Industrial & Engineering Technology: Architect
Industrial & Engineering Technology
Architect: Salli Morita
It's not always easy choosing a satisfying career that you'll enjoy for the rest of your life. Salli Morita has always understood her strengths and what gives her pleasure in life. Above all, she wanted to satisfy her inner artistic forces — creating and designing.
Architect's License
The choices she made landed her a career as a designer at the third largest architectural firm in Hawaii, Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo. Salli enjoys traveling and "designing destinations." She's currently working on obtaining an architect's license, which will give her the authority to stamp her drawings, basically validating the fact that an architect produced it. "Before you get your license, you can't really call yourself an architect," she explains. "Having a license shows that you've gone through the process and have taken the time to nurture your professionalism."
Doubts To Stay On
It hasn't always been a smooth ride. Salli recalls, "Any person who starts in a field may have to go through a grueling training process or have to take on the roles that the "higher-ups" don't want. When I first started in architecture, I doubted if I was going to stay. It wasn't the glamorous life that I had envisioned, but I kept on going." There were times when she struggled, and she wasn't sure what she could offer and how she fit in the company; there were times when she'd put in 11-hour days, working through 11 p.m. "It was a very scary time not knowing what I could do and how I could value myself. When you first start out, you may have to do smaller jobs, basically taking direction from other people, which can get to be a little frustrating."
Making Inroads and Turning Heads
After several years and working at different companies, Salli has finally gotten to the point where she's turning heads and doing what she enjoys. "As you move higher up, you get more into design work with more freedom to do what you want to do." There are a lot of different aspects to the architectural field: drafting, designing, construction administration, putting together construction document packages, marketing, working with clients…
In a Nutshell, What Do People do In Architecture
"Basically, you work with clients to find out what they want or to help them determine what will work best for them. It is a constant interactive process which incorporates the expertise of the architect, client, contractor, and user." Salli elaborates, "Architecture isn't always an objective science…there are a lot of things that need to be worked out or created, designed, that may not be the norm — which is the beauty of architecture. You can create things that no one has ever seen or something no one else thought could be produced…you always want to push that boundary, but also be very cautious, making sure that you have your back covered and that you have all the professionalism behind you that's possible (since liability is inherent in coming up with something no one has ever known). From there, you push out your design and hope for the best!"
So What Got Her Started In Architecture?
"In high school, I happened to take an architectural drafting class and enjoyed it. I thought that architecture might be a way for me to be an artist while still earning money. (I'd always heard of those starving artists!) From high school, I went directly into the architecture program at the University of Hawaii, still unsure if that was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I found out that I really loved some of the courses and had many opportunities open up to me. Most of the opportunities entailed taking a financial and emotional risk, though."
Travel Is a Must
By the time Salli graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture (B. Arch) in 1999, she had gone on exchange for a year to Cal Poly (California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo). She'd also traveled to seven countries in Europe, gone on a semester exchange to Thailand, conducted her own research trip to India, and still managed to keep a healthy social life. "Travel is a MUST." She's also taking pleasure in performing live music on stage and acting during her "off" hours. "It's just nice to be able to have all these other things to define me and not just my job."
Her Advice To Teens
"Breaking into the real world is a bit daunting. Getting up the confidence to present myself as an asset has been something that I constantly wrestle with. However, as you will find out, hard work and eagerness to learn will make you more valuable than you could ever know."