How to Get a Head Start in Architecture School
Assuming you don't have connections and much prior experience, what should you do when you first get into architecture school?
The steps can be done in different order, but there are 4 key aspect you should work on. Creativity, Theory, and Techincality and Basic Skills.
Let's start with basic skills. These are general skills to be equipped for the industry such as drawing, modelling and graphic layouts, make sure you have a general understanding for presentation methods available to you, and dive deep into one that you prefer. Although the industry does prefer Revit, it is not required for most schools. This step of exploration will rely heavily on school resources and student licenses, so treasure your time with having them free. The key to these skills is to communicate clearly, you don't necessarily need the most complicated pretty drawing.
As for theory, dive headfirst into the architecture library and read the books from the most prominent architects of all times. Although their philosophies might not suit the current era, they provide a great deal of information onto discovering new angles and perspectives into the industry. After those, check out guides on architectural researches and get a general understanding of fields the industry is keen on.
For creativity, most praises originality but it is key to read and know as much projects as you can. Knowing them will help you find approaches to different problems and back your design decisions. One thing to keep an eye on is the projects' location as an Indian design feature might be effective only in their culture but not others. So take inspiration from them, use them as "case study" to support your project, and interpret them into your own design.
Technicality doesn't have much shortcuts unfortunately, but the key is to get familiar with regulations and guidelines, as well as examples of how buildings work. This would mean going through a bunch of government document (which you will later be told which ones you actually have to consider at your level) and then find examples of construction/systems to put into your building. Not much creativity is needed for this part, just solid knowledge and maths.
So, if you want to get ahead in architecture school, make sure to work on all these aspects one by one. And as a final reminder, READ YOUR CURRICULUM AND MARKING SCHEME and adjust the effort you spend on each aspect. I wish you luck in your coming school days (for future me as well), and little all-nighters. See you soon!
-Toby
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