What Architecture Firms Are Looking For in Young Employees

Millions of careers will start in the United States this summer. With one of the tightest labor markets in history though, it can be tough just to get a foot in the door with attractive companies.

The AEC industry is no different. With the economy doing well, opportunities are everywhere, but so is the competition.

“It’s a great time actually to come out of school. Everyone is still really, really busy. Finding a job isn’t as hard today as seven, eight, nine years ago,” Bob Borson, Principal Architect at Malone, Maxwell & Borson said. “The thing that makes me a little worried is it’s been really good for awhile now and the AEC industry as a whole goes through these cyclical kind of moments and we’re waiting for it to kind of turn down.”

Borson, who created the popular architecture-themed blog, Life of an Architect, has been in the architecture industry for decades now, but knows how important young architects’ first job is today.

“It’s important because it can dictate how your entire career might go,” he said.

This is not to say young architects should lock themselves into situations if they are not receiving the right opportunities though.

One way Borson advises those breaking into the industry to do is find a mentor in a role they envision themselves in one day.

“The thing that makes mentorship work, and this is important, is you have to reevaluate the decisions you’ve made. So, it suggests that that partnership has to be in place for a period of time,” he said.

Ultimately, sometimes landing that first job can come down to executing on the simplest of expectations, according to Borson.

“There are certain things we talk about that are kind of problem solving 101. If someone sends me a resume and they want a job and they address it to ‘Dear Sir/Madam’, you already failed the very first test which is to find out who you should address this to” he said. “It’s not a hard problem to solve.

When beginning a career, Borson also advises to measure the nature of the company and the relationships with senior teammates and clients. This can be unnerving for young workers but at some point, employers will expect genuine opinion and contribution when the time is right.

“If you’re in the room, if your employers have brought you into the space and put you at the table, they probably want you to feel comfortable to at least opening your mouth and saying something. Or they wouldn’t bring you,” he said.

To watch Borson’s entire interview on MarketScale Mornings, click here! For the latest in AEC news, head to our industry page! You can also follow us on Twitter at @AECMKSL. Join the conversation in our Market Leaders LinkedIn group!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

digital freight invoicing
ODeX Is Leading the Charge in Digital Freight Invoicing
April 24, 2025

Global shipping continues to grapple with fragmented billing processes, often delaying cargo movement. According to McKinsey, adopting an electronic bill of lading could save $6.5 billion in direct costs and enable $40 billion in global trade. As vessels carry goods for thousands of shippers per voyage, the administrative burden of managing and reconciling invoices…

Read More
Human Intelligence Movement
Just Thinking… about Reimagining Education for the AI Era with the Human Intelligence Movement
April 24, 2025

As artificial intelligence reshapes education, work, and daily life, educators are grappling with how to prepare students for a future where human skills—not just knowledge—will be paramount. In fact, a growing number of reports highlight that employers increasingly value collaboration, communication, and emotional intelligence over memorized content. Amid this transformation, the Human Intelligence Movement…

Read More
The Value of a Restoration Team with Healthcare Experience
The Value of a Restoration Team with Healthcare Experience
April 24, 2025

In this episode of Inside Restoration & Recovery, host Martha Lewis welcomes Jason McClaren, Director of Facilities Operations at Reunion Rehabilitation Hospitals, to discuss the critical advantage of partnering with a restoration team experienced in healthcare. A former firefighter and military veteran, Jason has spent the last decade managing safety, risk, and emergency preparedness…

Read More
Science of reading
Educators Must Combine 1:1 Tutoring with the Science of Reading to Close the Reading Gap
April 23, 2025

Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the education system faced a seismic shift. Learning loss, especially in foundational literacy, was a national crisis. In 2024, only 31% of fourth graders in the U.S. were reading proficiently, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Meanwhile, tutoring exploded as a top strategy to recover…

Read More