Architect CV example: portfolio, BIM and ARB

Portfolio vs CV: two different documents

In architecture recruitment, the same question comes up every time: "My portfolio already shows everything — what's the CV actually for?" The answer is clear. The portfolio is your creative proof. The CV is your recruitment document.

Whether you're applying to a small boutique practice, a large multi-disciplinary firm, a local authority architecture team, or a developer's in-house design studio, the first thing a hiring manager reads is the CV. They scan it in seconds to check whether the profile fits — qualification, experience, software, professional registration — before even opening your portfolio PDF.

A strong architect CV doesn't replace the portfolio. It makes the hiring manager want to open it.

What architecture recruiters check first

In most practices, the person reviewing your CV is a senior architect, associate, or director — not HR. They have a clear mental checklist:

1. Your Part qualification In the UK, this means RIBA Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Equivalents from overseas schools (ETH Zurich, TU Delft, ENSA Paris, Aalborg) are acceptable but need context. List your school, degree title, and year of graduation — don't assume it's obvious.

2. ARB registration and Chartered status In the UK, the protected title "architect" is tied to registration with the Architects Registration Board (ARB). If you also hold Chartered membership of the RIBA, say so clearly — it is a separate professional membership that can still matter to practices. If you are currently completing Part 3, note your expected date: "ARB registration expected [month/year]."

3. Your software stack BIM proficiency is now expected in almost every practice. "Revit" on its own doesn't tell a recruiter much. "Revit — confident on live projects, shared models and IFC coordination" is a far more credible claim. Be equally specific about 3D modelling, rendering, and presentation tools.

Practices focused on construction delivery want competence in specifications, contract administration, and site inspection. Design-led studios at the competition end want parametric modelling, strong rendering output, and experience of fast-turnaround brief interpretation.

Structuring your architect CV

Header

Name, title, contact details, and — as the very first piece of information — a direct link to your portfolio. This needs to be visible at the top of the page. A URL to your own website, Issuu, Behance, or a hosted PDF is fine. A CV without a portfolio link is often set aside before it's properly read, even if the experience section is strong.

Professional summary

Two to three lines. Be specific about the type of experience you bring, your programme focus, and the RIBA work stages you've handled.

Avoid: "Creative and motivated architect with a passion for sustainable design, looking for a challenging role in a forward-thinking practice."

Prefer: "Part 3 architect with 6 years' experience in residential-led mixed-use schemes (50–250 units). End-to-end delivery from RIBA Stage 2 through Stage 6, with contractor procurement and site inspection. Revit, Rhino and InDesign."

The second version gives a recruiter everything they need in three lines: qualification, programme type, scale, work stages, and tools.

Work experience

This is where most architect CVs either succeed or lose the reader. For each role, include:

• The practice name with a brief descriptor ("12-person residential practice", "250-person multi-disciplinary firm")
• The programme types you worked on: housing, education, healthcare, commercial office, heritage, hospitality, civic
• The RIBA work stages you were responsible for (Stages 0–7)
• Your specific role: project architect, design assistant, job runner, BIM coordinator

Avoid: "Worked on a residential scheme in East London."

Prefer: "Project architect on a 120-unit Build to Rent development in Hackney (construction value £38M). Managed RIBA Stages 3–5, produced full planning and technical packages, coordinated structural engineer and M&E consultant. Revit throughout with weekly BIM coordination meetings."

The first entry says nothing. The second one locates the scale, the stages, the programme type, the tools, and the coordination responsibilities — everything a senior architect needs to assess seniority and fit.

Education

List your school, degree title, and year of completion. If your diploma or thesis project is relevant to the practice you're targeting, include a one-line description of the project — scale, site, programme, any awards.

If you studied abroad (Erasmus year, exchange semester), mention the host institution. Schools like TU Delft, the AA, or the Berlage Institute carry specific associations that can be relevant depending on the practice's culture.

Post-qualification CPD is worth listing separately: Passivhaus Designer certification, BIM Management qualification, Conservation Accreditation Register for Engineers (CARE), RIBA Conservation Architecture Specialist — these signal depth that a generic architect profile doesn't.

Technical skills

Group by category and be honest about your actual proficiency level:

| Category | Tools | |----------|-------| | BIM / CAD | Revit, AutoCAD, ArchiCAD, Vectorworks | | 3D modelling | Rhino, SketchUp, Grasshopper | | Rendering | Lumion, Enscape, V-Ray, Twinmotion | | Presentation | InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop | | BIM coordination | Navisworks, Solibri | | Project management | MS Project, Asana, Procore |

Only list what you've used on live commissions. A recruiter who discovers a gap between what your CV claims and what you actually know will remember it — and share it with colleagues.

Mistakes that cost you interviews

Leaving your ARB/RIBA status ambiguous This is the most common oversight. Practices need to know whether you can sign drawings, take liability, or lead a design team on a licensable project. If you're not yet registered, say so directly: "ARB registration pending — Part 3 completion expected [month/year]."

Listing software without proficiency context "Revit" as a standalone bullet means almost nothing to a hiring architect. "Revit — advanced: 5 years' project use, family creation, shared-coordinate workflows, IFC export" is what gets a second read.

Generic language that hides real expertise Phrases like "contributed to design development" or "assisted in producing drawings" obscure your actual role. Specify what you did, at what stage, at what scale, and what decisions you were responsible for.

No direct portfolio link Even a polished, experience-rich CV loses impact without immediate access to work samples. Make it the first thing in your header — not buried in a footnote or mentioned only in a cover letter.

New build or refurbishment: positioning your profile

These are distinct markets with different expectations and hiring cultures.

In new build — particularly residential, commercial, and mixed-use — recruiters look for: planning process knowledge, delivery on volume programmes, coordination with structural and M&E engineers, contractor interface and site inspection experience.

In refurbishment and heritage, the priorities shift: building pathology awareness, knowledge of listed building consent and conservation area regulations, experience with traditional materials, phased works on occupied buildings, and familiarity with conservation-accreditation frameworks.

If you've worked across both, consider organising your experience section by project type rather than strictly by chronology. It makes your range immediately legible to a recruiter scanning quickly.

Practice size and your CV narrative

UK architecture practices range from sole traders to firms with over a thousand staff. Your CV needs to honestly reflect the scale you've operated at. A candidate from a five-person generalist practice who managed every stage of a scheme reads very differently from a candidate who handled a single specification package within a large delivery team — both profiles are valuable, but both need to be described accurately to set the right expectations.

If you've worked in both small and large environments, that breadth is worth naming explicitly. Practices hire for fit as much as skill, and knowing you've navigated both cultures matters.

Your CV is the introduction — let the portfolio close

Your architect CV should function like good architecture: clear structure, no unnecessary elements, everything in the right place. Focus on what recruiters actually check — qualification, registration status, software, work stages, programme type — and let the portfolio carry the visual and conceptual argument.

If you are targeting construction groups or large developer clients, some expectations overlap with the construction sector CV guide: phasing, coordination, site exposure and delivery language. For structuring your portfolio alongside your CV, our article on portfolio and creative CVs offers concrete guidance on what to include and how to link the two documents.

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