Over the years in the built environment people tend to take Architects as the ultimate professionals!

Having gone through a deep comparison between a Quantity Surveyor and an Architect, From a general perspective and value rendering point of view, A Quantity Surveyor is seen to be better than an Architect.

In the Movie world, The celebrated ones in a successful movie are the actors and actresses, but who truly ensured the success are the Movie producers, the editors, scriptwriters, stunt experts, etc.

In the Music world, artists are celebrated and recognized for their hit songs but the dancers, music editors, songwriters, studio engineers, and DJs contributed to the success but are given little or no credit outside.

The same goes for the construction world, Architects always get appraisals and credits, perhaps because of the uniqueness and beauty of their designs coming to reality 

Whereas, Quantity Surveyors, Structural Engineers and some other Key professionals in the Construction industry are the backbones of many successful projects.

Don’t get me wrong here, Architects are good and it’s a wonderful profession in the built environment, but Quantity Surveyors are great and the most impactful when it comes to the construction world.

Now let’s get straight to the facts

Why a Quantity Surveyor is better than an Architect

Both professions are unequivocally straightforward, they both have unique distinctive roles and characteristics which make them special in their respective ways

A Quantity Surveyor and an Architect do add value to the construction industry – in fact –- they are complementary to each other

But which among these professions is better on general terms, one could say a Quantity Surveyor and another an Architect, and some would say both

Yes, these could be opinions from different individuals with their respective knowledge, view and understanding.

These opinions don’t just come out of the blue! Individuals would have their reasons or facts to back their claims.

In the writer’s opinion below are the stated reasons why a Quantity Surveyor is better than an Architect 

Quantity Surveyor vs Architect

Both construction experts are wonderful and unique in what they do but let’s check these facts out and see why a quantity surveyor is better than an architect

• A Quantity Surveyor is the only expert in the construction industry that must possess substantial knowledge of all the other fields in the built environment in other for them to carry out their work well as cost experts.
• A Quantity Surveyor must always be able to interpret any drawings plans (simple or complex) by the Architect to properly estimate the cost budget needed to execute the construction work.
• An Architect always sees his work from just an Architectural and pictorial point of view, a Quantity Surveyor must look at all working drawings and plans from a cost budget point of view and also from a structural stability point of view all following the client’s taste and preference.
• This fact above allows the Quantity Surveyor to possess knowledge on the strength of materials and structural analysis, thus giving them an edge over the Architect.
• Quantity Surveyors are more versatile and have a broader field compared to that of Architects, They can practice their financial skills and expertise in any sector as far as cost and finance are concerned.
• In a project, It’s just the Architect who is in the client’s building team, but for a Quantity Surveyor, they are always two, The client’s Quantity Surveyor and the Contractor’s Quantity Surveyor.
• An Architect is mostly concerned about seeing his drawings come to reality, some Architects all in the name of beauty and modern Architecture draw plans that are structurally not stable or cost-friendly to the client.
• The Quantity Surveyor must consider all these factors to see if the plan given by the Architect is cost-friendly and structurally stable.
• A Quantity Surveyor will ensure the clients get maximum value with the most minimal resources i.e. the clients must get the best value for their money.
• Seeing the client satisfied is the main aim of both the Architect and the Quantity Surveyor but ensuring it happens is more pivotal to the Quantity Surveyor.
• A Quantity Surveyor has more legal knowledge on construction contracts than the Architect, thus giving the Quantity Surveyor more advantage to serve as Arbitrators and legal experts for clients.
• A Quantity Surveyor must possess knowledge of all the legal involvement of a Contract stipulation, they are the legal experts in the built environment, and they help the client in tackling many legal issues ranging from parties involved in a contract to a breach of contract.
• A Quantity Surveyor knows much of the Architect but an Architect has little or no knowledge of the Quantity Surveying profession.
• New aspects of Quantity Surveying are paving more ways than that for Architects giving a futuristic advantage for Quantity Surveyors over Architects 

The essence and importance of a Quantity Surveyor in the construction industry could not be overemphasized any further, as truly, they are the real pillar of the built environment.

Is Quantity Surveying a better course than Architecture?

Both courses are unique in their different ways; for which is the better course to study I would go for Quantity Surveying.

However, let’s look into the major difference before stating opinions on which course of study is best 

What Is The Difference Between Architecture And Quantity Surveying?

The simple difference between Architecture and Quantity Surveying is that 

Architecture is a course, discipline or field of study an individual needs to study at school and attain a degree before becoming an Architect. 

Quantity Surveying is a course, discipline or field of study an individual needs to study at school and attain a degree before becoming a Quantity Surveyor.

Also, people do wonder if Architecture or Quantity surveying is an Art or Science course, click the link to know more about that.

Is Architecture more on math or Quantity Surveying?

Quantity Surveying and Architecture course requires one to be very good in mathematics precisely Geometry and Mensuration

The bitter or sweet truth– depends on you– is that to study either Architecture or Quantity Surveying you should have a very good solid mathematics foundation

Both courses deal with calculations involving areas, volumes, the perimeter of diverse geometrical shapes serving as drawing plans and the likes

knowing how to tackle any of such, demands good mathematics background

However, Quantity Surveying is seen to have more to do with mathematics than Architecture because they deal more with cost and finance management

Aside from mathematics involving mensuration, Quantity Surveyors carry out estimation calculations which in turn makes them know more about mathematics involving economics and accounting. 

Also, Quantity Surveyors who specialize in civil and heavy engineering kinds of projects possess substantial knowledge in further mathematics and advanced Physics involving structural analysis and strength of materials.

Opinion on why Quantity Surveying is a better course than Architecture  

Quantity surveying is a better course than Architecture- Mathematics aside, Quantity Surveying exposes an individual to more areas of learning than Architecture

Quantity Surveying teaches students economics, accounting, legal relations (Construction law) and project management more than Architecture 

Quantity Surveying course also enlighten individuals on risk, property and value management techniques, that can help optimise whole life cycle costing way better than Architecture

A competent Quantity Surveyor is ever on demand; the value they contribute to construction is unquestionably undisputable.

In terms of knowledge of civil engineering practices and techniques, a Quantity Surveying course throws more light than an Architecture course 

A Quantity Surveying student must have good analytical skills and should be Inquisitive, with the habit to question each and everything! 

To learn, Unlearn and Relearn is one good characteristic they possess.

All these aforementioned facts show why Quantity Surveying is a better course than Architecture  

We have just gone through the difference between both courses (Architecture and Quantity Surveying)

Students who went to school and became professional Quantity Surveyors or Architects; what are their duties? 

Let’s know by highlighting the difference between an Architect and a Quantity Surveyor

The major difference between Architect and Quantity Surveyor

An Architect is a skilled professional that draws plans and designs buildings in the construction industry.

They are experts involved in designing structures such as office buildings, infrastructures, stadiums, schools, malls, hotels, homes, etc.

An Architect converts the brief outline of a client into working drawing plans used by other construction professionals to carry out their work.

They are unique truth be told, most times clients only have a blurry idea of what they want, some might know what they want but have no idea how it should be

Such is no issue when a client consults a good Architect, An Architect can convert such a brief idea into a wonderful design masterpiece, they are that good!

A Quantity Surveyor is a cost and procurement management officer concerned with all the financial activities involved in construction works.

They are construction cost advisers who by their specialist training have developed knowledge of construction economics.

This allows them to advise on what a project would cost, the economics of a project, and the preparation of a budget to execute such a project.

Thus Quantity Surveyors make clients get the best value for money in projects.

Their Knowledge of Mensuration, Geometry and Construction, in general, is second to none 

Quantity Surveyors are Inquisitive and have good analytical skills 

Relationship Between Quantity Surveyor and Architect

An Architect is most likely the first to meet the client in the Construction industry

After consulting an Architect, Costing is next! This brings in the Quantity Surveyor 

Thereafter, other professionals join the train. 

Clients trust the Architect and Quantity Surveyor more because they make part of his team before other professionals

A good relationship between the Quantity Surveyor and the Architect is important.

The Quantity Surveyor serves as the financial cost adviser to the client, he tries to notify the client of the approximate estimate required to execute the project. 

Most clients have little knowledge of cost and budget, “the estimate needed for a project to be successful” they don’t know how to get it

Most Architects to “all in the name of complexity and beauty” overshoot the client’s budget.

This is why Quantity Surveyors are needed at the design stage to keep both the Client and Architect in check and to regulate the Architect’s design in line with the Client’s budget.

Where can a Quantity Surveyor and Architect work

In terms of the working space, Quantity Surveyors have the upper hand

It’s true that Architects and Quantity Surveyors majorly work at construction firms and industries 

Although aside from generalized construction firms and companies, they can also work at specialized firms — having a  particular area of specialization – e.g an Architectural firm or a Cost Consultancy Firm

Clients consult these specialized firms to get the best professionals who would be part of the client’s team and help achieve the dream project

However, where the Architect is limited to the construction space only, the Quantity Surveyor is not 

Quantity Surveyors have the leverage of getting a wider working opportunity

Quantity Surveyors possess skills and expertise not just as cost estimators and cost engineers,

But also as Project managers, Construction accountants, Property valuers, Cost economists, Arbitrators etc.

With this, Quantity Surveyors get to work in other spaces aside from the construction space alone

examples include; Banks, Mortgage companies, Government agencies, crime and security agencies along with others.  

Architects and Quantity Surveyors, who are paid little?

People want to know who is paid more among Architects and Quantity Surveyors, well judging from the scale of fees among construction professionals, Architect are paid more than Quantity Surveyors

Yes an Architect has the highest percentage of payment among other construction professionals 

Still, Quantity Surveyors do earn more than the Architect even when being paid lesser per construction project

Growing and earning money as an Architect is somewhat difficult, whereas for Quantity Surveyors there are more work opportunities hence more constant reliable income.

In General, the frequency of the demand for Quantity Surveyors is higher compared to that of  Architects 

Is it hard to be a successful Architect?

It’s cool and classy being an Architect — fact is — Architects are one of the coolest professions,

Being a successful Architect is not that easy to attain—becoming a successful world-class Architect is hectic.

An article was written by youngArchitect.com titled Why you should not be an Architect? 

In the article, they highlighted most of the reasons why one would not want to be an Architect.

But let’s get back to the question: Is it hard to be a successful Architect? Yes it is really hard to be a successful Architect though a worth it one 

Architects entail longer studying and further degrees before even being worthy of having a presentable portfolio and market value

Most Architects further by getting their master’s degrees to become prominent Architects 

Architects are unique professionals and clients normally do stick with the ones they have worked with.

Most uniques structures and high rise buildings we know of are designed by the same Architects 

This makes penetrating the market as a new Architect an herculean task but again “a worth it one”

To be a successful Architect you must pay the price, nothing good comes easy 

An Architect who wants to be successful must first: be good at what he/she does, he/she should have the tenacity in achieving the big dream.

To win a client, you should be able to offer something extraordinary– out of the blue– a unique masterpiece of a design; this paves way for upcoming Architects to make name for themselves 

Being a successful Architect is hard but becoming one is worth it, as it does, pay well.

Which Job Is Better When Considering The Demand In The future: Quantity Surveyor or Architect 

Considering the demand in the future both Architecture and Quantity Surveying are promising 

Architects are continuously creating wonderful designs that are unique  and new aspects of Quantity Surveying are highly in demand more than ever before 

As long as there would always be construction, Quantity Surveyors and Architects would continue to be highly demanded and more impactful in the future 

Also, Among the 17 sustainable development goals, some show how important both professions are.

Goal 9: Industrial innovation and infrastructure and Goal 11: Sustainable cities and communities highlighted the need and importance of construction now and in the nearest future 

So if you’re wondering which – Quantity Surveying or Architecture– to study considering the demand in the future I would say both are promising

However, having to select a particular one wouldn’t be a difficult task after going through this article. Thanks.

CONCLUSION

In this article, we got a brief introduction to why it seems Architects are better than Quantity Surveyors, next we looked into facts on why Quantity Surveyors are better than Architects 

Furtherly, we highlighted the major difference between Quantity Surveying and Architecture, why Quantity Surveying is better and which among both has more to do with mathematics

Next, we looked into the relationship between Quantity Surveyors, Architects and clients, thereafter we highlighted various working opportunities for Architects and Quantity Surveyors which led us to look into who is been paid more among both.

We continued by answering the question! Is it had to be a successful Architect? Where we finally ended by considering both Quantity Surveying and Architecture as to which is better considering the demand in the future.