Ishika stood out as the top performer in her architecture batch, consistently pushing through the intense workload that everyone around her struggled with. Known for staying up all night to finish projects, she seemed made for the challenges of the field. Despite this, she truly loves the profession and explained how the demanding curriculum prepares students for the real-world complexities of architecture, making them more resilient and skilled in their craft.
She is currently juggling 2 jobs. She works with her Dad (who’s an architect too!) and another firm in a different city 🤯 (both Working from Home). We asked her a bunch of questions and tried to find out what a day in her life looks like. How much does she love or hate being an architect? Also, what gives her the badass energy to work so much?
WORK
Role at the company
Architect
Working at
Terrafirma
Location
I work remotely
EDUCATION
Studied from
Nirma University
Graduated with
B Arch
Subjects in 12th
Physics
Maths
Chemistry
First thing first, all I know is that architects draw something. Can you tell me more about your work? What is being an “architect”?
LOL, it's obviously the drawings you might have seen. But it's MUCH more than that. There are a bunch of different aspects to it. You have projects - for example someone wants to redo a small living room. First, I will try to understand them “what do they want to get after redo-ing?” For example (I’m proud of this project haha) — I met a client recently. I went to their plot (land) where wanted to build a farmhouse. They had an old tree in the middle which they wanted to keep, and not cut it down. Not everyone’s like that - imagine your home, where you eat your food or watch TV, and in the middle there’s a tree.
Is it possible to keep it and still have a perfect home? Yes definitely.
How so? That's my job.
But this is again just a part of it. I design keeping the client in mind. That’s what my drawings are trying to do! Other than that, I have to daily check up on the contractors to see the progress - “are they going to complete it on time? do they have all the resources needed to build the house?”. Then there's the occasional site visits to verify the work that has been going - “does it match my design?”. And yeah, that's it.
Oh wow, this sounds very interesting! Sounds like it's management as well, along with drawings.
Definitely! It's almost 50% management work that goes on in a day.
What's your favourite part of the job?
Design is always the most fun, and I think that's true for almost every architect. Then seeing it come to life is the best feeling, istg!. It’s very reassuring. Oh, I also like problem solving, which is a part of the design process.
Problem Solving?
Yes, for example there's a very small space and a client needs to create a home with all daily life needs fitted in the small space. From the sounds of it, it's very unrealistic. So I love to sit on it and try to make it a reality, with all the requirements met.
So many things to love, is there anything you don't like?
Ahhh, the chats with the contractors. They think they know everything, it gets irritating. Also, clients sometimes tend to feel they know more than architects. Damn, I have a degree for a reason. But that's just a part of the job. Apart from this I really do love being an Architect.
Interesting. Now, lets take you back in time. Why did you become an Architect in the first place? Was designing houses something that got you intrigued as a kid.
As a kid, because my dad is an architect, I always saw him using some sort of softwares. I guess I wanted to mimic haha! I would spend some time on Photoshop and copy something he did. I had zero clue about the “concepts of architecture”, but using those softwares was always fun. During my school days, I was a studious student as well, and could have taken the PCM path, to become an engineering or CA. But, I liked the idea of being creative in my job. And that's it. Just a cracked version of photoshop and a will to be different.
You make it sound easy! What was the next step? How did you prepare for a college?
It was pretty simple honestly. I gave the admission test in 2018. They was an exam called NATA. I enrolled to a preparation centre in my city (Udaipur). I did an 18 day course. There were a few logical reasoning questions, with some drawing. I was naturally good at it. All in all, not a lot of preparation. But I did study hard for the days I was preparing.
Sweet and simple. What was college like then?
Oh, it was difficult!! I enrolled into Nirma University and for anyone thinking of becoming an architect — I'd say think about again. It is a commitment. I have gone on days with just 2-3 hours of sleep. I remember after my 1st year of college, 8 people left the course, they couldn’t keep up.
That sounds terrifying. How did you do it?
Honestly, I don't know. I liked what we were doing. I guess, eventually, you get a hold of the long hours. You just learn how to do the hard work. That is what matters in the end.
True true. Now that you have graduated, do you think it was worth it?
Oh a hundred percent. The degree makes you strong. It teaches you how to face rejections. Which you do need when working in the real world. The college was reality check of being an architect, which is exactly what you want in from a college. Apart from that, because the course was so thorough, you can also choose from different specializations. Pretty cool, no? Architects can be interior designers, product designers or honestly they can go in any design or creative field.
That's really cool. Are you saying it’s like engineering but in the creative field? How so?
Yes! You can become a UI-UX designer after studying architecture but I know vice versa is not true. The curriculum is so thorough that you learn everything and you choose what you like. FYI, I have started doing interior design as well. And I am just exploring it now in my recent projects.
Last question from me, would you stick to being an architect? And do you like the idea of your future as an architect?
Without a doubt. I enjoy it a lot and, don't see myself doing anything else.
Thank you for sharing — we'll post your story on our website and if anybody has more questions, they will schedule a call with you.
