Graduate Profile: Working at a Big Firm

Carl Boucher joined NEUF architect(e)s, a large Montreal firm, less than a month after graduating from the three-year Master of Architecture program at Carleton University in 2019.

“I presented my thesis on April 17, and I started on May 13,” recalls Boucher, 32. “It’s great. I love the people I work with, and I have a lot of responsibility, which is something that I quite enjoy.”

Boucher, who grew up in Aylmer, QC, is a former professional musician with an bachelor’s degree in environmental design from the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM). 

Photo of new hires at NEUF. Carl Boucher, top row, second from left. Image: Courtesy of NEUF.

To find the right job, it helps to have a clear idea of what you want. Boucher was interested in working at a big company.

“I wanted to understand how some firms managed to have an architectural practice that was both thoughtful and profitable,” he says.

“Architecture school is highly focused on the artistic side of the practice, the thought process of a project, and the conceptual ideas behind every decision,” he says.

“Knowing this, I really wanted to understand the full spectrum, so my goal was to learn about the business side of things.

“I wish to start my own firm one day, and understanding both parts will help me decide what approach I want to take.”

He shared his ambitions with an instructor at Carleton University, a developer who taught a class in design economics. The instructor helped him apply.

“He knew people at NEUF and introduced me. He was such a good referral that I was hired on the spot after speaking on the phone with someone from HR.”

What is the job is like?

Boucher works as an intern architect in a team of about 20 people under the direction of an associate architect. The office has 200 people and specializes in large mixed-use projects and condominium developments.

“I mainly design new projects that come in the office and meet with clients, who are developers, to ensure that their vision is met,” he explains.

The job also involves reviewing zoning regulations and submitting preliminary plans to municipal authorities for approvals.

Boucher is part of a team working on the Humaniti-Quebec complex in Quebec City. The project is in collaboration with Bisson associés architectes for Cogir Immobilier. Image: Graph Synergie via NEUF

Boucher is currently working on a complex of four interconnected towers, the tallest of which is 53 floors. It will provide rental units, condos, shops, and offices, as well as a hotel. The total floor space is close to two-million square feet.

The project is scheduled to launch in Quebec City in fall 2021 and will be developed in four phases over eight years.

“This is perhaps the biggest project that I’ve worked on,” he says. 

His employer recently promoted Boucher to project manager for another building that has not yet been made public.

The work week is 37.5 hours. Boucher works 40 to 45 hours a week by choice and is paid overtime for extra hours.

“I think it’s possible to maintain a work-life balance,” he says, adding that he feels fairly compensated. “I feel good about my salary.”

Christmas party at NEUF. Image: Courtesy of Carl Boucher

Touring in a band

After high school, Boucher spent seven years playing music and touring in a pop/rock band called Hartford. He sang and played bass.

‘It gave me the work ethic I needed to be successful.”

He went on to complete UQAM’s environmental design program, which teaches the fundamentals of design from everyday objects to interior and exterior spaces. In the third and final year, when students choose a specific path, he chose architecture.

He had a portfolio and was accepted into Carleton’s three-year master of architecture program in fall 2016.

Azrieli School of Architecture & Urbanism, Carleton University

“I learned to think conceptually,” says Carl Boucher.

Image: Carl Boucher

Challenges and useful lessons in school

“Studying in Ottawa, I got to see different ways of looking at architecture,” says Boucher. "You have professors and visiting critics from all around the world, and you get to travel. It wasn’t a linear way of thinking. It was large and it challenged ideas.”

His fellow students came from backgrounds that included engineering, woodworking, biology, arts, and music. “It was very diverse and interesting.”

Carl Boucher (centre) studied for six weeks in Madrid with the Options Studio Abroad program. Image: Courtesy of Carl Boucher

In first year, the class went to Barcelona, Spain on a trip funded by the school. In second year Boucher spent six weeks in Madrid, Spain with the school’s Option Studios Abroad program. In third year, he completed a thesis on the topic of emptiness.

“The thesis was very open. You had the luxury of choosing what you wanted to discuss.”

For two summers, he worked as a computer instructor and studio assistant at Carleton’s STUDIO FIRST program. It is a preparatory summer course for students interested in applying to a three-year master of architecture degree program.

The most challenging part of architecture school was overcoming preconceived ideas, he says.

“I had very strict and regular opinions and ideas as to how things were supposed to be made or designed,” he says.

“Changing that was the hardest thing to do and also the most positive. I finally just said, ‘I’m in this. Let’s just do it.' I trusted where the professors were trying to take me.”

At Carleton, “I learned to think conceptually,” he says. “I’m able to bring new ideas to the table when discussing projects. I can negotiate and discuss and get my point across fairly easily. 

“These are really important in terms of work.”

Carl Boucher presenting his thesis, April 2019. Image: Courtesy of Carl Boucher

Finding a job

“A lot of my friends have jobs now,” says Boucher. One is at Provencher Roy in Montreal. Others are in Toronto, Berlin, and New York,

Graduates who make an effort “get jobs very quickly,” says Associate Professor Paul Kariouk. 

“There is a huge range of jobs they take ranging from Public Works to small private offices, and large national and international offices,” he says. 

“Many of our students have foreign and European Union passports and have gotten jobs abroad. We have had many students go to the United States as well.”

Readers: What’s your experience of finding an architecture job?