Education:
43%
Bachelor's Degree
24%
Master's Degree
Architect
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Job Outlook:
Faster than average
Education:
Bachelor's degree
Work From Home
Salary
High:
$136,400.00
Average:
$96,510.00
Hourly
Average:
$46.40
What they do:
Plan and design structures, such as private residences, office buildings, theaters, factories, and other structural property.
On the job, you would:
- Develop final construction plans that include aesthetic representations of the structure or details for its construction.
- Prepare scale drawings or architectural designs, using computer-aided design or other tools.
- Prepare information regarding design, structure specifications, materials, color, equipment, estimated costs, or construction time.
Important Qualities
Analytical skills. Architects must understand the content of designs and the context in which they were created. For example, architects must understand the locations of mechanical systems and how those systems affect building operations.
Communication skills. Architects share their ideas, both in oral presentations and in writing, with clients, other architects, and workers who help prepare drawings. Many also give presentations to explain their ideas and designs.
Creativity. Architects design the overall look of houses, buildings, and other structures. They must ensure that the final product is both attractive and functional.
Organizational skills. Architects often manage contracts. Therefore, they must keep records related to the details of a project, including total cost, materials used, and progress.
Technical skills. Architects need to use CADD technology to create plans as part of building information modeling (BIM).
Visualization skills. Architects must be able to envision how the parts of a structure relate to each other. They also must be able to visualize how the overall building will look once completed.
Personality
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Characteristics of this Career |
|---|---|---|---|
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95% | Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. | |
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89% | Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. | |
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89% | Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems. | |
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87% | Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. | |
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86% | Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. | |
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85% | Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical. | |
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83% | Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations. | |
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80% | Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. | |
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77% | Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. | |
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77% | Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks. | |
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75% | Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction. | |
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72% | Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job. | |
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72% | Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems. | |
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69% | Self-Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. | |
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67% | Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Strengths |
|---|---|---|---|
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95% | Artistic - Work involves creating original visual artwork, performances, written works, food, or music for a variety of media, or applying artistic principles to the design of various objects and materials. Artistic occupations are often associated with visual arts, applied arts and design, performing arts, music, creative writing, media, or culinary art. | |
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67% | Investigative - Work involves studying and researching non-living objects, living organisms, disease or other forms of impairment, or human behavior. Investigative occupations are often associated with physical, life, medical, or social sciences, and can be found in the fields of humanities, mathematics/statistics, information technology, or health care service. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Values of the Work Environment |
|---|---|---|---|
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83% | Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy. | |
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78% | Achievement - Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. | |
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78% | Recognition - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status. | |
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75% | Working Conditions - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
Aptitude
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Abilities | Cognitive, Physical, Personality |
|---|---|---|---|
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78% | Visualization - The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged. | |
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75% | Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. | |
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75% | Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. | |
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75% | Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. | |
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75% | Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity). | |
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75% | Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem. | |
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75% | Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem. | |
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75% | Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. | |
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75% | Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). | |
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75% | Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). | |
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75% | Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways. | |
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75% | Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. | |
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72% | Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). | |
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66% | Flexibility of Closure - The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material. | |
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66% | Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Skills | Cognitive, Physical, Personality |
|---|---|---|---|
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68% | Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. |
Job Details
Responsibilities
Document technical design details.
Discuss designs or plans with clients.
Prepare contracts, disclosures, or applications.
Design structures or facilities.
Prepare contracts, disclosures, or applications.
Prepare contracts, disclosures, or applications.
Prepare procedural documents.
Analyze costs and benefits of proposed designs or projects.
Design water conservation systems.
Incorporate green features into the design of structures or facilities.
Incorporate green features into the design of structures or facilities.
Investigate the environmental impact of projects.
Investigate the environmental impact of projects.
Incorporate green features into the design of structures or facilities.
Create graphical representations of structures or landscapes.
Direct design or development activities.
Discuss designs or plans with clients.
Perform marketing activities.
Create graphical representations of structures or landscapes.
Prepare detailed work plans.
Inspect facilities or sites to determine if they meet specifications or standards.
Supervise engineering or other technical personnel.
Design structures or facilities.
Inspect facilities or sites to determine if they meet specifications or standards.
Create graphical representations of structures or landscapes.
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Attributes & Percentage of Time Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
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99% | Electronic Mail - How often do you use electronic mail in this job? | |
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98% | Telephone - How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? | |
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90% | Face-to-Face Discussions - How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job? | |
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90% | Work With Work Group or Team - How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job? | |
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89% | Contact With Others - How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? | |
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85% | Spend Time Sitting - How much does this job require sitting? | |
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83% | Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? | |
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77% | Level of Competition - To what extent does this job require the worker to compete or to be aware of competitive pressures? | |
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77% | Coordinate or Lead Others - How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job? | |
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74% | Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? | |
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72% | Freedom to Make Decisions - How much decision making freedom, without supervision, does the job offer? | |
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72% | Structured versus Unstructured Work - To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals? | |
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69% | Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - How responsible is the worker for work outcomes and results of other workers? | |
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66% | Letters and Memos - How often does the job require written letters and memos? | |
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66% | Deal With External Customers - How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? | |
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66% | Time Pressure - How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? | |
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93% | Duration of Typical Work Week - Number of hours typically worked in one week. |
| A3 | Your Strengths | Importance |
Tasks & Values |
|---|---|---|---|
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92% | Working with Computers - Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. | |
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87% | Drafting, Laying Out, and Specifying Technical Devices, Parts, and Equipment - Providing documentation, detailed instructions, drawings, or specifications to tell others about how devices, parts, equipment, or structures are to be fabricated, constructed, assembled, modified, maintained, or used. | |
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87% | Thinking Creatively - Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions. | |
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85% | Making Decisions and Solving Problems - Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. | |
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85% | Getting Information - Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. | |
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82% | Documenting/Recording Information - Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. | |
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81% | Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge - Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. | |
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81% | Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates - Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. | |
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81% | Communicating with People Outside the Organization - Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. | |
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77% | Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work - Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. | |
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77% | Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships - Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time. | |
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76% | Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards - Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards. | |
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76% | Scheduling Work and Activities - Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others. | |
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73% | Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others - Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks. | |
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72% | Developing and Building Teams - Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members. | |
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70% | Analyzing Data or Information - Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts. | |
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69% | Processing Information - Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data. | |
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69% | Training and Teaching Others - Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others. | |
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69% | Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others - Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used. | |
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68% | Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates - Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance. | |
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65% | Developing Objectives and Strategies - Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them. |
What Architects Do
Architects use CADD during the design process.
Architects plan and design houses, factories, office buildings, and other structures.
Duties
Architects typically do the following:
- Meet with clients to determine objectives and requirements for structures
- Give preliminary estimates on cost and construction time
- Prepare structure specifications
- Direct workers who prepare drawings and documents
- Prepare scaled drawings, either with computer software or by hand
- Prepare contract documents for building contractors
- Manage construction contracts
- Visit worksites to ensure that construction adheres to architectural plans
- Seek new work by marketing and giving presentations
People need places to live, work, play, learn, shop, and eat. Architects are responsible for designing these places. They work on public or private projects and design both indoor and outdoor spaces. Architects can be commissioned to design anything from a single room to an entire complex of buildings.
Architects discuss with clients the objectives, requirements, and budget of a project. In some cases, architects provide predesign services, such as feasibility and environmental impact studies, site selection, cost analyses, and design requirements.
Architects develop final construction plans on the initial proposal after discussing with clients. The architects’ plans show the building’s appearance and details of its construction. These plans include drawings of the structural system; air-conditioning, heating, and ventilating systems; electrical systems; communications systems; and plumbing. Sometimes, landscape plans are included as well. In developing designs, architects must follow state and local building codes, zoning laws, fire regulations, and other ordinances, such as those requiring reasonable access for people with disabilities.
Architects use computer-aided design and drafting (CADD) and building information modeling (BIM) for creating designs and construction drawings. However, hand-drawing skills are still required, especially during the conceptual stages of a project and when an architect is at a construction site.
As construction continues, architects may visit building sites to ensure that contractors follow the design, adhere to the schedule, use the specified materials, and meet work-quality standards. The job is not complete until all construction is finished, required tests are conducted, and construction costs are paid.
Architects may also help clients get construction bids, select contractors, and negotiate construction contracts.
Architects often collaborate with workers in related occupations, such as civil engineers, urban and regional planners, drafters, interior designers, and landscape architects.
Work Environment
Architects held about 123,700 jobs in 2022. The largest employers of architects were as follows:
| Architectural, engineering, and related services | 76% |
| Self-employed workers | 13 |
| Construction | 4 |
| Government | 3 |
Architects spend much of their time in offices, where they meet with clients, develop reports and drawings, and work with other architects and engineers. They also visit construction sites to ensure that clients’ objectives are met and to review the progress of projects. Some architects work from home offices.
Work Schedules
Most architects work full time and many work additional hours, especially when facing deadlines. Self-employed architects may have more flexible work schedules.
Getting Started
How to Become an Architect
Architects need internships to gain practical experience.
There are typically three main steps to becoming a licensed architect: completing a bachelor’s degree in architecture, gaining relevant experience through a paid internship, and passing the Architect Registration Examination.
Education
Architects typically need a bachelor's degree in architecture. Most architects earn their degree through a 5-year Bachelor of Architecture degree program. Many earn a master’s degree in architecture, which can take 1 to 5 additional years. The time required depends on the extent of the student’s previous education and training in architecture.
A typical bachelor’s degree program includes courses in architectural history and theory, building design with an emphasis on computer-aided design and drafting (CADD), structures, construction methods, professional practices, math, physical sciences, and liberal arts.
About two-thirds of states require that architects hold a degree in architecture from one of more than 120 schools of architecture accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB). State licensing requirements can be found at the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB).
Training
All state architectural registration boards require architecture graduates to complete a lengthy paid internship—generally lasting 3 years—before they may sit for the Architect Registration Examination. Most new graduates complete their training period by working at architectural firms through the Architectural Experience Program (AXP), a program run by NCARB that guides students through the internship process. Some states allow a portion of the training to occur in the offices of employers in related careers, such as engineers and general contractors. Architecture students who complete internships while still in school can count some of that time toward the 3-year training period.
Interns in architectural firms may help design part of a project. They may help prepare architectural documents and drawings, build models, and prepare construction drawings on CADD. Interns may also research building codes and write specifications for building materials, installation criteria, the quality of finishes, and other related details. Licensed architects take the documents that interns produce, make edits to them, finalize plans, and then sign and seal the documents.
Licenses, Certifications, and Registrations
All states and the District of Columbia require architects to be licensed. Licensing requirements typically include completing a degree program in architecture, gaining relevant experience through a paid internship, and passing the Architect Registration Examination.
Most states also require some form of continuing education to keep a license. Continuing education requirements vary by state but usually involve additional education through workshops, university classes, conferences, self-study courses, or other sources.
Advancement
After many years of work experience, some architects advance to become architectural and engineering managers. These managers typically coordinate the activities of employees and may work on larger construction projects.
Job Outlook
Employment of architects is projected to grow 5 percent from 2022 to 2032, faster than the average for all occupations.
About 8,200 openings for architects are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Employment
Architects are expected to be needed to make plans and designs, particularly in sustainable design, for the construction and renovation of homes, schools, healthcare facilities, and other structures. Improved building information modeling (BIM) software and measuring technology are expected to allow architects to take on activities once performed by other workers, such as architectural and civil drafters, interior designers, and engineers.
Contacts for More Information
For information about careers in architecture, visit
American Institute of Architects
Similar Occupations
This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of architects.
| Occupation | Job Duties | Entry-Level Education | Median Annual Pay, May 2022 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Civil Engineers |
Civil engineers plan, design, and supervise the construction and maintenance of building and infrastructure projects. |
Bachelor's degree | $89,940 |
|
Construction Managers |
Construction managers plan, coordinate, budget, and supervise construction projects from start to finish. |
Bachelor's degree | $101,480 |
|
Drafters |
Drafters use software to convert the designs of engineers and architects into technical drawings. |
Associate's degree | $60,400 |
|
Industrial Designers |
Industrial designers combine art, business, and engineering to develop the concepts for manufactured products. |
Bachelor's degree | $75,910 |
|
Landscape Architects |
Landscape architects design parks and other outdoor spaces. |
Bachelor's degree | $73,210 |
|
Urban and Regional Planners |
Urban and regional planners develop land use plans and programs that help create communities, accommodate population growth, and revitalize physical facilities. |
Master's degree | $79,540 |
|
Architectural and Engineering Managers |
Architectural and engineering managers plan, direct, and coordinate activities in the fields of architecture and engineering. |
Bachelor's degree | $159,920 |
|
Surveying and Mapping Technicians |
Surveying and mapping technicians collect data and make maps of the Earth's surface. |
High school diploma or equivalent | $47,180 |
|
Surveyors |
Surveyors make precise measurements to determine property boundaries. |
Bachelor's degree | $63,080 |
|
Construction and Building Inspectors |
Construction and building inspectors ensure that construction meets building codes and ordinances, zoning regulations, and contract specifications. |
High school diploma or equivalent | $64,480 |