Diary of a DAAP Kid: "So, What are You Doing After Graduation?"

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That is the number 1 question I get when talking to friends, family and acquaintances anymore. It's a valid question and good conversation starter. Right now my answer is a cheery smile, a small laugh and... "well, I've gotta graduate first!" I may be laughing it off, but as the time ticks ever closer - and my bank account drops lower and lower - finding a job after graduation is on my mind.

Please indulge me in a small rant. As we are all well aware, the job market sucks right now. It has for the last two years. When I started college, recent graduates were turning DOWN job offers. As of now, only 2 of the 40 people in my class currently have full time jobs post graduation. That is 1/20th of my class - the soon to be graduates of one the one of the best programs in the country.

DesignIntelligence consistently ranks UC's program high because of the co-op program, which gives students paid professional experience working in the field, and helps to build resumes and occasionally turns into full time positions down the road.  We're all graduating with 18 months of paid professional experience under our belts. In five years, I've worked at three well known and well respected architecture firms in the Cincinnati area. I've done free lance consulting and design work. I started the student chapter of IIDA at UC. I'm a writer. I volunteer. On top of all that, I've got the knowledge and skill set using cutting edge technology for my trade, and I'm good at it. I'm creative and passionate, and I am itching to use my experience and talents at a place that will help me to grow, where I can do amazing things.

Under normal circumstances, these qualifications would surely get my foot in the door somewhere. The one thing my classmates and I don't have right now is multiple years of experience. And unfortunately, with so many professionals in the architecture world being laid off, experience is the key that is opening doors. Nearly all the open positions I've researched are asking for registered designers with 5-8 years of experience or more. Employers know these people are out there, and they can afford to be picky.

This puts my class in a quandary. We can't get a job without experience, but we can't get experience without a job. It's a frustrating circle. These people who have been laid off, at least they have unemployment to fall back on. I am graduating with nothing but the promise of student loans coming due. Not only that, but there are professionals being laid off who don't want gaps in their resume, so they are applying for (and getting) unpaid internships. This sets a terrible example for firms, who then get the impression they can "hire" workers, have them do the same amount of work as a full time employee, and reap the benefits for free.

Everyone says that Gen Y suffers from a sense of entitlement, that we feel we don't have to work for what we're given, and that we don't know how to handle rejection. From March 2009 to September 2009, I applied to nearly 70 firms in the hopes of landing a co-op job for the summer and fall in locations all over the country. I got two interviews and one job.

My fall co-op experience was me doing part free-lance graphic design work and interior consulting, part contract work for a construction firm, and part designing for / managing a condo project in downtown Cincinnati. All of these opportunities I obtained through my personal network, not through the school's co-op program. Rejection and I are on a first name basis, and I'm prepared to face even more of it as I continue my search. This isn't a bad thing, and has made me more resilient and forced me to look way outside the box in terms of gaining experience and making money.

My graduating class has worked unbelievably hard to get where we are right now, and it's going to pay off eventually. I'm confident we're going to do amazing things, and just have to get through this rough time.

So, what AM I doing after graduation? The lease on my house isn't up til September, so hopefully I can get it figured out by then! I will be applying for a part time job in the area and continuing to free lance during the summer while I apply to jobs and continue making connections with potential employers. Every day and every person I meet and connect with is another new opportunity. So, if you hear of anything... please, send it my way!

Diary of a DAAP Kid: The Importance of Portfolio

For most soon to be graduates, having a finely crafted Microsoft Word formatted resume crammed full with campus leadership positions and summer internship experience will be enough to land them in their desired post-college position.

Not so with the dedicated DAAP-er. Because the work we do is visual in nature, it is necessary to have a compiled selection of past school and paid work that is graphically pleasing. For those out of the loop, this is called a portfolio, and can be the bane of many student's existence. Now not only do the cover letters and resumes need to stand out, but the very way one's portfolio is arranged speaks volumes about one's design sensibilities, and yes... they will be judged.

I have successfully constructed a digital portfolio that is printed out into a booklet I can bring to interviews and discuss with potential employers, but it is also necessary to leave an impression upon meeting new design colleagues. I have been directing people to this blog, and today I am proud to say that it will be easy to access my online work as well as my writing and various outlets!!

Please, check it out and let me know what you think. I will eventually be adding my senior project work... as soon as it is complete!!

Spring Quarter: Let's do this Thing!

After the small hiatus that was Spring Break, I'm back with a bang. It's the third day of classes, and so far, so good. I'm down to 15 credit hours (a first for me... seriously) and the official countdown to graduation has begun (73 days.)

Yay Spring Quarter!! 73 Days til graduation!

Now is the final push. Now is my last quarter to truly do my best work. Now is my last quarter to sleep in, stay up late, take chances, and live my life out to the fullest. Many people have jokingly warned me that this is it, and I'll miss college after it's gone. They are probably right. Part of me is eager to move forward, but I know it's important to live in the moment and fully enjoy every second I'm here.

I'm taking Yoga for Stress Management (yes, a real class!) on Monday and Wednesday mornings, and it's one of the better decisions I've made this year. The first day of class our homework was to think about and decide upon an Intention for the quarter. My instructor explained that an Intention is sort of like a goal, but with more purpose (thus the Capital Letter.) I've put some thought into my Intention, and decided that the thing I need to focus on this quarter - especially in but not just in my yoga class - is to simply Be Me. Be Jenny. It's a concept expanded upon by Gretchen Rubin of the Happiness Project, and in a nutshell, it's accepting and realizing exactly who I am, likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses.

I'm kind of a nut. I get excited easily, and sometimes I speak up when I should shut up. It's who I am. I can work on it, but at the same time, I have to accept the flaws and reality that is me and stop projecting others' desires upon myself. I'll let you know how it works out.

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One last thing - Today my professors have organized a Career Day of sorts for all the senior interior design students. Professionals from Cincy, Chicago, Louisville, Columbus and Indianapolis are coming in to critique our work and presumably suss out the graduating class of 2010 for future job opportunities. Jeff Reuschel, Global Design Director of Haworth is giving a lecture at 5 pm, and there is a reception after the lecture for friends and family to come check out the student work from 6-8.

I'd really love if you could come to the DAAPWorks at the beginning of June, but if you want to see my stuff in real life, you're welcome to stop by. Just wander into DAAP and ask someone to point you towards the Grand Stair.

If you can't make it, no big deal. Look at this - it's another perspective of my space I whipped up last night. My professors wanted to see what my library space looks like outside of the Nook. Pretty snazzy.

Midterms!

I'm halfway through winter quarter. Instead of exams, students in my program put together a series of drawings to illustrate their design. It's definitely a halfway point, and I have a long way to go in my thoughts and ideas. I thought you might like to see what I've come up with so far.

The amorphous shapes in the middle of each floor represent the "nook" spaces developed for different groups of people. I think they're going to change, probably a lot.

Let me know what you think and if you have any ideas for improving my work!

Diary of a DAAP Kid: money in the bank, bank.

money well spent.

So I'm kind of in between jobs right now. A few things here, a few things there, but I'm in school, not a working full time co-op job with full time pay. On top of that, school's expensive. And time consuming. Most college students spend their money right off the bat in the beginning of the quarter purchasing textbooks. Not only do I purchase textbooks for my elective classes (Hellooo "Sustainable Urban Development Reader, 2nd edition") but I also have to purchase art supplies and cover the cost of printing ($12 a linear foot for plots, anyone!?) periodically during the quarter. These costs are less predictable and can easily skyrocket, depending on my project and how many supplies I have to start with. Basically, being a design student in DAAP is expensive!

I'm okay with spending money that I need to, but my supply is dwindling. I've taken a look at the books, and I've really got to be careful about what I'm spending my money on, or get a more consistently paying job (with super flexible hours, that I don't have to spend too much time with... yeah...) I've picked the latter, and am attempting to curtail my weekend spending.

This weekend I gave myself a limit of $20. Seems like no big deal, but it goes quickly!! I basically blew my cash all on Friday night - and that was okay. Let's get the breakdown.

Wine tasting with studio gals at Ludlow Beer and Wine: $5
Cafe de Wheels chicken sandwich and sweet potato fries: $8.50
Crappy overly hoppy beer at Grammar's + tip: $5

so in less than 6 hours, I had spent $18.50 out of $20.00. Don't get me wrong, it was amazing (as was the Final Friday gallery walk with free food and beer that went with it!!!) However, it stifled the rest of my weekend. So Saturday night I stayed in with my roomies and made a delicious meal with ingredients I already had on hand. Free movie, free meal. A pretty great Saturday.

I'm thrifty and tenacious, so I don't imagine I'll have a hard time staying within whatever budget I set for myself. The point is being more thoughtful with my credit cards so that I don't blow through money... so, if I have food at home, I need to eat it and make it, not get take out. Thinking before purchasing. It's a good goal.

Senior Project: An Introduction

This quarter and next quarter my main focus in school will be on my senior capstone project. It's a culmination of everything I've learned, and is a design project that I've done all the legwork on, solo.

I am designing a children's library/reading room in Over the Rhine. There is a tremendous need for kids in this area of Cincinnati to have a safe and comfortable environment to retreat to and develop a love of reading. Studies have shown that kids who are read aloud to do better in nearly every stage of their development. Kids in Over the Rhine more than likely do not have the resources or the environment in their own home to have a happy reading haven. When standing at the intersection of E. McMicken and Vine, it is nearly a mile's walk to the main branch of the Public Library. Not only is there a community need, but having an environment built exclusively for children is something that all Cincinnatians can embrace and come visit.

My "client" *this is merely an educational project, and is not likely to happen!!* is the Cincinnati Public Library. I contacted their PR rep and got permission to modify their logo. This is my rebranded take on their logo for my project:



The building I've chosen to use is the former French Bauer Dairy building located at 1315 Clay Street. It's got a wider span than the majority of the Italianate style buildings that make up the building stock of OTR, and it has a fantastic story behind it. The Bauer Dairy used this building as their garage. The milk carriages were stored on the bottom floor, and the horses lived on the second and third floors! There is an existing ramp that the horses used to get from floor to floor that I will be repurposing in the new space. The bricks even have hoof prints from where they were kicked by the horses.

The idea of the horse ramps carrying children up through the space is one of the driving factors behind my design. Children interact with books in different ways as they develop, and this is manifested in each of the three floors. The first floor is primarily for young children - passive readers. They interact with books in a very social way through activities and story time. The second floor is for smaller groups with children who are learning to recognize words and still need to be interacted with - cuddle spaces for parent and child. This floor has picture book stacks. The third floor is a world for the solitary reader, with spaces for a kid to be alone with her nose in a book.

This is my first set of drawings for my space:

Please let me know what you think!! I need as much help as I can get, and any and all critique is appreciated :)

Diary of a DAAP Kid: College Life Wednesdays

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/darajan/299724754/)

Hello, readers. Welcome to DAAP Kid Wednesdays - where, every Wednesday, I share with you a little insight on what it is like to be a student in the School of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning... as well as college life in general.

A disclaimer: I don't consider myself an average college student. Don't get me wrong, I like going out to bars and the like as much as the next girl, but it's not an activity that dictates my week (or my weekends.) Sometimes my friends and I will go REALLY crazy and cook up some (regular, non-chemically enhanced) brownies and have a movie night. I also do a lot of outside activities (like this whole blog thing) and run around like a social butterfly on acid. More often than not, my social life intermixes with school life, because us DAAP kids tend to have a lot of work outside class (think projects, not papers.) So, we socialize in studio... which is code for "a gigantic classroom where everyone works at their own desk during and after classes, and is horrifically messy by the end of the quarter"

(photo = jess baker)

There is one thing that ties nearly all college kids together... and that is being poor. My classmates and I are lucky enough to go on co-op (paid internship) every other quarter, but that money gets spent far too quickly on printing, art supplies, and American Apparel clothing (art school kids have to look trendy, you know.)

So what do you do to have fun on the cheap in this here town? Well, you could've gone to the Junior Boys concert last night at Southgate House. Tickets were $15 a piece, and it was a really great concert in a rather intimate setting. Junior Boys is a three man electro-pop band that's not terribly well known (which means it's an attractive band for DAAP kids: electronic and obscure)Not only are their beats fantastic, but the lyrics are throughtful and the vocals are strong (I'm a big lyrics gal)

The drinks are slightly pricey (2.50 PBR, boo) but it was really fun to just jam out to great music. Unfortunately I didn't get any pics of the event. I saw some other DAAP kids there: Dan, Danny, Antonis, Liz and Mark. I of course was accompanied by my former DAAP-kid boyfriend (who loves the Junior Boys and suggested going in the first place)

So, I definitely didn't get any homework done last night, but I saw a great show at a reasonable price and had a great time with my friends. Mission accomplished.


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RecycleD Bin update: Thanks to everyone who has contributed plastic bags! My grandpa finished the set of wooden molds for me, so now I am one heat gun away from starting production. Yay!!