Architect resume example

What recruiters look for

• Licensure status: licensed, which state, NCARB Certificate, or where you are in the ARE and AXP. It sets your level and billing rate.
• Project types and sizes: building type, square footage, construction cost and delivery method (design-bid-build, CM at risk, design-build).
• Phases you lead: schematic design, design development, construction documents, construction administration. CA experience is often what separates a project architect.
• Technical tools: Revit at production depth, plus coordination tools like Navisworks and Bluebeam.
• Client and contractor work: presentations, RFIs, submittals, change orders and site visits.

Writing the summary

Lead with license and years, then building types and project size range. Add the phases you run and the size of team you lead. Put “AIA” after your name or in the headline only if you are a current member.

Bullet points that work

Strong lines for this role, beyond the ones in the example. Borrow the shape and put in your own numbers.

• Led design development and construction documents for a $35 million library, delivered in 14 months from schematic design to bid.
• Ran construction administration for 3 projects at once, with 2 site visits a week and same-week field reports.
• Cut a project’s cost estimate by $2.4 million through value engineering options the client accepted without losing program space.
• Achieved LEED Gold on a 90,000-square-foot academic building, documenting 64 credits.
• Produced 220-sheet construction document sets with consultants across 5 disciplines and no addenda for coordination errors.
• Managed fees and staffing on a $1.8 million design contract, finishing the phase 5% under budget.
• Led code review and permitting for 6 projects, with no rejected building permit applications.
• Mentored 4 designers through AXP and ARE study; 3 became licensed within two years.
• Built a parametric facade model in Rhino and Grasshopper that cut panel types from 48 to 12.
• Facilitated 18 user-group meetings with faculty and staff to set the program for a $60 million science center.

Skills to list

Certifications and licenses worth listing

• State architectural license: the core credential; list the state and the year. You cannot call yourself an architect without one in US states.
• NCARB Certificate: makes licensure in other states easier and signals mobility to multi-state firms.
• LEED AP (BD+C or ID+C): valued on public, education and commercial work with sustainability goals.
• ARE progress and AXP hours: if not yet licensed, list how many divisions you have passed and your expected date.

Length and format

One page up to about ten years, two pages after that. A short selected projects list (name or type, size, cost, your role) can replace long bullets. Your portfolio carries the drawings; the resume carries the facts.

Common mistakes

• Calling yourself an architect before you are licensed. Use “architectural designer” or “designer” until you are, as state rules require.
• Listing projects with no size, cost or role, which leaves a reader unable to place your level.
• Only showing design phases when the job asks for construction administration, or the other way round.
• Portfolio pages full of renderings with no technical drawings. Firms hiring project architects want to see details and documents.
• Software lists that put SketchUp ahead of Revit for a production role.