5 Tips For Future Architects: West Orange Teens Get Earful Of Wisdom

WEST ORANGE, NJ — “Don’t fall in love with your first idea.” This was one of several sage pieces of wisdom offered to budding architects in the West Orange Public School District.

Dozens of students in Cindy Celi's architecture class at West Orange High School recently got a chance to learn about the profession when SSP Architects principal Marcus Rosenau and designer Jude Santoro visited their class.

The experts provided students with insights into their field, offering advice and answering questions along the way. See Related: West Orange Architect Turns 105: 'A Helluva Way To Make A Living'

Here are five tips for students who want to succeed in the field of architecture, according to Rosenau and Santoro:

TRY DIFFERENT THINGS - To be a good architect, don’t fall in love with your first idea. Try different things. Try different approaches. See what sticks for that particular problem. And – there needs to be an incubation period, allowing your design ideas to bloom, said Rosenau. He added that because of this fact, architecture students in college should never wait until the last minute to do a project. It needs time to evolve.

MATH PROBLEMS? NO PROBLEM - You don’t have to be good at math to go into architecture. It’s absolutely true that math is part of the job, but so much of architecture is design and problem-solving that if you think architecture is the right field for you to pursue, math shouldn’t stand in your way,” said Rosenau. Saforo added that while he studied algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and physics, he admits he doesn’t use them regularly without the help of computers and calculators. To help with the course load and balance of architecture work, Saforo also recommended completing the math and other general education courses upfront to allow more time for studio and related course work in your later college years.

FIND SOLUTIONS - More important than math skills are problem-solving skills. “To be a good architect you need to listen to your client’s challenges, think through a problem, and come up with solutions,” said Rosenau. He added you must always keep your client’s interests and problems in mind when creating a design. Learn how to ask questions, dig down, and find the right problem before you start finding the solution.

LEARN TO TRACE - Tracing paper should be your best friend when it comes to finding your design. The best design ideas often evolve from doodling and sketching designs on multiple sheets of tracing paper, said Saforo. Rosenau agreed, saying even in this computer age he still finds it beneficial to draw out designs.

SPEAKING SKILLS - “Studying communications and public speaking will help you sell your ideas as an architect,” said Rosenau. He added that the best communicator is a person who listens to their clients and gets to know them well. But even then, the best ideas will die if you can’t sell them.

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