The results of the government’s independent review into youth unemployment, published at the end of May, were shocking, showing that nearly one million young people aged 16 to 23 are not in either education, employment or training.

In his initial report, Alan Milburn, who carried out the review, laid the blame on schools, government and other bodies responsible for training and employment, which he said had created a broken system.

According to the Office for National Statistics figures from February, 957,000 young people were out of work in the UK between October and December last year.

Youth unemployment affects all corners of society and every industry, said the report. And the architecture profession has also suffered, experiencing growing problems around training early-career architects.

AJ100 practice JTP received an astonishing 2,600 applicants for nine Part 1 positions last year, many of whom had struggled to find a professional placement the previous year despite ‘being talented individuals’ in the firm’s words.

That is a success ratio of 289:1 – a number far higher than the still sky-high 140:1 ratio for law and medicine graduates seeking vacancies, as highlighted in The Guardian and The Telegraph last year.

‘AI is increasingly undertaking Part 1 work’

The AJ understands JTP isn’t the only architect attracting huge numbers of desperate applicants. Several other practices have had similar experiences, with their Part 1 places well oversubscribed.

AtkinsRealis told the AJ it had witnessed a ‘high volume of applications for our 2026 early careers programmes and while we’re not able to share numbers for any specific roles or schemes, AtkinsRéalis supports over 700 early careers professionals each year through our graduate, apprenticeship and industry placements.’

What is to blame? AI, but only partially.

Paul Chappell of 9b careers, like others the AJ spoke to, believes AI is partially to blame. ‘AI is increasingly undertaking work that has traditionally formed part of the Part 1 architectural assistant role, further reducing opportunities at entry level,’ says Chappell, whose recruitment firm allows practices to advertise Part 1 year-out placements for free.

An AJ poll last year showed that jobs such as writing minutes, competition bids, and Photoshopping material options were increasingly being given to AI at both small practices and members of the AJ100.

At the same time, practices have been squeezed by rising overheads, minimum wage and national insurance increases, construction costs, delayed project timelines, falling fees, and rising ARB and RIBA membership fees.

‘Without conscious intent, Part 1s are becoming less financially attractive to employ’

This means practices are increasingly reconsidering hiring Part 1s. For instance, many Part 1s now earn only slightly less than a Part 2 following a 12 per cent increase in the London Living Wage. As JTP managing partner Marcus Adams points out, this means Part 2s ‘with their greater experience, may represent better value to practices’.

And he warns: ‘Without conscious intent, Part 1s are becoming less financially attractive to employ. We need to be mindful of this, while also recognising that individuals should be fairly rewarded for the roles they undertake.’

Chappell agrees, adding: ‘Employing and training Part 1 architectural assistants is becoming less of a priority for many businesses. Increasingly, practices are focusing on recruiting Part 2 assistants who can make a greater immediate contribution to projects and are more likely to remain with the practice for several years, making the investment in training and development easier to justify from a commercial perspective.’

Better paid alternatives?

On the other hand, architecture is simultaneously leaking talent to other sectors, such as IT, where graduate salaries are far higher, while unqualified teenagers can earn more than a Part 1 architect.

Del Hossain, an associate professor at UCL and director at Adrem Careers, says: ‘The average RIBA part 1 salary in Manchester is approximately £24,500. A part 2 earns on average £25,000–£30,000 in Manchester, while in London it is around £28,000–£34,000.

‘The National Living Wage for anyone aged 21 and over from April 2026 is £12.71 per hour, which annualised over a standard 37.5-hour week, is £24,784. A Part 1 architect in Manchester therefore earns on a par with the adult national living wage. A Part 2 earns only marginally above it.’

Hossain also points out that at £25,000, student loan repayments kick in, meaning a chunk of Part 2 architects in Manchester will begin repaying debt ‘from their first pay cheque’.

He adds: ‘For someone with five to seven years of education and over £100,000 of debt, this is not a market inefficiency; it is a structural failure.’

The harsh economic reality facing students is being seen by many in the education sector. Speaking at a RIBA presidential hustings debate last week (1 June), candidate and academic Duncan Baker-Brown said he was ‘painfully aware’ of the crisis. ‘Our students can’t afford to do what we love to do,’ he said, noting that the rising cost of living has forced all of his full-time master’s students into part-time jobs just to get by.

The long-term risks

Tamsyn Curley, director at recruitment agency Place, says the current challenges around Part 1 recruitment are ‘real’ and require ‘an honest conversation’.

She tells the AJ: ‘RIBA’s training framework has always relied on a simple accord: practices get affordable developing talent, students get hands-on experience they can’t get in a lecture theatre. That accord is starting to get unpicked, and the profession will need to address it asap.’

But she adds: ‘On the bright side, this could be the push the industry needs to do things differently – maybe smaller practices sharing a junior between them, more flexible project-based roles, closer ties between universities and live practice. There are some genuinely exciting models worth exploring.’

‘The ARB’s current education review is the perfect moment to rethink’

ARB’s reforms will remove the existing Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 structure. Under the shake-up, the old Part 1 will not be needed. For instance, students who have completed a landscape architecture or ‘similar’ undergraduate degree can go on to take a postgraduate-level architecture qualification that meets the ARB’s prescribed Academic Outcomes – equivalent to the old Part 2.

So, while the new regime is about competency, the need for Part 1s to gain work experience could be diminished, or at least not be necessary in the same way as for yesterday and today’s architects.

As Curley argues: ‘The ARB’s current education review is the perfect moment to rethink what counts as valid experience and bring the rules in line with how architecture actually works today.

‘Practices that get ahead of this and keep investing in junior talent, even in new ways, will be the ones people want to work for. And as a specialist architecture and built environment recruitment consultancy with strong relationships across all types of practice, we’re ideally placed to help make those connections happen.’

One practice that is continuing to support architecture’s next generation is Stride Treglown, which brought through 20 Part 1 students in 2025 and expects similar numbers this year. Caroline Mayes, board director responsible for people and development at the practice, tells the AJ: ‘As a practice we pride ourselves on the value we place on our people, and this is no different when it comes to Part 1 students, who are valued members of our studio teams who contribute to live projects.’

‘People from different backgrounds and experiences bring immense value to our teams’

Last year was the final year that Level 7 apprenticeships were funded, allowing Stride Treglown to absorb a particularly large cohort of seven Part 1 students on to an apprentice route. But because they are staying on with the practice, it has inevitably meant the practice has had to reduce the number of entirely new roles available this year.

Nonetheless, Mayes remains optimistic about the macro shifts in the sector: ‘The profession is also evolving, with new routes into architectural education and practice emerging,’ she says.

‘We see that as an opportunity, and will continue to support a diverse range of pathways into the profession. People from different backgrounds and experiences bring immense value to our teams, our culture and ultimately the service we provide to clients.’

Warnings and the future

Jack Pringle, chair of RIBA Board of Trustees, said the institute was aware of the ‘challenging time for graduates seeking employment’, which he said had been made worse by the ‘threat posed by AI to early career roles and a challenging time for employers exacerbated by increasing Real Living Wage and National Insurance costs.’

He said the RIBA was campaigning for an education system that ‘delivers for all’.

Pringle told the AJ: ‘We’re collaborating with schools of architecture to promote a five-year qualification route to becoming an architect, trying to address the challenges students face in securing practice placements, and looking at how the education system can better equip young architects with office skills as well as using AI tools and being able to check their outputs.’

The warnings have been coming. Toko Andrews, an associate at James Clague Architects and associate lecturer at the University for the Creative Arts, wrote in the AJ in December that many Part 1 students were returning in September for their Part 2 with no professional experience under their belts.

‘So, rather than coming back full of real-world experience to help them through the next stage of education, they’re crossing their fingers that a higher degree will make them attractive enough to land a first job,’ he said.

Reacting to the findings of the government’s review into youth unemployment, Andrews told the AJ: ‘The Milburn Report highlights a terrible situation, but not a surprising one.

‘Speak to any recent graduate and they will tell you that only a handful were able to get a job in architecture.’

He warns that because full qualification hinges on practical experience, ‘this is a situation that cannot be ignored, or else we risk failing multiple future generations’.

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