Hi! Could you give a little advice for someone who is in their final year of college and looking at applying to graduate school for architecture? I'm wondering if I should take some then off or jump right into. And how is it that you chose Virginia Tech? I have a passion for classical architecture but I don't really care where I end up. I just want to go into it! Thanks for your time!

Hello Anon!

As far as graduate school goes, I cannot stress this enough: choose the right city for YOU. I’m from Atlanta and am a self-proclaimed Georgia Peach, but upon visiting Georgia Tech (and enrolling and taking a few classes!), I wanted to die. It wasn’t right for me. It was because of the city, mostly. Going to school in New York City is great for some, but too distracting and expensive for others (like me). Going to school in Ann Arbor, Michigan seems like heaven to some but maybe too cold for someone from Miami, Florida. Clemson University is a great school, but it’s in the middle of (almost) nowhere. Visit these places and go with your gut intuition. I cannot. Stress. This. Enough.

Take all the time you need between undergrad and graduate school, but just know that once you start living a life outside of architecture, it may be very difficult to go back. Conversely, going back to school too quickly could give you burn-out. I waited a year for personal reasons, but it was better for me to get back into architecture after a break.

I chose Virginia Tech because of location. I’m close to the major cities on the eastern seaboard, but I’m not in a densely packed area. I don’t go to the main campus- I’m in the D.C. area. (I’ve only been to Blacksburg once to hear an architectural lecture…) Okay, DISCLAIMER: this is just me being proud of my school, but I love my school (it’s called the Washington-Alexandria Architecture Center, or the WAAC), and it is the best decision I’ve ever made concerning architecture. It’s not a “regular” school- it’s the only consortium school for architecture in the world. Students from Turkey, Australia, Germany, UK, Argentina, Chile, various schools in the U.S. (CalPoly, Louisiana State, etc.), Estonia, etc. come to the school to study architecture “abroad” for a semester or a year. I have friends from China, France, Germany, Korea, Venezuela, etc. Every day I hear at least six languages: Spanish, French, Korean, Chinese, German, English, Turkish, Farsi, and the list goes on. I love it because it’s so diverse, and you learn so many new things about architecture. If you’d like to talk to me about it off-anon, I’d be happy to. I actually work at the front desk as a GTA for the school. :)

I would say Virginia Tech promotes whatever architecture you feel suits you. You may have professors who would like to promote more modern architecture, but that’s true with any school.

I hope this helps you! If you have any more questions, I’m available off-anon as well. 

via @notiun

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