From auto technician to architectural technologist

It’s National Careers Week and we’d like to take the opportunity to highlight one of the routes to achieve a career in architectural practice through Matt’s story in becoming an Architectural Technologist.

I left high school in 1997 aged 16 to start what at the time was all I had ever wanted to do, become an auto technician. I had been obsessed with cars and motorsport for as long as I can remember, dismantling and modifying my dad’s prized Scalextric cars from his childhood. I had a toolbox from a very young age and quickly learnt how to put the wheels back on my bike after my dad had removed them as punishment!!

I started an apprenticeship at Ford, shadowing the head technician in the workshop and attended a specialist college in Edinburgh on block release for 2 weeks every quarter and I qualified in 2000. However, 12 months prior I had already started to question whether I had made the correct decision to leave full time education at such a young age and I began to look into other career options.

Architecture had always been something I had an interest in as it blended my technical interest of how things work with the design aspects of built products. I contacted architectural practices in the Manchester area and interviewed for the position of trainee architectural technologist. I started a 3 year day release scheme allowing me to achieve an AVCE and HNC qualification in architecture and design, whilst spending 4 days a week in the office on live jobs. 23 years later, I’m now approaching my 20^th year at Pozzoni having worked my way up to a Senior Associate role, which affirms the decision I made to change career paths.

There are many other ways to enter a career as an architectural technologist, and the practice employs several BA students each year through links it has supporting several universities.