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Blueprint Battles and Design Duels. Let the Royal Rumble begin.

Architecture competitions are a sure-shot way to take your design thinking a step further and show the world what you’ve got.


In a class of 30 students starting out in their way, hoping to be architects who shape the future, what makes one stand out?

An employer who seeks a creative brain capable of solving problems with innovation and guile, how do one's skills stick out from the rest?

While we all know by now getting good grades in those theory subjects that teach you history and structures in the same semester may get you good grades, the design teachings in the studio contribute more to your growth as a designer, where, it is the space where all the theory culminates into action and progressively, one being able to use that during one's own professional practice.

 

Semester Challenges: Opportunities for Skill Showcase


I was a firm believer that every semester's design challenge was an opportunity to showcase my skills. Though like all students, we learn this the hard way and realize this truth only by the time half the course is probably over, our procrastination to create a masterpiece to show the world through our thesis and urban design semesters takes shape during the final few semesters, and things could go right or all the way wrong there. As if it's make or break for our chance at being the next Charles Correa or Moshe Safdie. 


While our recurring redos and corrections according to the juror drag our time and take an eternity, or practically a whole semester of 4 months to finish a design project, the question is, aren't we capable of more?


Architectural Competitions: A Gateway to Excellence

Architecture competitions are a chance to get under the limelight and get to do more with our potential, right through college. The whole concept of these competitions, run by various organizations, covering briefs of architecture to writing and even photography, is that they provide excellent chances most students miss out on in the race just to finish college, thinking it would make them capable in the real world. 


Competing on a Global Stage: Beyond Campus Comparisons

While studying at a college, you define your worth in comparison to your peers who grasp from the same amount of knowledge provided on campus. Competitions are another opportunity to compete with others who study at different institutions, tutored by different maestros and the challenge of competition takes shape then. Right from understanding the brief, to producing quality diagrams and representations of your ideas are understood by the jury. And their domain is not just from the pool of 30 in your classroom, it is from a standard set by various designers who have tried their creative brains at solving problems from slum redevelopment to pavilion designs and migration settlements.


Elevating Architectural Thought: Beyond Winning

Fear not. These competitions are far from being done as premature competitions for students. Architecture competitions have a dimension of its own. To be fair, selected ones, if replaced during semesters, could teach students more about architecture than the design studio briefs themselves. In this world, much different than before, where a significant number of people get the opportunity to compete with each other on equal footing, the only way to stand out is to do more and excel. Architectural competitions are one of the best ways to do that. It's not just about winning it, it is also about displaying your unique thought process on the pedestal for the world to see, and there are plenty of those who’d want to work with a creative mind.


It's not just about winning it, it is also about displaying your unique thought process on the pedestal for the world to see, and there are plenty of those who’d want to work with a creative mind.

Relearning teamwork: Understanding strengths

Frequently, architecture competitions involve collaborative teamwork. The camaraderie within premier architecture organizations is the driving force, showcasing how individuals with diverse skill sets can unite to craft a harmonious solution. Instead of the intense competition for higher grades in college, these competitions impart the skill of collaborating effectively with peers to achieve excellence collectively. It is also a chance to understand one's strengths and weaknesses and to work on it.


Professional Landscape: The Realities of Architectural Practice

The scale of architecture competitions is understood better when one steps into the world of professional practice and design firms battle with each other with their creativity, to get a chance to be the sculptors of the next museums, airports, and elite institutes. But in this scale of competitions that ends up in live projects, a lot more than creative insurgence makes the cut. From feasibility reports to activity patterns, from the changes in urbanscape to sustainability reports, the more dug up and researched on, the better. 


Seizing Success: Grasping Opportunities through Dedication

In reality, success is not handed on a silver platter; it is seized by the scruff of the neck through dedicated hours spent solving problems. Architectural competitions, with their unique challenges, become a pathway for students to hone their skills and stand out in the competitive world of design and architecture.


Picking the right opportunity

Just like how it runs in the world, with more stakes, come more rewards. While international competitions could get you even a chance to get the design built like how many architectural firms have made their places in the contemporary architectural realm, you would need to have a good idea about the details of the opportunity that is presented. Things like having a good team, registration fees, and understanding the brief are crucial aspects to analyze before jumping in. 

But worry not. There are competitions out there of every kind, you just need to find the right one and give it your all. 

Here are a few websites to get you started, and also some premier architectural competitions.



May the one who perseveres win.

 
 
 

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