Alumni Spotlight: Preston Lester

Taking the Masters of Architecture program at KU has helped define me as an architect in more ways than one. From day one I immediately knew I was nowhere near the best in the class but that motivated me to work on my skills a little bit every day. To not be discouraged but learn to look at your own growth subjectivity and receive help from others to gain what was lacking. Every semester I took there was a different studio project that pushed me to learn new ways of doing things and become more efficient at creating a road map from initial concepts to finished project. By no means did I always succeed at my initial road map, but it helped me to learn to adapt and overcome challenges that really test whether you can make it in the field or not. What makes this program special is the different areas of expertise you can take within the curriculum. I was able to learn woodworking and welding, areas I never thought I would be interested in. I even was able to test what healthcare architecture was like my final year. Even though I find myself working in the Community sector for Parkhill, most of what I learned in healthcare helps me in my job today. This program helped me find my desire to do work that helps people live their best lives and I am happy to have found a firm with like-minded people who share that same passion. From working on churches to fire stations or recreation centers, the skills and experiences I received from this program helped me to find the right job that at times felt like finding a needle in a haystack.