We thought we’d graduate and spend the rest of our careers at big-name firms. Instead, we found that what we’d learned how we think, how we problem solve, how we balance complexity, made us valuable everywhere.
That realization became Out of Architecture. Almost a decade later, we’ve helped thousands of architects, engineers, and designers take what they already know and find careers that actually use it.
Architecture schools produce 10 graduates for every 1 traditional architecture job. Out of Architecture was built for the other 9.
Our Members have landed roles at
1. Individuals
Community + Coaching
The career community for AEC professionals looking to redefine what it means to practice. Find your people, get expert guidance, and make your move — in, out, or adjacent to traditional practice. Members get access to coaching when they're ready to go deeper.
2. Companies
Job Board + Recruiting
We've built the #1 talent community in AEC by meeting one-on-one with 10,000+ incredible candidates, earning the trust of job seekers and employers.
We connect employers with design-trained professionals across industries and roles — and our job board puts open positions in front of thousands of candidates who are actively looking beyond traditional practice.
For employers
Architects, engineers, interior, and industrial designers bring a depth of training that’s rare outside their field — systems thinking, cross-disciplinary collaboration, and the ability to own complex outcomes from start to finish.
The book that started it all
Written by OOA co-founders Erin Pellegrino and Jake Rudin, this is the book that gave thousands of architects, engineers, and design professionals permission to imagine a different kind of career — and the framework to design it. Required reading for anyone considering a career transition beyond traditional practice.
Start by identifying what you want to keep from architecture, what you want to leave behind, and which adjacent roles match those preferences. From there, translate your project experience into business language, talk to people in target roles, and test a short list of paths before making a major move.
An architecture degree can still be valuable even if you leave traditional practice. The training builds systems thinking, spatial reasoning, visual communication, project coordination, and client skills that translate into many fields. The question is whether the salary, debt, and lifestyle of practice still fit your goals.
Architects, engineers, and designers transition into a wide range of roles — product design, UX, real estate development, construction technology, sustainability consulting, project management, brand strategy, and more. Your spatial thinking, systems mindset, and visual communication skills are highly transferable.
Common paths include architect to UX designer, architect to product management, real estate development, owner representation, construction technology, sustainability, operations, strategy, brand and experience design, and design program management. The best fit depends on which parts of architecture energize you and which parts you are ready to stop doing.
Architecture salary levels are shaped by fee compression, fragmented project delivery, long apprenticeship models, and a market that often undervalues design labor. Many architects explore adjacent careers because their judgment, communication, and systems skills can be valued more directly in other industries.
Yes. Out of Architecture supports career coaching for interior designers, landscape architect career transition, urban planner career change, engineers exploring adjacent roles, and other design-trained professionals who are exploring life beyond traditional practice.
No. OOA is for anyone with a design education or AEC background — licensed architects, engineers, unlicensed graduates, interior designers, landscape architects, urban planners, and design-adjacent professionals all find value here.
We work with employers to source and place design-trained candidates for roles in operations, strategy, product, real estate, and more. Visit our Talent Services page to learn about placement and recruiting options.
The Collective is our private membership community — including a curated job board, peer network, live events, weekly office hours, and career resources. You can also access coaching and book services separately. See membership plans and pricing.
