photography 

While working in design firms or being a part of educational institutes, you train your eyes to stay attentive to every minute detail. At the same time, you always look at a design from a different perspective. This skill opens doors for you in the field of architectural photography.

Raghu Rai, Julius Shulman and Berenice Abbott are famous names that come to mind when we think of photography. Looking at their works, you can understand how an architect’s perspective differs from an ordinary person’s photographs. Beautiful captures promote appreciation for thoughtful design and inspire the audience to view structures in a different light. 

Architectural photography is essential in this digital era. It is a medium for showcasing your work and capturing the essence of space. Have you ever wondered if architectural photographs of marvels like the Great Pyramid of Giza or the Taj Mahal didn’t exist? How would an architect sitting in the other corner of the world have known about them?

The role of architectural photography extends beyond aesthetics. It’s a way to preserve and document a record of history. Thus keeping architectural marvels timeless. Through architectural photography, one can keep track of the evolution of architectural styles, construction techniques, and transforming built environments. 

To pursue this profession, you need in-depth knowledge of camera operation, an understanding of the play of lights, composition, and post-production skills. Even more exciting is that architectural photography further opens doors into various subfields, such as exterior, interior and drone photography.

 

3. Architectural Journalism

As strong as an architect’s designing skills are, so are the words. Architecture jobs aren’t only about buildings but stories residing in the designs. Owing to this skill, the opportunity to pursue architectural journalism unfolds. Whether describing a modern studio apartment design or reviewing historic architecture styles, journalism lets you perform storytelling.

Several journalists, like Madhavi Desai, Alexandra Lange and Tanya Khanna, use their knowledge and creative expressions in writing to bridge the gap between architecture and discourse. As an architectural journalist, you can deliver design ideas and your perspective through blogs, online publications, print magazines, social media posts, and other media platforms.

The key to excelling in journalism is the art of storytelling. It’s all about grabbing the audience’s attention, keeping them engaged, and offering takeaways. To start this profession, look for freelance writing opportunities and internship programs. You can even hunt for job opportunities at core architectural publications like Archdaily, Architectural Digest, Rethinking the Future, etc. Another additional responsibility in architecture journalism is the continual cyclic process of research and writing about design interventions and architectural buildings that revolutionise the course of architecture. 

4. Architectural Gamification

In this new-age world driven by AI and immersive experiences, pacing up and training for these advancements is challenging. This is where gamification emerges, reshaping our typical interaction with information. Gamification encourages creativity and learning by fostering a sense of virtual interaction with spaces.

If you’ve ever dreamed of designing architecture-oriented games like Project Highrise, SimCity Buildt, or Minecraft, architectural gamification is a profession for you.

Whether it’s about designing a game for educational or entertainment purposes, gamification lets your imagination do its magic in a virtual world. As we live in a tech-driven era, this field offers a promising career if you want to switch from architectural design jobs. Virtual reality enables you to create an immersive experience through the principles of gaming and architecture.

To enter the profession, you must be trained in game design principles, learn the art of storytelling by building environments, and have programming knowledge, which is a plus. 

5. Architectural Criticism

Imagine yourself presenting your best design in a college. Yet, the jury members offer you constructive criticism on what you thought was your best shot. Surprisingly, criticism of architecture doesn’t end in college. Instead, it’s a professional practice because architecture thrives on it.

Every style has its proponents and detractors, whether a modern design or a classical monument. The role of an architectural critic is to offer insightful comments on the design. Renowned names like Jane Jacobs, Ada Louise Huxtable and Michael Kimmelman are examples of how words help dissect and analyse designs better.

Architecture criticism has helped shape societies and develop countries with active participation from critics in an attempt to save significant structures. For example, upon the appeal to demolish Delhi’s Hall of Nations, several architects and critics condemned the destruction by recognising this modern architecture as a “word of art of national importance.” Irrespective of the result, critics raised their voices and fought to preserve what’s of architectural importance. 

Architectural critics help shape better-built environments by guiding urban planning policies and promoting the value of interior design and planning. 

To pursue this career, you must comprehensively understand spaces and how they impact society. An honest expression through the means of articles, essays, and lectures is critical for the success metric in this field. 

6. Architectural VR/AR Consultant

We’ve all seen how technology is entering architecture jobs. As an architectural AR/VR consultant, you advise practising architects to shift towards new-age technologies because modern practice blurs the lines between concepts and reality.

As a VR/AR consultant, you need expertise in related software and technologies. You must also understand user experience (UX) design principles to convey the concepts effectively. A few leading names in this niche are Corgan, Morpholio, and IrisVR. 

As consultants and advisors, it’s also crucial for you to build on your communication skills to compel architects to adopt technology to express their ideas.

 

7. Architectural Historian/Storyteller

Do you love visiting old monuments or learning the stories behind buildings, movements, and architectural styles? You could step aside from your architecture job and pursue a career as an architectural historian.

There’s a story behind every building, and the role of an architectural historian is to unfold those tales. Historians employ the art of storytelling through writing, documentaries, heritage walks, tours, etc., and trace back to the history of architecture. Through their works, architectural historians preserve the tangible forms of heritage and ignite curiosity amongst the modern generation. 

For example, an architectural historian’s works reflect the cultural significance of spaces like courtyards in an Indian home. By delving into history, they shape social interactions and guide modern practices by fostering a deeper connection to the cultural roots. 

To succeed as an architectural historian, you must have intense research and writing skills. Clear communication and the capability to analyse a space or design's history are also crucial. 

8. Architectural Academician

Do you have a passion for both education and architecture? As an architectural academician, you will be responsible for bridging the gap between architecture jobs and the academy. This position stands out from the standard jobs in architecture as you’ll research and teach in the niche. 

Whether your forte is the history of architecture or the theoretical principles of interior designing, you’ll be responsible for feeding architectural knowledge. This position goes beyond simply teaching the nuts and bolts; you'll be a leader in shaping the next generation of architects.

For instance, you could specialise in sustainable design, focusing on the revival and application of traditional building methods that prioritize local materials and low environmental impact. Imagine incorporating lessons on building with readily available earth materials, a practice that has thrived in various cultures for centuries.

This allows you to not only teach about future-oriented approaches but also to actively research and advocate for them. You can explore the fascinating world of vernacular architecture, where traditional wisdom meets modern innovation, and inspire your students to integrate these concepts into their own design philosophies. Thus, shaping the future of the field by training young minds for a conscious, sustainable design approach. This career path allows intellectual exploration along with mentorship. 

9. Interior Stylist

If you love decorating interiors and setting a unique scene, interior styling is an option. An interior stylist takes commercial or editorial projects and style spaces for photoshoots.

An architect’s attentive vision of details is a plus in this case. It helps you carefully pick colour palettes and accessories for a cohesive look. Further, a comprehensive understanding of space and design languages lets you blend style and function.

Where will architecture be in 10 years?

The future of architecture is brimming with exciting possibilities. While the core principles of design will remain essential, the industry is rapidly integrating new technologies like Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Reality (VR). This evolution is creating a demand for architects with a broader skillset, opening doors to fascinating specializations beyond traditional building design.

Architecture jobs sometimes make you curious to learn and explore more. Analyze what you enjoy most about architecture – is it the historical context, the technical aspects, or the visual storytelling?  This will be your guiding point as you explore diverse niches within architecture and design.  The key is to keep an open mind - there's a perfect match out there waiting to be discovered!

Explore More About Architecture and Design

- Author Saili Sawantt has written about the role of architecture in branding and advertising, scope of bachelors of interior design and a curated list of 10 awe-inspiring architects. 
- In another vein, if you’re looking to discover which career is right for you after your degree in interior design, then read this one. 
- Are you truly passionate about architecture? Here’s a curated list of iconic women architects who have contributed to Indian Architecture post independence.
- Did you ever imagine how visual communication can alter the experience of a physical space? Read more to find out how.