Shouldn’t Architecture be more like engineering?

Architecture is about form and function but it seems a lot of things people talk about here is that there a primary focus on form.

The fact that few architects truly understand how things are put together in an engineering sense seems not right. At least from what I have heard correct me if I’m wrong but architecture is first and foremost an art form, and often quite subjective.

But there is a lack and engineering grit in architecture school.

Engineering can be as much of an art form, there is a natural beauty to placing things together that work mechanically and function to solve problems. I would think that engineering should be the foundation for which then design can flourish. I know there are structural engineers but don’t you think architects should have a better engineering foundation than they currently do?

I’ve talked to architects before who had experience as a construction worker, and those with stronger engineering backgrounds and they said it made them better architects not just for themselves but it helped immensely when collaborating with everyone else on diverse teams.

And that goes for business as well. I know design is important and experience is where you truly learn but it all just seems not optimal in the traditional pathway to becoming an architect. Many architects are drowning themselves because they focus on the art before building the business know how to understand well how to make projects of any idea a reality. And so they accept the bare minimum salaries “for the art”. It’s a passion, but at some point this industry needs to understand that they might be missing so much by not delving deeper into business and engineering. Especially since coordination and business sense is sooo much of real life work.

It is a disservice to architecture students to not prepare them diligently for the realities of being an architect. As many architects share that regret and culture shock in these forums. Sure it cannot be all taught in the classroom, but surely there is a better way than it is now.

People will often say that you can’t teach all of that, and that design takes up so much and you can’t learn it all. I’d say that is not framing the issue right. Not all of which we might learn in architecture school as directed might be as important as people say

Let me know what yall think, this is again just my opinion, I’m not an architect just someone who has talked to a lot to architects on these forums.