"The best position at AEDIS is a Project Architect. To get it you have to have the experience and be licensed, also......the Partners have to like you. But don't look for the experience here; it's best if you have it prior to being employed here."

"Try not to get too involved in the office politics. The Partners claim to know what everyone is doing, but in reality they do not. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to getting the exposure needed to advance. If you are looking for favoritism, you will find a little bit here."

"To suit the needs of the firm, you (intern Architects) will be bounced around from project to project, only gaining experience in CDs."

"[The work is] Mainly schools. Schools provide a constant income for the firm."

"In theory, this firm takes an active role in developing its future leaders. In reality, it's a different story. The needs of the firm come first; and those are to get the projects done ASAP. Do not be confused; this is not a teach-learn environment."

"Only to a certain extent and in rare occasions do interns get the experience they really need to advance. Do not expect to become a Project Manager for at least 5 years."

"I would say it's about 50/50. There are people who bring you down and people that will challenge you to grow. People are helpful and knowledgeable, but for the most part everyone's focus is on producing the projects."

"There is a certain energy in the mornings, but after lunch, forget it. Most upper level employees head off to meetings while the lower level employees do CAD and production."

"To work here, you have to have a soft bottom, because you will be sitting on it all day doing CAD."

"If they were listening I would tell them to treat everyone fairly. I would also tell them to OPEN their eyes, the vision that they see is not the same as the employees."

"People complain every year about their annual reviews, even 16 year veterans. Employees who are doing bad get better reviews than some who are performing well. All are not treated fairly.""I think that the best thing about this firm is its collegiate atmosphere. People are pretty relaxed and genuinely friendly, including most of the partners. In the last few years, there seems to be a certain amount of positive energy. The core work is schools, so there is a fair amount of repetitiveness from project to project. Even so, people make an effort to making their projects responsive to program and site issues. There also has been a big push for environmentally sensitive design. Interns mostly work on CD's, as it probably is at most firms, but some of us are involved in some level of design and client interface. Overall, it's not a super design oriented environment, but nonetheless a nice enough place to start a career. Bonuses are big, in fact, much bigger than I expected."

"The core work is schools. The firm does some higher education work, and recently finished a nice local public library. There has been a strong push in green design. In fact, about 1/3 of the staff, including all the partners, are LEED accredited. The firm tries to do responsible design, but there is a tendency to tilt toward their clients' pragmatic needs, cost and time being the main ones."

"They try to have a strong professional development program, but I can say that it still needs work. The attitude of the management is good. I think that they are really committed to the employees. They give good feedback frequently. Raises are given regularly, without employee asking. Year end bonuses are also good, beyond what I expected."

"I like the great diversity here. The firm doesn't seem to mind what your background is. We have people from all over the world; it's like the UN here. Also good gender mix. There are some very talented and smart people, but unfortunately there are also some old timers who don't seem to want to learn anything new. Most people get along great with one another."

"I don't think most people watch the clock. There is a flex hour system, and the firm is pretty relaxed about it. Some of us are on the go all the time, and there are those who are not. That's probably like anywhere. There is not a lot of overtime, unlike what I hear from ex-classmates at other firms. There is a fair amount of pressure from clients regarding deadlines, but the firm does a pretty good job in juggling priorities."

"Overall, they are people of integrity who mean well toward their clients and their employees. Some of the principals are more conservative, while others more open to new ideas. They do a pretty good job running the ship, because there is always a steady stream of work coming in. I think that they have an attitude of always wanting to improve the firm. They are pretty open to everyone, including the most junior staff. If I were to give them advice, it would be to be less hung up on the bottom line of projects and experiment every now and then. That's what being architects is all about."