Please forgive me for what I am about to say.
A little context: i'm 63, and not remotely apologetic for drug and alcohol use over the that time. My children, have used stuff, and get together with us on week ends, where beer and mixed Polynesian Potables are made and served.
I'm a general contractor and real estate agent/broker. I took the minimum number of classes to get those certs.
I have never had a fondness for school. (understatement0.
In some old Woody Allen movie, he has a character saying, " Those who can, do. Those who can't , teach. Those who can't teach, teach gym."
I know Hubbard said this, but that doesn't make it untrue: if you want to be an architect, go out and do it.
I barely made it through high school without dropping out.
One of my sons, really really, barely made it through high school.
We, both , live in houses, that we own, that would sell for over a million dollars. We earned the money.
Surprise surprise, in the real world, many people care more about the product that you produce in an agreed upon time frame, than whether you have a piece of paper, saying you survived four years of school.
If it is an architect that you want to be, the best way to do that is to start designing, drawing plans for a client.
Going to school is a via, a very long non shortcut.
If you want to PM me, I can connect you with an architect, with a license, in Newport Beach, CA, where he has a 40 foot boat. Between the two of us, we can give you steps to take to create a career.