Former student, Nathan Pilkington has returned to King James to talk to Year 10 students about his university experience and career as an Architect. Here, he tells us his story.

“I joined King James in 2012 during Year 9. By 15 years old, I knew I wanted to be an architect, and thanks to an inspiring period of work experience in Year 11 where I was able to work in the field of archaeology, I realised that my passion lay with architectural preservation and restoration projects. Moving into Sixth Form at King James was a natural progression for me, and I studied A’ Level History, Art and Applied Science from 2015-17, before moving on to study a three-year Degree in Architecture at the University of Liverpool, which was a fantastic experience.”

“During the summer of my undergraduate programme, between years 2 and 3, I spent six weeks in Shanghai on an internship with The Anken Group. I organised this independently because I wanted to travel and gain experience with a company that focuses on renovation of buildings rather than replacement, which is completely in line with my own ethos. I learned so much about professional practice in China during this visit, but I also gained confidence in my own ability to adapt to any situation alone. It was an amazing experience and something I would recommend to anyone studying at university.”

“When I graduated from university, I enjoyed a three-month long ERASMUS+ placement in Crete, working with the company, Peppas Nikolaos Architects. As part of this, I was able to contribute to the tourism industry through the renovation of historic Greek buildings, which allowed me to expand my knowledge further by studying different building techniques and materials. Again, this was a brilliant experience, and one which gave me a host of design ideas for future projects and helped to build my confidence and resilience; I even learned to speak a little Greek!”

“When I returned to the UK, I worked for four months with local company, DWJ Building and Groundworks in Crook so that I could see how construction works first hand. It was fascinating to be able to see how projects are realised from plan, and the importance of effective project management. Following this, I then spent nine months on placement with Crescent Architects, a small practice in North Yorkshire, where I was able to work on a number of independent projects. This was immediately followed by a seven-month placement with the DB3 Group in Aberystwith, Wales. This large, award-winning company is well known for projects in sport, leisure, retail and residential sectors throughout the UK and Internationally, so I was able to gain experience working on conservation designs with budgets from £5-15 million.”

“Currently, I am living in Belfast and studying a two-year Master of Architecture at Queen’s University of Belfast; I have already completed year one. I just love learning and developing my knowledge and skills wherever I can, so this was a natural next step for me. During the summer, I was given a bursary to attend the SPAB (Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings) Conference in Kent which was fantastic. It was great to be surrounded by like minded people with the same love for architectural conservation as me.”

“In the future, I aspire to build a reputation as an architect for historic buildings and their renovation and preservation. I love travelling, so I would ideally like to be in the position where I could combine this with work. Australia has an array of fantastic Colonial architecture, constructed during the period of European settlement from 1788 to 1840, so I intend to plan a working visit to study it in person. I would also like to visit the New England areas of America. If I was to offer advice to others, it would be to embrace every opportunity that arises to gain experience in the field you hope to enter, and to learn as much as possible from industry professionals. Take control of your own future and never be afraid to seek your own internships, both in the UK and abroad; you will not regret it and will benefit immensely.”