Architectural Designer 2

STV Incorporated; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 92,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Flexible Spending Accounts (Healthcare

Dependent Care and Transit and Parking

Disability insurance

Life Insurance and Accidental Death &D

401(k) Plan

Retirement Counseling

Employee Assistance Program

Paid Time Off

Paid Holidays

Back-Up Dependent Care

Parental Leave

Continuing Education Program

Professional Licensure and Society

Job summary

STV Incorporated's Washington, DC Architecture practice seeks an Architectural Designer II with 5–8 years of experience to support transportation, civic, federal, and institutional projects. You will contribute to design development through construction documentation, coordinating with engineering disciplines and project teams to translate design intent into constructible drawings.

The role emphasizes BIM production in Revit, drawing set organization, and detail development, with opportunities

Qualifications

• Professional degree in Architecture from an accredited program.
• 5–8 years of professional architectural experience, with involvement in design development and construction documentation.
• Experience assembling and coordinating architectural drawing sets with drawing hierarchy, cross‑referencing, annotation, scheduling, and the relationship between drawings and specifications.
• Solid knowledge of architectural detailing, building materials, construction assemblies, and constructability principles.
• Working understanding of structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection systems and their interfaces with architectural design.
• Familiarity with applicable building codes, accessibility requirements, life‑safety principles, and conventional construction practices.
• Strong proficiency in Autodesk Revit and ability to manage models and drawings, coordinate with engineering disciplines.
• Ability to interpret architectural and engineering drawings and identify inconsistencies across disciplines.
• Strong attention to detail, organization, and communication; ability to work independently and take ownership of packages.

Responsibilities

• Develop architectural documentation including floor plans, reflected ceiling plans, elevations, sections, enlarged plans, wall sections, details, door and finish schedules, and other project drawings.
• Understand and contribute to the organization, coordination, and completeness of drawing sets across disciplines.
• Develop architectural details addressing interfaces, assemblies, waterproofing, thermal continuity, fire‑rated construction, and installation requirements.
• Coordinate architectural elements with structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and other building systems; resolve conflicts.
• Develop and maintain Revit models, views, sheets, schedules, families, and annotations per BIM standards.
• Participate in interdisciplinary model and drawing reviews to identify discrepancies and resolve coordination issues.
• Support application of building codes, accessibility standards, life‑safety requirements in documentation.
• Evaluate design alternatives and develop practical solutions aligned with design intent.
• Assist with RFIs, submittals, and shop drawings during construction administration.
• Communicate progress and coordination needs clearly while owning assigned drawing packages.

Skills

Attention to detail

Communication

Independent work

Team collaboration

Problem solving

Education

Professional degree in Architecture

Tools

Autodesk Revit

Navisworks

Autodesk Construction Cloud

Rhino/Enscape

Job description

STV’s Washington, DC Architecture practice is seeking an Architectural Designer II with 5–8 years of professional experience to support a growing portfolio of transportation, civic, federal, institutional, and other complex building projects for our Buildings Group. The ideal candidate has a strong foundation in architectural documentation and understands how design intent is translated into coordinated, accurate, and constructible drawings. Beyond proficiency in drafting and modeling, this position requires an understanding of how architectural drawing sets are organized, how building systems come together, and how construction documents communicate the information contractors need to build. Working closely with project architects, designers, and engineering disciplines, the Architectural Designer II will contribute to projects from design development through construction documentation, with opportunities to participate in earlier design phases and construction administration. The role offers increasing ownership of architectural work packages within STV’s collaborative, multidisciplinary project environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Architectural Documentation: Develop architectural construction documents, including floor plans, reflected ceiling plans, elevations, sections, enlarged plans, wall sections, details, door and finish schedules, and other project-specific drawings.
• Drawing Set Development: Understand and contribute to the organization, coordination, and completeness of architectural drawing sets, maintaining consistency among plans, sections, details, schedules, and specifications.
• Constructability and Detailing: Develop architectural details that address material interfaces, building assemblies, waterproofing, thermal continuity, fire‑rated construction, installation requirements, and practical construction considerations.
• Building Systems Integration: Coordinate architectural elements with structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, and other building systems, recognizing spatial conflicts, clearance requirements, and constructability concerns.
• BIM Production and Coordination: Develop and maintain Revit models, views, sheets, schedules, families, and annotations in accordance with project BIM standards and documentation requirements.
• Quality and Coordination: Participate in interdisciplinary model and drawing reviews, identify discrepancies, and help resolve coordination issues before document issuance.
• Code and Accessibility: Support the application of building codes, accessibility standards, life‑safety requirements, and applicable design criteria in architectural documentation.
• Technical Problem‑Solving: Work with project architects and technical leads to evaluate design alternatives, resolve detailing challenges, and develop practical solutions consistent with design intent.
• Construction Administration Support: Assist with responses to RFIs, review of submittals and shop drawings, and documentation of construction‑phase clarifications under the guidance of project architects.
• Team Collaboration: Communicate progress, coordination needs, and unresolved issues clearly while taking ownership of assigned drawing packages and deliverables.

Qualifications Required

• Professional degree in Architecture from an accredited program.
• 5–8 years of professional architectural experience, with substantial involvement in design development and construction documentation.
• Demonstrated experience assembling and coordinating architectural drawing sets, with an understanding of drawing hierarchy, cross‑referencing, annotation, scheduling, and the relationship between drawings and specifications.
• Solid knowledge of architectural detailing, building materials, construction assemblies, and fundamental constructability principles.
• Working understanding of structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection systems and their interfaces with architectural design.
• Familiarity with applicable building codes, accessibility requirements, life‑safety principles, and conventional construction practices.
• Strong working proficiency in Autodesk Revit, including the ability to:o Independently develop and maintain architectural models for design development and construction documentation.o Create, organize, and manage views, sheets, view templates, filters, schedules, legends, and annotation standards.o Model architectural elements accurately, including walls, floors, roofs, ceilings, stairs, doors, windows, and basic curtain wall systems.o Create and modify project‑specific loadable families and edit family types and parameters for common documentation needs.o Work effectively with linked architectural and engineering models, shared coordinates, levels, grids, and coordination views.o Use schedules, tags, parameters, and model‑based documentation tools to improve drawing consistency and reduce duplication.o Identify and resolve common modeling and documentation issues involving visibility settings, worksets, model links, and view coordination.o Produce coordinated drawing sheets suitable for internal quality reviews and formal project submissions.
• Ability to interpret architectural and engineering drawings and identify inconsistencies across disciplines.
• Strong attention to detail, organization, and communication skills.
• Ability to manage assigned work independently, recognize unresolved issues, and seek direction when necessary.

Preferred

• Experience with transportation, civic, federal, institutional, or other technically complex building projects.
• Exposure to construction administration, including RFIs, submittals, shop drawings, and field observations.
• Familiarity with multidisciplinary BIM coordination workflows and model review tools such as Navisworks or Autodesk Construction Cloud.
• Experience developing customized Revit families, schedules, and project templates.
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite; experience with Rhino, Enscape, or similar design and visualization tools is beneficial.
• Progress toward architectural licensure.

Ideal Candidate

Ideal Candidate We are looking for an architectural designer who understands that a construction document set is not simply a collection of drawings—it is a coordinated set of instructions that communicates design intent to the people responsible for building the project. The ideal candidate knows how to develop a drawing set systematically, understands what information belongs in each type of drawing, and recognizes when a detail is incomplete or inconsistent with related plans, sections, schedules, or specifications. They are comfortable working in Revit but understand that BIM proficiency is a means to produce accurate and coordinated documentation, not an end in itself. This individual should demonstrate sound technical judgment, curiosity about how buildings are assembled, and the ability to coordinate effectively with engineering disciplines. They should be capable of taking ownership of assigned drawing packages, identifying potential problems early, and following coordination issues through resolution. The position offers opportunities to deepen technical expertise, gain exposure to complex projects, and grow toward greater responsibility as a Project Architect within STV’s Washington, DC Architecture practice.

This position is not eligible for sponsorship.

Compensation Range

Compensation Range: $91,976.90 - $105,116.46

STV is committed to paying all of its employees in a fair, equitable, and transparent manner. The listed pay range is STV’s good‑faith salary estimate for this position. Please note that the final salary offered for this position may be outside of this published range based on many factors, including but not limited to geography, education, experience, and/or certifications.

Benefits

• Health insurance, including an option with a Health Savings Account
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• Flexible Spending Accounts (Healthcare, Dependent Care and Transit and Parking where applicable)
• Disability insurance
• Life Insurance and Accidental Death & Dismemberment
• 401(k) Plan
• Retirement Counseling
• Employee Assistance Program
• Paid Time Off
• Paid Holidays
• Back-Up Dependent Care
• Parental Leave
• Continuing Education Program
• Professional Licensure and Society Memberships

STV is one of the top infrastructure‑focused professional services firms in North America. Founded in 1912, STV advises, plans, designs, engineers and delivers the infrastructure that powers local economies, including transportation systems, buildings, water and other facilities. Headquartered in New York City, the company has more than 65 offices and 3,400 employees who reimagine the solutions and structures that connect our communities. The firm is ranked 32nd in Engineering News‑Record’s Top 500 Design Firms survey and is 10th in its transportation category. STV is deeply committed to investing in its people and creating a world‑class employee experience. We are passionate about mentoring, coaching and cultivating our talent because we know they are destined to become the next generation of industry leaders. We’re also committed to delivering formative career experiences – and we do that by providing challenging and unique work experiences, by mapping multiple ways to advance (beyond the traditional career ladder!) and by recognizing those who successfully chart new and exciting paths for the firm. We value a wide range of perspectives and experiences, without regard to any factor or characteristic, regardless of whether it is a category protected by federal, state and/or local law, making them an integral part of how we work. Our approach ensures that every individual is respected, heard, and given opportunities to contribute meaningfully. We remove barriers and create pathways for growth, embedding fairness into our daily operations. Learn more atstvinc.com. STV exists to make communities better through innovative solutions that connect people, places and the present to the future.

STV provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.