The most common question I get asked as a student ambassador (who also happens to be studying Architectural Engineering) is, what is the difference between Architecture and Architectural Engineering? I am asked this by almost everyone going into either field, and this is completely okay! Architectural Engineering is still a fairly new major, and it doesn't help Illinois Tech offers both, or that in some countries, the terms can mean the same thing!
Architecture has been around for a long time. Like, a long time. Ancient civilizations and all that. Just about any building can be called architecture, from the Taj Mahal to the Sears Tower to the storage shed behind your house. And someone had to design all these things. The person who designs a building (what it looks like, what its purpose is, where it should go) is called an architect. And this is what Architecture is all about.
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| Architecture. |
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| Architecture. |
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| Also, Architecture. |
Architectural Engineering, on the other hand, has only been around for a decade or so, at least by name. As buildings became more complex, engineers were needed to see the construction of the building through. Architects called upon structural engineers who could design the support structures to make sure the building wasn't going to fall over. They had electrical engineers work out how all the wiring was going to be put in the building. They had engineers whose jobs were to only analyze the building in terms of plumbing, or fire safety.
If you were going to build something, whether it be a house or a skyscraper, you pretty much had to hire an engineering dream team in order to get the thing built. Well, as you can well imagine, the people who were paying for these buildings were getting tired of spending all this money on several engineers to work on one project. And frankly, I don't blame them. Engineers are expensive! They realized they could probably save a few bucks if they could find one person who knew about all these things, instead of having to hire three (or four, or seven) separate people/firms on a project. Thus, Architectural Engineering was born!
To simplify things a bit, an Architectural Engineer (or Building Engineer, if you want to avoid the inevitable confusion with an Architect) has background in the following fields:
-Structural Engineering
-Electrical Engineering
-Geotechnical (Soil) Engineering (this would apply to a building's foundation)
-Illumination Engineering
-Acoustical Engineering
-Mechanical Engineering (this would include things like HVAC)
-Construction Management
-and the list goes on...
So, to put it simply, Architecture the process of designing the aesthetics of a building, and Architectural Engineering is the process of actually building the thing. Put another way, if a building is successful, the architect gets the credit. If a building fails (read: falls down), it is the engineer's fault. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is!
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| Hooray Architect! |
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| Hooray Engineer! |
If you decide to study Architectural Engineering, and I definitely urge you to consider it, you have the option of choosing where to specialize. At IIT you will take classes that will introduce you to Acoustical and Illumination Engineering or other specialized departments, but it is up to you if you want to pursue these areas to the fullest. If you would rather be a Fire Safety Engineer, or a Plumbing Engineer, take those classes that apply to these fields and get your specialization! But you will have to at least have some background in all of these departments to get your degree and become a licensed engineer.
My plan is to specialize in Acoustical Engineering and set myself up for working on music halls and the like. I am a musician, so to be able to connect two of my passions together would be amazing. I also have a minor in Architecture, but that is another story.
If you have any questions about Architectural Engineering or Architecture, shoot me an email or post a comment! Choosing a major can be a confusing and difficult decision, and I want to help in any way I can, even if that means suggesting something totally crazy like Computer Science or Psychology!
Song of the Day
The Cinematics - A Strange Education
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