Women in architecture

There are more women than men studying architecture in India, and there is no third gender in the profession. – Council of Architecture

RTI reply from the Council of Architecture India reveals that there are more women studying architecture, and there is zero representation of the third gender in the profession.
Women in architecture

We filed an RTI with the Council of Architecture, India, to know the gender statistics in the architecture profession and academics. Their reply revealed the following numbers (As on Dec 31, 2017):

No. of male architects in India: 40091
No. of female architects in India: 31489
No. of other gender architects in India: Nil.

No. of male students studying architecture in India: 29216
No. of female students studying architecture in India: 32576
No. of other gender studying architecture in India: Nil.

This also means, in coming few years, there would be more women architects in India. But, would there be also more women practicing architecture in India?

As Amritha Ballal puts,

Amritha Ballal - Women in Architectureor, Swati Janu shares,Swati Janu - Women in Architecture

Another concern is about the zero representation of the third gender, in architecture education as well as the profession.

We have some questions for our readers:

  1. Why are so many women preferring architecture as a career option?
  2. What makes it difficult for women to practice architecture?
  3. There is zero representation of the third gender in the profession. How many architecture institutions in India have admission forms that give an option to choose ‘Other’ gender?

If you have an answer to any of these questions, please use the comments sections below to share your views.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Recent

Gender, Hysteria, and Architecture - The Witch Hunt. Henry Ossawa Tanner. Source - Wikiart

Gender. Hysteria. Architecture. | “When Did Care Become Confinement?”

Was architecture used by society to spatially “manage” women and their autonomy? Aditi A., through her research study as a part of the CEPT Writing Architecture course, examines the period before psychiatry, when fear had already become architectural, tracing how women’s autonomy was spatially managed through domestic regulation, witch hunts, informal confinement, and early institutional planning.

Read More »

A Modernist’s Doubt: Symbolism and the Late Career Turn

Why did acclaimed modernist architects suddenly introduce historical symbolism like arches, decorative elements, and other cultural references into their work after decades of disciplined restraint? Sudipto Ghosh interrogates this 1980s-90s symbolic turn as a rupture in architecture, questioning whether this represents an authentic reconnection with content and memory, or is it a mere superficial gesture towards absent meanings. Drawing from Heidegger’s analysis of the Greek temple, he distinguishes two modes of architectural representation, ultimately judging that this turn was a nascent rebellion against modernism that may have failed to achieve genuine integration of context, material, and memory.

Read More »
Ode to Pune - A Vision. © Narendra Dengle - 1

The City That Could Be: An Ode to Pune

Narendra Dengle, through his poem written in January 2006, presents a deep utopic vision for Pune—what the city could be as an ecologically sustainable, equitable city that balances nature with development. He sets ambitious benchmarks for prioritizing public transport over cars, preserving heritage, addressing slum rehabilitation humanely, and empowering local communities

Read More »
(left) Turtle Poem 1999 & Calligraphy 2006, by H. Masud Taj. © H. Masud Taj. (right) Photograph of Hassan Fathy 1976, © Martin Lyons

“Hassan Fathy’s head was in the heavens, heart in the right place, and feet planted firmly on earth.”—H. Masud Taj on his Turtle poem & Hassan Fathy

H. Masud Taj elucidates how, as a young architecture student, he dropped out of his institution to travel and learn from monuments, discovering in Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia a turtle column that catalyzed an inquiry, hearing Hassan Fathy’s explication of the turtle in Cairo, ultimately crystallizing in Taj’s poetic meditation on dwelling.

Read More »
Education Authority Bill - Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill - Architecture Education, A. Srivathsan

Education Authority Bill: Its Implications for Architecture Education

A. Srivathsan in his preliminary overview of the new Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, notes that the bill could transform architectural education. The VBSA Bill proposes restructuring India’s higher education regulation, by dissolving UGC and related authorities, creating three new councils for regulation, accreditation, and standards.

Read More »

Featured Publications

New Release

We Are Hiring

Stories that provoke enquiry into built environment

www.architecture.live

Subscribe & Join a Community of Lakhs of Readers