AN INTERNSHIP WITH ITS PAST, PRESENT AND THE FUTURE  

College internships result in very different experiences and provide new points of view for our professions. My internship at MUUM resulted the same as well, by opening new horizons and involving numerous lessons.

My 6 weeks spent at MUUM showed me how to work harmoniously in different teams and how architecture evolves in the professional context. The most visible difference and contribution of the internship was the collaborative and inclusive environment provided and encouraged for the interns, rather than keeping us as observers.

When compared with other professions and educational systems, architecture involves production by its nature. Hence, including internships in the production process could be naturally assumed. However, this inclusion can be both an artificial one consisting of exercises, or interns can be included in the real work of the final product. At MUUM, the latter was preferred for all interns. Architects and the interns at the office had real and active interactions, and we were always included in the progress of works.

Another difference of this internship was being a part of different groups throughout the internship. As interns, we were both involved in different projects of the office, and had strong relations with each other as interns, which was encouraged.

The first week of my internship coincided with the collaborative work of MUUM and one other architecture firm, which was a good opportunity to see the different working dynamics of the two offices. It was interesting and entertaining to see how the two firms cooperated with their different working methods: rather than the usual hierarchical relations, two equals in the architectural environment working collaboratively.

After those hectic days, the pace of the office went back to normal, but we as interns still had a very busy schedule. Especially for myself; since I was responsible for the documentation of the internship process of myself and my intern friends, and preparing visuals and videos, I communicated with everyone at the office. While continuing my internship, I also had to take a look at my internship from after its ending in the future. Additionally, I was a part of different projects of MUUM, which were at different stages: preparation, initiation, progress, finalisation and far past completion. This required me to change my point of view towards MUUM from time to time. As a result, I had the chance to view architecture both as an intern with no experience, to an office with projects completed for over 5 years.

I also went far before the profession: we spent two weeks at the office with two high school interns who wanted to be architects in the future and wanted to learn more about the profession. During these two weeks, I pondered why I chose architecture, why one should choose architecture as a profession, and what I wanted to do. I passed my experiences to these young people, and I even took lessons for myself from their unexperienced view of architecture – it was very refreshing.

At the end, the internship was completed with work experiences and memories, but it was not finished. Me and my other intern friends were all included in the upcoming works and events of MUUM, as well as being added to their communication circle. In the meantime, we also saw other people whose paths crossed with MUUM at one time in their lives. From now on, our internships are not a faded experience in our lives; instead, it became a path in our journeys.