This blog post introduces how to craft your application motivation for architectural design beyond mere interest, infusing your own architectural philosophy.
My Upbringing
“My Proud Father and Architecture”
My father worked as an excavator operator. He primarily worked on various construction sites, such as tunneling through mountains, building roads, and laying the groundwork for apartment complexes. He always woke up at 5 a.m., heading to the site before dawn, and often worked late into the night, returning home late.
As a child, I resented my father for this. I often threw tantrums at him because he didn’t play with me as often as my friends’ fathers did. Then, one day, my father was taking a break after completing a long construction project that had lasted three years. While the whole family was driving together on the highway in my father’s car, we passed through a newly opened, long tunnel leading to Pohang. My father said,
“This very place is the tunnel Dad carved out of the mountain.”
Startled by his words, I pulled the car over to the shoulder. There, on the monument erected at the tunnel entrance, I could clearly see my father’s name engraved. In that moment, I felt an indescribable emotion. I finally realized how great a thing my father had accomplished, and I felt ashamed of my own thoughtless, whiny behavior all those years. Above all, I was truly proud of my father.
From that day on, I developed a sense of pride in my father’s profession, and naturally, my interest in national infrastructure and architecture grew. This ultimately became the decisive factor in my decision to major in architecture in college.
During my military service, I also did my utmost in every task assigned to me, cultivating a strong sense of responsibility. Serving as a Class 1 Clerk, I was responsible for managing the food supply warehouse and unit property. At first, everything was unfamiliar and difficult, but I persevered, learning step by step. When I encountered something I didn’t know, I consulted the manuals and asked senior personnel, teaching myself along the way.
As a result, by the time I reached Private First Class, I could handle all tasks proficiently and notably contributed to improving the efficiency of property management. For instance, I decisively reduced side dishes that unit members rarely ate and accurately tracked daily personnel changes to appropriately adjust meal portions. When personnel decreased, I preemptively adjusted preparation quantities to prevent food waste, significantly reducing ingredient wastage.
Thanks to these efforts, I was recognized as the most resourceful property manager in the unit. One day, a superior even told me, “Our unit’s finances survived because of you.” The money saved allowed us to provide meat for the entire unit to eat their fill on the day of the unit soccer game, creating a fond memory for everyone.
As my discharge approached, my abilities were recognized to the extent that I was offered continued service within the military. However, I decided to leave the service, politely declining the gracious offer to pursue my dream of a career in architecture.
Thus, I discovered the field of architecture through my father in my youth and cultivated responsibility and practical skills through my military service. Moving forward, I aim to contribute to designing and building the foundations of life, leveraging these experiences.
School Life
“A perspective that views the world from a slightly different angle”
After enrolling in the School of Architecture, I spent quite some time deliberating when choosing my major. I struggled to decide between the two paths: Architecture and Architectural Engineering. I was deeply interested in design and planning, yet the logical approach of engineering also held great appeal. While drawn to the value of architectural design—creating something from nothing—I ultimately chose Architecture as my major. Yet, I still held deep interest in Architectural Engineering, including structural mechanics. To broaden my perspective, I actively took many related courses.
During the ambiguous gap period between completing my military service and returning to school, I wanted to spend a short but intense time. So, for three months, I took on various part-time jobs, challenging myself with new experiences. I carried ice at the dawn fish market, worked night shifts at a security company, and moved my body in workplaces that were a bit special, operating outside the usual hours. Observing the daily lives of the people I met there, and watching them silently fulfill their roles in their respective positions up close, my own perspective on life began to shift little by little.
I came to realize that things I had previously taken for granted weren’t so obvious after all, and I stopped casually saying “it’s hard.” I truly understood that someone’s day is another person’s night, and that the world keeps moving even while we sleep. I felt that a life lived with sincerity itself is a great lesson and deeply moving.
If there was another major thing I gained from this part-time experience, it was insight into how to connect with people. In social life, you inevitably encounter people you click with and those you don’t. But what truly matters is how quickly and naturally you can blend into the group. I came to believe that reaching out first and sharing genuine feelings, rather than getting caught up in trivialities, is the true start of a relationship. It was a precious time where I realized that keeping a little distance and shifting your perspective slightly can make people and the world look entirely different.
With the money I saved from that part-time job, I set off on a two-week backpacking trip through Europe. Among all the cities I visited, Vienna, Austria, was undoubtedly the most memorable. The Hundertwasser House, which I stumbled upon by chance in a quiet alleyway, remains vividly etched in my memory to this day. The hours I spent lingering in front of that apartment complex, gazing at the building, were both a shock and an epiphany for me.
This complex, housing 52 residential units, 5 commercial facilities, a children’s playground, and even a winter garden, felt like stepping into a real-life ‘Alice in Wonderland’. The spiral window frames instead of straight lines, the free and vibrant colors, and the exterior harmoniously blended with nature transcended a simple building and presented itself as a work of art. Through this building, I was reminded that architecture is a realm that can encompass not just functional space, but also people, nature, and emotion.
Hundertwasser’s apartment complex became the compass for my architectural life thereafter. It sparked my dream of creating architecture that connects people and emotions, going beyond simply ‘building well.’
My school days marked the beginning of my serious exploration into the world of architecture. As diverse experiences—major courses, part-time jobs, and travel—accumulated, I felt my perspective on the world shift slightly. Even now, the lessons and inspiration from that time remain the driving force behind my design philosophy. Moving forward, I aspire to be an architect who embraces human life and captures the value of space.
Personality Introduction and Motto
“The beginning is hard for everyone.”
This is what my father told me when I was learning to ride a bicycle as a child. I was used to a bike with training wheels, but when I first rode without them, I kept losing my balance and falling over repeatedly. Falling over and over again made me want to go back to the familiar bike with training wheels. That’s when my father said this:
“The beginning is always hard for everyone. If you give up during that time, you’ll never learn to ride a bike. Keep falling until you don’t fall anymore. Then, eventually, the time will come when you don’t fall, and that’s when you’ll be able to ride a bike on your own.”
This wasn’t just about riding a bike. Whenever I faced a new challenge after that, my father’s words always came to mind and gave me great strength. Even now, whenever I start something new, I engrave these words in my heart like a motto and draw courage from them.
Thanks to this mindset, I developed a character that doesn’t easily give up in difficult situations but sees things through to the end with a sense of responsibility. Many people who know me often cite ‘diligence’ and ‘sense of responsibility’ as my greatest strengths.
Additionally, when I immerse myself in a single task, I tend to focus so intensely that I become oblivious to my surroundings. While this often leads to deep, meaningful results, it has also caused me to overlook minor details at times. To compensate for this weakness, I’ve cultivated the habit of taking notes and strive to organize my work systematically.
Especially when handling multiple tasks simultaneously, I prioritize them, estimate the time required in advance, and execute after meticulously planning. In this way, I strive to maintain a balanced focus and planning while fulfilling my responsibilities to the end.
Holding close the saying ‘The beginning is hard for everyone,’ I continue to learn, challenge myself, and grow. Moving forward, I will steadfastly walk my path without losing sight of my original aspirations.
Desired Position and Post-Employment Aspirations
“From a group of experts to the top expert”
Creating human-centered spaces, beautiful and rational spaces. I believe this is the true essence of architecture. Today, we live in an era dominated by artificiality and machinery. Within this trend, modern architecture is becoming increasingly postmodern, with structures growing larger, more sophisticated in appearance, and finished with expensive materials, filling our city centers.
But can people truly feel genuine comfort and ease within these overwhelming buildings? I don’t think so.
Architecture is not simply completed by a flashy exterior or eye-catching materials. Architecture is the vessel that holds our lives; it must allow humans, nature, daily life, and space to coexist harmoniously.
From this perspective, I consider ‘harmony with nature’ to be the most important value.
○○ Architecture is a company that has placed the value of life and the order of nature at the core of its design philosophy, striving to realize true architecture. I believe that human-centered thinking, a proper understanding of life, and a profound philosophy capable of comprehending and embodying nature’s order are what truly complete architecture.
○○ Architecture has consistently strived to create spaces that are both the most scientific and the most human. I have been deeply moved and inspired, particularly by their continuous efforts to reinterpret our nation’s unique sensibilities and aesthetic sense with a modern sensibility, thereby infusing traditional beauty into contemporary architecture.
Architecture is both an art and a science that embodies the aesthetic sensibilities, technology, and values of an era.
Therefore, I always keep in mind the responsibility and mission of designing buildings that represent an era. Furthermore, creating an architectural culture that the next generation can remember—that is the goal and vision of my architectural life.
I wish to realize this dream and philosophy at ○○ Architecture, a group of professionals who understand and realize true architecture.
I will cherish the value of the sweat and time poured into every corner of the site, and do my utmost to ensure the buildings I design become spaces that shine proudly in the city and nation where I live.
I aspire to learn and grow alongside the finest experts at ○○ Architecture, ultimately standing tall as the ‘best expert among experts’ within this group of professionals.
