<p>Considering the money and time spent on studying architecture in college, how come architecture is not financially rewarding?
Compared to , for example, law or med majors, arch students spend about as much time and cash in school, yet unlike them arch majors dont make much in return. Why?
Has anyone thought of it? All insights welcomed…</p>
<p>Just about everyone needs a doctor and a lawyer at some time in their lives; not many need architects.</p>
<p>Architects are not good at marketing the value of their services. The AIA is weak and ineffective as the main lobbying body for the profession, and many of the services that architects provide can also be provided by contractors and engineers at an enormous discount. While these cut-rate services are also of lesser quality, their greater accessibility to the average person creates a situation in which architects are perceived as a luxury, not a necessity.</p>
<p>The question also makes the assumption that all doctors and lawyers make a lot of money. This is not the case. It is we just hear about the top lawyers in large firms and doctors with big practices. There are a lot of lawyers that have their own practice or 1-3 lawyers in a firm. They don’t necessarily make hundreds of thousands of dollars. My wife has a friend who is a doctor in practice by herself. After her insurance and other costs, she doesn’t make hundreds of thousands of dollars.</p>
<p>$$ are all relative. What is financially rewarding to one person may not be to another person. Happiness has to factor in their. Money without happiness is not rewarding. As a former product manager (marketing), larationalist is right, it is marketing, marketing, marketing.</p>
<p>First of all, even after all the insurance and whatever b.s cost, doctors will still make more than us. Second, this is my opinion only, but i think helping someone/curing them is rewarding itself. It’s good enough to leave architecture.</p>
<p>My brother is a doctor and so is his wife. They are still paying off their $250 - $500K loans and they are close to 40 yrs old. They didn’t start making any real money until they were in their early 30s. My sister in law is a pediatrician and does not make that much. Insurance reimbursement keeps going down. They have to work horrendous hours on weekends and all nighters while on call. Which profession is better? You pick.</p>
<p>There are all kinds of complex factors that go into the rates of architectural compensation, a lot of it having to do with supply and demand as well as the value that society places on the profession. Statistically architecture falls into the upper-mid range of professional compensation, and the rate of compensation has increased substantially faster over the last 10 years than either medicine or law.</p>
<p>As far as doctors and lawyers go, I have seen government studies indicating that architects have far lower rates of depression, and are overall happier with their career choice. You just have to decide what career is going to make you happy.</p>
<p>Like I told you on another post; if you feel that you need to be highly compensated to be happy, and are focused on things like the ROI of your college education, then you need to find another major. You will not be happy as an architect.</p>
<p>rick</p>
<p>Nah, this thread has nothing to do with me deciding between arch or something else. I’m just curious to see what you all think about the fact that architects in general dont make much financially.</p>
<p>btw, whats ROI?</p>
<p>ROI= return on investment</p>