Education specialists fear a project drought as the work resulting from the Rudd government’s stimulus package dries up, according to a specialist recruiter.
There has been a surge in architects with excellent education experience circulating their CVs, Bespoke Careers told Architecture & Design.
“We’ve seen a growth in the number of education architects coming to us,” director Krista Shearer said.
Despite excellent CVs, many are worried their firms won’t have the work to support them after the stimulus package projects dry up, she said.
However, the big firms are still hiring and the fact that Bespoke is setting up its first Australian office in Sydney is a sign that the architectural jobs market is about to pick up, she said.
“The market isn’t going to recover over night but we think it will pick up over the next six months,” she said.
Bespoke, a specialist recruitment agency run by architects that has an office in London, said that the story for Australian architects is not as bleak as for the British.
“London has been devastated,” Shearer, a Sydneysider, who was until recently based at the London branch, said.
“But, once things settle, there will be some fantastic opportunities for Australian architects in the UK as well as here. Directors in London tell us they love Australian staff because they just get stuck in,” she said.
Those currently looking for work on home shores should big up their presentation skills on their CVs, because many of the practices currently hiring are those bidding for new work.
“They are looking for the architects that can go out and win new work for them, rather than specialist technical people.”
?Bespoke Careers’ consultants are all trained architects, having previously worked at practices including Herzog de Meuron, Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners, Wilkinson Eyre, Grimshaw Architects and Squire and Partners. They also test applicants’ AutoCAD and Microstation skills.
