How to Become an Architectural Engineer?

Architecture is a lucrative field as technology keeps growing every day. Architectural Engineering deals with a number of technological aspects, from planning, design, and construction to the operation of the constructed building. Many people confuse an Architect with an Architectural Engineer but the fact that there is a major difference between the two, an Architect focuses on the artistic expression of the building while there are techniques and technology involved in Architectural Engineering. This blog comes with a detailed guide on how to become an Architectural Engineer, including the top courses, universities as well as career scope this field has to offer.

Skills

• You possess great skills in math and science.
• You genuinely appreciate the artistic and emotive aspects of buildings and architecture.
• You were always fascinated by the design and construction of buildings and building systems.
• You are concerned about the planet and climate change and want to maintain sustainability and energy conservation.
• You love to organize parts of a system or process.
• You are passionate about helping others and solving problems.

Who is an Architectural Engineer?

In simple terms, an Architectural Engineer is a professional who puts together the aspects of architecture and engineering to design, construct, and maintain structurally flexible and energy-efficient buildings through various scientific techniques and technology.

How to Become an Architectural Engineer?

With a wide range of career opportunities in the field of Architecture and Engineering, both fields are extremely popular among the students. Considering Architectural Engineering as a career option? Wondering how to become one? Here’s how you can become an Architectural Engineer:

Choose Science Stream: To get into the field of Architecture and Engineering, opting for the science stream should be your top consideration. Make sure you choose science after completing your 10th standard. A general requirement to pursue an Architectural Engineering course is to pass your higher secondary exam with physics, chemistry and mathematics from a recognised board. High Scores are recommended for admission.

Get a Diploma: Getting high scores in your 12th Standard can help you secure a seat in a diploma course for Architectural Engineering. Entry requirements for a diploma course are mostly merit-based but some institutions may conduct entrance exams for admission. Completing your diploma can help you start your career as an Assistant Architectural Engineer

Entrance Exams on the way: You will have to get good scores in highly competitive entrance exams to secure admission to undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Popular exams taken for admission are as mentioned below:

• JEE Main- Joint Entrance Examination Main
• JEE Advanced-  Joint Entrance Examination Advanced
• IISER Aptitude Test- Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research Aptitude
• NATA- National Aptitude Test in Architecture

Other countries such as the USA, UK or Canada may have their own entrance exams for admission.

Get a Degree: For career advancement, a higher level of qualifications plays a major role. Being said that you can become an Assistant Architectural Engineer with a diploma, many employers prefer professionals holding undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. So it is better to earn a degree to hold senior-level positions for a successful career in the field.

Gain Work Experience: Getting professional work experience makes you stand out among others. You can start as an intern with an Architectural Engineering firm while pursuing your education. Work Experience can not only provide you with the necessary skills but can help you broaden your knowledge of what it is like to be an Architectural Engineer.

Add Professional Association: In India, you will be required to register yourself with the COA- Council of Architecture which can further help you build links with other Architectural Engineers. Each country has its own department for providing licenses to Architectural Engineers.

Architectural Engineer Job Responsibilities

• Designing, analyzing, and altering plans, prototypes, or structures.
• Ensuring building plans, prototypes, and structures are operating safely, efficiently, and reliably.
• Assisting team members with project objectives, budgets, and timelines.
• Establishing project goals.
• Identifying and solving problems in building plans, prototypes, and structures.
• Ensuring building systems are functional, reliable, and safe.
• Participating in site visits.
• Testing and evaluating building systems to find problems and improvements.
• Reading, interpreting, and explaining complex technical documents.
• Consulting with clients on building projects.

Skills Required

Keeping aside the educational qualifications, an Architectural Engineer must possess the following skills to become successful in the respective field:

• Extensive knowledge of current industry trends, technology, codes, and regulations.
• Being able to diagram designs both manually and with computer-aided drafting.
• Team working and effective communication skills.
• Time management skills.
• Excellent knowledge of science, mathematics, and engineering principles.
• Analytical, critical, and problem-solving skills.

Top Universities for Architectural Engineering abroad

Listed below are the top universities abroad offering Architectural Engineering courses at undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels:

1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States
2. University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
3. University of Nottingham, United Kingdom
4. University of British Columbia, Canada
5. Harvard University, United States
6. Pennsylvania State University, United States
7. University of Colorado Boulder, United States
8. Cornell University, United States
9. Delft University of Technology, Netherlands
10. University of California Berkeley, United States
11. Loughborough University, United Kingdom
12. National University of Singapore, Singapore
13. University College London, United Kingdom
14. Oxford Brookes University, United Kingdom
15. University of Sheffield, United Kingdom
16. Vienna University of Technology, Austria
17. University of Sydney, Australia
18. University of Melbourne, Australia
19. Cardiff University, United Kingdom
20. RMIT University, Australia

Top 5 Universities for Architectural Engineering

Here are the top 5 universities in the world for pursuing Architectural Engineering according to the renowned QS World University Rankings by Subject 2022:

Salary

A career as an Architectural Engineer provides you with a decent salary package depending upon your qualifications and job position.

FAQs

Are you planning to study Architectural Engineering abroad? Contact our Leverage Edu experts for end-to-end guidance from application to Visa process, call us at 1800 57 2000 to book your FREE 30-minutes counselling session today!