"Challenge Preconceptions" - Roger Hawkins, Hawkins/Brown

What are the best things about your practice?

I would say the range of projects we are working on and the range of people we employ. It’s a fun place to be – you spend more time at work than at home, so you’ve got to enjoy going to work. 

How would you describe your office culture?

I would say it’s respectful, progressive and creative.

What makes someone a Hawkins/Brown person?

We want ambitious people, people who are keen to learn and people who are creative. I think we want people who challenge preconceptions, and that needs hard work and commitment.

What are you looking for in a CV?

Well, I think you’ve got to demonstrate passion – if it’s just a blank piece of paper without imagery then it’s not going to stand out. We want people to demonstrate their ability to edit. If it’s 300-400 pages no-one is going to look at that. You’ve got to be succinct in how you present yourself.

What makes someone stand out to you?

Demonstrating editing skills and an enthusiasm for architecture.

How do you prefer to receive portfolios?

Both print and digital are important as is demonstrating a range of skills. People who can draw – drawings are much nicer in reality. People who can take photographs and people who record their portfolio digitally, it’s obviously more sensible. We ultimately present our work digitally, so having those digital skills are important. But we like people who know how to draw. We run both analogue studios and digital studios, so both ways.

What advice would you give to anyone starting out in architecture?

You’ve got to enjoy it, so have a passion for it. And recognise it’s a very wide subject. Architecture is an umbrella to allow people to demonstrate different skills and interests. Don’t be too pigeonholed, challenge preconceptions, be interesting. It’s a fantastic career.