Need help with school Art/Architecture

[HeartlandCityBoy]

Hey all, I'm currently in my Senior year in High School, and I enrolled in an Advanced Placement Art class. I'm currently making an A-, however my teacher wants us to produce 3-4 more quality works in the next few weeks.
I'm tired of art, and I'm tired of drawing/painting, he's made me hate it, and I can't stand it anymore. He is using art school as a guide for the class, and I'm tired of being pushed like he is pushing me.

I have been accepted into a 5 year architecture program at a college, and my goal is to prepare myself for college. However, I am debating with myself whether or not to drop the class at semester, i've made a 3.8 GPA in the last 2 years, and about a 3.6 overall. I've never failed or dropped a class, and I am concerned about how colleges and jobs will look at that, my only AP class would be the only class I ever dropped.

I personally cannot stand the pressure, he wants us to produce 1 quality piece of work a week, and I'd rather be at home playing video games, having fun and researching architecture/following local developments instead of drawing stuff that does nothing for architecture, or has anything to do with architecture in college.

I want my teacher to understand that I do not ever want to be an artist, and I would never ever attend an art college. 1 quality piece of art a week is too stressful and too tough for me to accomplish, I mean they should be different from each other, and all quality.

I don't want to be taking a class that isn't fun, and takes all the fun out of something I enjoy doing.

I would like to know what you all think, should I drop this stressful, unfun, advanced placement art class? Next semester we will have to put out 10 more pieces of work in about 1 month. I personally do not want to have to deal with that.

Advice? Suggestions?

(nerudite) Since this is a question about how universities may perceive you dropping a course, it really belongs in the Student Lounge. Thread moved.

[nerudite]

I would just keep the course and tough it out. In university you are going to have to deal with all kinds of assignments you don't want to do, and I'm guessing from what I hear of architecture school, you'll be doing a lot of drawing under insane deadlines. How would you explain dropping your class if you have a college interview? You better have a good excuse lined up, because saying that you weren't enjoying the rigid schedule probably would turn college recruiters off. I mean, that's what architecture school is all about.

Maybe someone here with an arch. degree could give a different perspective.

Edit: Is this a two semester course? I guess I'm confused.

[HeartlandCityBoy]

The thing is, I've already been accepted to a college for architecture, and it's architecture program is nothing but architecture, it has only 3-4 core classes it requires over 5 years, and you can choose which core classes you take.

Architecture college would also directly deal with architecture. I cannot produce floorplans and office/residential building designs for this class because they would be regarded as incomplete, or not art, or something along those lines. The critics who will critique my work at the end of next year are all art critics, not architecture critics.

I'd be happy to design different towers and buildings for the class, but they have to understand they cannot expect something that fills an entire page like a work of art does, or a whole skyline or city scene would.

Oh and yes, it's a two semester course, and at the end of the second semester (which the class will end sooner than the semester, about 1-2 months after the 2nd semester begins) the teacher will take 10 works to the college board to critiquing and the possibility to earn a scholarship, as well as your grade is based on how the critics grade your work.
Which IMO is a bunch of bull because they don't understand architecture, they only understand art. We had to go to an art college this semester and get our work critiqued, and none of them commented on how the architecture looked, but how the whole things looked together as a work of art, as in the whole drawing/painting instead of judging the building itself...

Everyone I know tells me i'm an artist, but I don't see myself as an artist, and I personally don't want to be a well-known architect who comes up with wonderful architecture. I'm going to go to school for architecture for 5 years and get my bachelor's, then once I have my debt paid off (for college) i'll go to another college for urban planning.

My goal is not to become well known, or design great architecture that is a wonderful work of art. My goal is to help out my city's urban core, help continue the redevelopment in the areas that need it, and help continue to develop areas that have already been redeveloped. I see myself as more of a Jane Jacobs than a Frank Gehry or Frank Lloyd Wright. I just love architecture, buildings, how they are designed, etc... I want to use my future status as an architect and urban planner as a tool to help improve these neighborhoods, instead of just being an activist, I want to be able to do something, and get directly involved.

Work is not supposed to be boring and stressful, it is supposed to be fun. You should be doing something you enjoy. I enjoy drawing, architecture, and urban development. There is no reason they should make any of those unenjoyable by adding stress, it isn't a true architecture college if they take the fun out of it.

No wonder urban areas are all screwed up, and designs are becoming so artisty instead of wonderful and detailed... If architecture college is stressful, not fun, etc... Then it's going to send all the dreamers out packing, and leave only those who will do mediocre jobs and only those who want to make a lot of money in the program.

Architecture is not about stress, mediocre jobs, or making money.

I'm going to start consulting my teachers and family about dropping this worthless class... Because I know my art teacher isn't going to accept my work as acceptable art for the college board to critique.

I just hope I can do something to change college if it's like your implying it is.

Post-High School life leaves no room for having fun (legally or positive fun)... No wonder so many people smoke, drink, and are dying well before they reach 80 years old.

Again, I'm not an artist, I'm not out to be Frank Gehry or Frank Lloyd Wright. I don't want to make a ton of money. I only want to make enough to get my family through, I want to improve these communities, defeat the useless/worthless designs/regulations in place that prevent proper development, and I want to encourage better designs like in the early 1900s and in Ancient Greece/Rome and in Medieval Europe, instead of the horrible, monotonous, reptitive, boxy, bland designs of the 50s-70s.

I want help making this decision, I don't want to be stressed out about this, I don't want to be pressured to put out "works of art" every week for the next 2-3 weeks. I don't want to be pressured to put out works of art like it was an art college.

What should I do?

[nerudite]

Well, if you've already been accepted, then I don't see the harm in dropping. Assuming of course that you don't have any bizarre conditions on your acceptance that you need to uphold.

[JNA]

Well, if you've already been accepted, then I don't see the harm in dropping. Assuming of course that you don't have any bizarre conditions on your acceptance that you need to uphold.

Related - was this course listed on your transcripts/class schedule submitted as part of your application ?
If it was it may come back to haunt you ?

[HeartlandCityBoy]

Yes it was listed on my transcript, but how can it come back to haunt me? I'll still have the A- from this semester won't I? Not to mention the additional class i'd take next semester.

[nerudite]

Yes it was listed on my transcript, but how can it come back to haunt me? I'll still have the A- from this semester won't I? Not to mention the additional class i'd take next semester.

Well, if it was listed as a two-semester class and you only took one semester, it may look like you didn't follow through... and for all we know, maybe that's important when you are accepted. If you got any materials from the school with your acceptance, you may want to read through them. The person that could really help the most though is likely your college advisor/guidance counsellor. Quite honestly, the majority of members of this board probably don't remember the rules of getting into university for a bachelor's or other undergrad programs. Your guidance counsellor probably knows more about the pulse of admissions these days, and what you must follow through with under the implied contract of admission to a school.

[TheAestheticElevator]

I found myself in a very similar position in H.S. Two things:

I didn't like my art class too much, although I liked art more than you do by the sound of it. I disliked one assignment so much (pointalism) that I knowinginly took a D just because I didn't care. Funny thing was, my second year (first year of actual arch. studios) we had a rendering assignment in which I used pointalism profusely, and really enjoyed the assignment (the drawing took me 40 HOURS).

Secondly, at the community college I took Calculus independent study. It was required for the arch. major at the U., although independent study didn't agree with my limited math talent, and I BARELY got through. I was to the point of asking the comm. college dean to just give me the last credits (after I'd failed the final test FOUR times, um, yeah. Not like me.). The dean told me "I know the arch. program and you WILL need to know calculus.

Funny thing happened. First day of Statics (engineering class), the prof announced first thing "You will not need to know calculus for this class."

That said, what you will and won't need to know in college will vary drastically IMO . . . and what you learn it college will also varying degrees of usefulness in the "real world."

But, but if the arch. school you are going to is worth it's salt, you will be doing a lot of drawing as nerudite mentioned. Further, the basic compositional and visual skills will be helpful.

You'd better be prepared to give up a lot of your gaming time, though. Architecture is known as one of the most intense college majors. I have heard rumors of one arch. school that actually had bunks in the building for the students . . . There will be no slackin'.

[Cardinal]

Are you sure you want to be an architect? It sounds more like planning is your thing.

A few thoughts come to mind.

First, deadlines are something you are going to have to get used to, and in the work place you would probably be expected to crank out a drawing a day. I spend far much more time writing, and in a good day can write about twenty pages. I used to complain when I had a ten-page papaer due in two weeks when I was in high school. Of course, practice makes it easier to do, and I think you will find that is true of art as well.

Second, architects draw more than buildings. Look at the illustrations for buildings which get submitted to plan commissions. The good ones, which often are associated with the difficult or controversial projects, are more than computer-generated renderings. They do take artistic skill. This is also true of landscape architecture and planning.

Third, good art skills are hard to find. I would love to have a person with these abilities to work on some of my projects.

Fourth, can you work with your teacher on the content? Explain to him that you wanted to take this course to improve your architectural rendering skills. Can there be any way you can choose the content of your work so that you can develop these skills? Perhaps draw urban scenes or the interior of buildings?

[HeartlandCityBoy]

I talked with a relative that is a teacher yesterday and I think i'll talk to my teacher about this. The teacher told my parents that I remind him a lot of how he was at my age. The teacher also told them he would push my buttons more than the other students because he knows me better and understands the way my mind works...

I love art, I love drawing, and I love coloring with colored pencils. But I cannot automatically push out amazing deadlines after 4 years of being able to take weeks to finish something. I also feel that he needs to stop assigning me stuff that i'm not passionate about (IE: not buildings or cities).

I'm planning on doing a complete makover of my life in college since it's a new start, but I'm just debating about high school.

I don't plan on being a complete architect. I plan on being an architect, but I want to use it as a tool to change my city as an urban planner/architect. I see myself as more of a Jane Jacobs than a Frank Lloyd Wright or Frank Gehry.

[Magnetica]

I love art, I love drawing, and I love coloring with colored pencils. But I cannot automatically push out amazing deadlines after 4 years of being able to take weeks to finish something. I also feel that he needs to stop assigning me stuff that i'm not passionate about (IE: not buildings or cities).

I'm planning on doing a complete makover of my life in college since it's a new start, but I'm just debating about high school.

I don't plan on being a complete architect. I plan on being an architect, but I want to use it as a tool to change my city as an urban planner/architect. I see myself as more of a Jane Jacobs than a Frank Lloyd Wright or Frank Gehry.

Jane Jacobs was neither an architect nor a planner. I think you just want to hear someone on this forum say that you are correct in complaining about your assignments. But the fact is that we all, even in the professional world have occassional assignments that don't make us swoon with joy. So keep on keeping on and pass your class with good grades instead of trying to calculate how to wheedle out of this class.

What's the difference between a complete architect and an "incomplete" one?

[HeartlandCityBoy]

Well complete as in a full-time architect... (Should have rechosen my words)
I realize she wasn't a planner, nor an architect, yet I want to be an urban activist like she was, only, I want to be able to directly affect groups like the developers, city hall, etc... as an architect/urban planner

[bud]

I had no art in high school. I was led into architecture by a class in mechanical drawing and the teacher who also taught woodworking which I took and metalworking which I wish I had taken. I think you are probably overexposed to or being misguided about "art" - architecture is the mother art.

Anyway, your interests are in Site Selection which is the first step in the building process - that is a problem that architects (building designers) ignore. You could learn something about that by just reading my posts to the cyburbia forums. Jane Jacobs was married to an architect. She points out the complexity of designing cites - I suggest you read that chapter near the end of her book.

Why not find a college with a four year course in Environmental Design and decide at the end of that whether to be an Architect.

[HeartlandCityBoy]

My family doesn't have a lot of money, and I've already been accepted to a college which offers architecture, requires a study abroad program, and will give me a $7,000 scholarship almost automatically.
I'm hoping to go into urban planning later on in my life.

I talked with my teacher today, and the portfolio i'm doing is a drawing portfolio, and they won't judge my buildings, they will judge my drawing, because renderings are works of art (according to him) and my work for that class must be a complete work of art. Unfortunately this assingment was due 2 days ago, and I'm nowhere near done. He told me to work larger and I'd get stuff done faster, but I feel like going down 1 more paper size, and do something small for this project. (which is a part of my city's Downtown in the near future)

I'm going to go more in depth with him tomorrow, as i'm more and more worried about it, because we have to lock ourselves to a due date, and a specific medium and subject. Right now i'm locked to this subject, and I cannot get past certain roadblocks. I want to start all over with something I didn't trace, but it'd have little to do with my selected subject.

What we have to do right now is fill out a project proposal that gives him a medium, substrate, size, subject, purpose and completion date... According to his wording, we cannot change those, and that this is supposed to be a full idea, and it shouldn't be changed...

Even architects aren't completely restricted in their work (they are restricted, but can think outside the box and work around things), and their ideas/plans always change, even during the project's construction.

[Magnetica]

My family doesn't have a lot of money, and I've already been accepted to a college which offers architecture, requires a study abroad program, and will give me a $7,000 scholarship almost automatically.
I'm hoping to go into urban planning later on in my life.

I talked with my teacher today, and the portfolio i'm doing is a drawing portfolio, and they won't judge my buildings, they will judge my drawing, because renderings are works of art (according to him) and my work for that class must be a complete work of art. Unfortunately this assingment was due 2 days ago, and I'm nowhere near done. He told me to work larger and I'd get stuff done faster, but I feel like going down 1 more paper size, and do something small for this project. (which is a part of my city's Downtown in the near future)

I'm going to go more in depth with him tomorrow, as i'm more and more worried about it, because we have to lock ourselves to a due date, and a specific medium and subject. Right now i'm locked to this subject, and I cannot get past certain roadblocks. I want to start all over with something I didn't trace, but it'd have little to do with my selected subject.

What we have to do right now is fill out a project proposal that gives him a medium, substrate, size, subject, purpose and completion date... According to his wording, we cannot change those, and that this is supposed to be a full idea, and it shouldn't be changed...

Even architects aren't completely restricted in their work (they are restricted, but can think outside the box and work around things), and their ideas/plans always change, even during the project's construction.

I get this unshakeable perception that you think you are already an architect. Why don't you try relaying your PoV about this assignment to your art teacher, and see what his/her response is. That might help put things in perspective.

Remember that architects, planners, artists, scientist, barbers, whoever else had to do assignments regardless of their feelings towards the assignment - it's a part of the learning process. You must be willing to learn in order to learn.

The purpose of locking yourself to a medium, subject, etc for ONE assignment is not to enslave you but to train you to think outside the box. How do you handle constraints? Limits? Scopes? Because even if you are highly successful as an architect or a 21st century Jane Jacobs, you will have constraints within which you will produce something and that's just how cities and anyone else you wish to impact will function.

With your current mind-frame, you could be percieved as having an attitude problem.

[HeartlandCityBoy]

I would like to learn, but this class really isn't that much for learning. (or at least, that's how I understand it)
It's for creating art and sending it into the College Board to be graded, and have a chance for scholarship money.
I don't care as much about the money as I do learning and preparing for college. But right now, I need 4 additional new works in 3 weeks because I did a poor/average job on a painting i did. I hope you can understand why i'm stressed/worried.

I can definitely think outside of the box, yet I don't know how outside the box we can get. My idea of outside the box is doing something that seems to have nothing to do with the subject, but is connected with it. (I did a drawing of an atomic bomb instead of a glass bottle in one assignment)

I talked with him evne more toady and he wasnt us to work with constraints and not think outside the box because that is what it's about, setting a goal/purpose/vision and seeing it through to the end.
That doesn't sound too much like architecture to me.

I made sure to tell him I don't care about the scholarship anymore and that I only want to improve myself for college.

[Cardinal]

I talked with him evne more toady and he wasnt us to work with constraints and not think outside the box because that is what it's about, setting a goal/purpose/vision and seeing it through to the end.
That doesn't sound too much like architecture to me...

Huh? Believe me, architecture is not that loose a field. You do not get to think outside of the box unless you are internationally-known - and even then you need to work within the parameters your client gives you. Your drawing is going to need to be accurate and a reflection of your client's vision. That is what your instructor is trying to teach you to do.

[Magnetica]

Huh? Believe me, architecture is not that loose a field. You do not get to think outside of the box unless you are internationally-known - and even then you need to work within the parameters your client gives you. Your drawing is going to need to be accurate and a reflection of your client's vision. That is what your instructor is trying to teach you to do.

Thanks! Just the point I was trying to convey - in many more words than your succint reply!

Is this entire discussion related to Planning at all? Am I missing something?

[HeartlandCityBoy]

I want to get a degree in urban planning and architecture, so it kind of is.

I want to plan an area in the urban core of my city, then design the skyscrapers and a few of the other buildings that would be involved.

I'm getting more and more tired of this class every day...

I was supposed to have this drawing done almost 9 days ago, and it's not even halfway finished. I hate him for making me have this stuff due every week. Right now, video games are more important to me than some high school class with a teacher who treats me like every other student and doesn't treat me like I will be next year. I don't want to be treated like I'm going to go to a wretched art school. I don't like art and I don't like pushing out art pieces. I only care about architecture, and I only care about urban development and buildings that have meaning. I'm not an artist, despite what my family and friends say, and I never want to be an artist. Being an artist is an extremely stressful way of life, and they earn no money and don't contribute to society and neighborhoods.

Also, the stuff I do now has absolutely no purpose other than being for a grade and being sent to some stupid art critics who will grade it on the drawing/art and not on the architecture.

I really need to suck it up and mention I've been thinking about dropping it at semester. I don't want to have to deal with this next semester.

I also told him that I thought about starting over, I wanted to do a single building, not a whole skyline, but that doesn't really fit the criteria. And you know what he said? He made some stupid art comment about maybe something happens and everything is destroyed except a few buildings... I'm tired of being treated like an artist.
And one of his favorite students, who is good at art made a stupid comment to him that I'm never going to be an architect. That kid deserves to be kicked out of the class for such a statement. He doesn't know anything about me and his opinion is not valid in any way.

And there is no way i'm going to switch to an urban planning college. The college i've been accepted to is very friendly, it's a great college, it isn't crowded, it's farther from home, and it's campus is beautiful. If I went to the local college with urban planning, i'd be in a larger college, with probably a higher tuition, less friendly people, it's close to home, and it's campus is not very good looking. I'm only going to switch once I'm an architect and when I own my own house, instead of living on campus.

[tinkerbelle]

I'm not a professional planner or architect. Actually, I'm a high school student as well. I think, however, if the class is THAT awful, drop it.

Out of curiosity, I was wondering if you have shadowed a BArch student or have seen what the studios are like in that major? I saw you mention that you would really like to do buildings, floorplans, etc. in your AP Art class and aren't allowed to due to the standards of the (gahhh) College Board, which is part of your frustration. However, do you really think everything would be better if you could do architecture related projects, since you are passionate about the built environment? Or could you see yourself being frustrated with a five year architecture program, since it takes A LOT of time away from playing video games and leaves little wiggle room to explore other subjects, since it is a professional degree?

Being an artist is an extremely stressful way of life, and they earn no money and don't contribute to society and neighborhoods.

Actually artists can and do contribute to society and neighborhoods. It seems like in many cities, artists help spur revitalization in areas (or what I have noticed here in Cleveland. That's why the city is trying to get citizens to support local artists, create new arts districts, etc.).

[wahday]

My advice is to stay in the course and find a creative way to accomplish the assignments while still doing architecture. For example, in the studio courses I took with other graduate student architects, the one thing that came up again and again was how to best represent your work to a client. In that context, the "money shot" is usually a perspective of your building (not a technical drawing), in context with landscaping, people and other activity so people can really visualize what the final product would look like. Most people not familiar with architecture or planning cannot read architectural drawings very well and it will serve you well if you can tranlate this knowledge into what people on the street would actually see should your project be built.

That's where I would start, anyway, and I can see some very interesting ways in which plan drawings perspectives, urban space, buildings and city life could make for some great collage work. I agree with many posters that you will have to deal with unpleasant clients and unreasonable deadlines as an architect and you may view this as a similar chllnge.

[ssnyderjr]

I want to get a degree in urban planning and architecture, so it kind of is.

I want to plan an area in the urban core of my city, then design the skyscrapers and a few of the other buildings that would be involved.

I'm getting more and more tired of this class every day...

I was supposed to have this drawing done almost 9 days ago, and it's not even halfway finished. I hate him for making me have this stuff due every week. Right now, video games are more important to me than some high school class with a teacher who treats me like every other student and doesn't treat me like I will be next year. I don't want to be treated like I'm going to go to a wretched art school. I don't like art and I don't like pushing out art pieces. I only care about architecture, and I only care about urban development and buildings that have meaning. I'm not an artist, despite what my family and friends say, and I never want to be an artist. Being an artist is an extremely stressful way of life, and they earn no money and don't contribute to society and neighborhoods.

Also, the stuff I do now has absolutely no purpose other than being for a grade and being sent to some stupid art critics who will grade it on the drawing/art and not on the architecture.

I really need to suck it up and mention I've been thinking about dropping it at semester. I don't want to have to deal with this next semester.

I also told him that I thought about starting over, I wanted to do a single building, not a whole skyline, but that doesn't really fit the criteria. And you know what he said? He made some stupid art comment about maybe something happens and everything is destroyed except a few buildings... I'm tired of being treated like an artist.
And one of his favorite students, who is good at art made a stupid comment to him that I'm never going to be an architect. That kid deserves to be kicked out of the class for such a statement. He doesn't know anything about me and his opinion is not valid in any way.

And there is no way i'm going to switch to an urban planning college. The college i've been accepted to is very friendly, it's a great college, it isn't crowded, it's farther from home, and it's campus is beautiful. If I went to the local college with urban planning, i'd be in a larger college, with probably a higher tuition, less friendly people, it's close to home, and it's campus is not very good looking. I'm only going to switch once I'm an architect and when I own my own house, instead of living on campus.

Glad to hear you have goals....
Design is a whole other animal. That is engineering, where you spec out sizes of timber/steel/concrete for a structure. What you are referring to is drawing pictures of...not designing.
If/when you ever get real-world experience of being employed by an architectual firm, you will have to do as instructed, because the firm will not want you to spend 10 hrs drawing one building, when they want you to spend 15 on a whole downtown (skyline) area. You will quickly be unemployed. I hate to be the one to break this to you, but architecture school will likely not be (and shouldn't be) as easy as high school. Expect alot of classes that seem "dumb", "a waste of time", "pointless" and so on. I was a cocky-know-it-all high school kid once also, but quickly got knocked down a few rungs when I lost my acedemic scholarship in my first year of college and nearly flunked out, but that is another story. Read what people are typing on here, there is real-world experience with a wealth of knowledge here.

[Crimicad]

Hey man,
Hope you hear this as someone who was in a similar position as you, and only a thesis away from my 5 year degree.

Architecture school is a lot like this problem, you create stuff just to satisfy the professors.

I messed around and didnt focus in AP art, and in the end just submitted some mono prints for my concentration portion of the portfolio (really easy and quick to do btw).
Odds are you may not have an art requirement in arch. school, or you might want to take it just as a Mickey.

My advice, just do the drawings. If for nothing more than to get better at drawing buildings.

However, that being said - if this is really giving you such problems, you might want to reconsider going for the 5 year. I hope you know what youre getting into.

Peace

[HeartlandCityBoy]

Well, you guys and my family convinced me to keep taking the art class, and the bastard teacher just gave me a freaking F for having 2 out of 4 pieces of art done (justl ike the rest of our freaking class)...
I should have dropped the class and went for half a day instead of letting this idiot ruin everything.

[nrschmid]

Good for you. I think sticking through the course is going to "toughen" you up, so that you will be better prepared to face rejection when it comes in architecture (and it will happen).

I went to an extremely demanding high school. I wish I had taken a drafting course, but I was so focused on getting the 5.0 A in my accelerated track instead of the 4.0 A in the regular track. My school was so demanding that I had straight A's all four years in high school and graduated in the top 25% of my class.

Architecture school is very demanding. My first studio was in a boiler room of a dump with naked neon lighting and plaster falling off the walls. I was also in the Army at the time and did drill every month in the next state over. You will spend all of your time in the studio in the wee hours of the morning, trying to get your modeling done, only to find out that you ran out of foam core and your exacto knive blades are all dull.

Then, when you finally get to do work behind a computer screen (instead of hand drafting) you are fighting with dozens/hundreds of other students to get your plot job printed. One professor clearly stated "if you are in architecture to make money, get out".

When you are in architecture school , you are going to spend ALL your time learning about one building or a group of buildings, but that is about it. You dont spend [I]as much time[I] discussing WHY a building has to be this height or why does it have to be located in this part of a parcel. If you are interested in learning more on how to do site planning, I recommned landscape architecture instead of architecture. You can do both, just be aware it is no cake walk.

Most importantly, look at what you want to do with your life. You are wanting to design buildings for people. You want to design cities!!! So do I, and I plan to go back to focus in landscape architecture and planning (at least now I know what I am getting to when I go back so I won't be so surprised). Your calling in life has tremendous impacts on the day to day lives of many people. Do you think medical students have it easy? Y

Ou want to do great things, but that involves paying your dues: while in high school, while in college, on the job, and in life. And the ironic thing is one day you will wake up and realize it wasn't that bad, you just had to get through it like the rest of us


An

I think I got cut off.

A few other things to keep in mind:

1. Life is filled with awful stuff to do. It is just a question of minimizing it. Not all jobs are fun and exciting. I have spent the past two weekends this february when it was zero or below looking at trees outdoors for a winter deciduous tree identification class for work. No one said I had to take it (I am a planner not a landscape designer). But I took the intiative, had my firm pay for it because I am planning on going back for one of my masters in landscape architecture. The sooner I learn what I have to do the better. I guess my military background just made me able to tough out things better, I dunno
2. You will have difficult professors, advirors, and classmates. Learn to work with each one of these types of people while in school. You cannot afford to isolate yourself in architecture school or it will backfire. I learned that the hard way.
3. You are not an architect. I will call you an architect when you are licensed. I had the same type of attitude you did when I was in high school and I came off as arrogant and condescending. I know I am being very harsh but be grateful that you have people on here telling you their own backgrounds. You have a lot of talent, but you also have to play by the rules. Cyburbia and blogs werent around when I started college (and that was in the late 90's). I wish someone knocked some sense into me then.
4. Like someone mentioned earlier, you will learn to do projects according to your professors wishes, and down the road, according to your employer's wishes (which is really the client's wishes).
5. Don't work harder. Work smarter. If you are spending 10 hours rendering a building that is supposed to be done in 3 hours, then you are doing something wrong. Use people in your studio as a support group. You will have teacher's assistants (TA's) who will be there in studios to help you out. We had 1 TA per 15-20 students in studio. Utilize him. If you don't understand how to work with balsa wood and glue, befriend your classmates.
6. Most importantly, remember that everything you have in life is a gift, and like a gift it can be taken away.

we all had bunks in our studios