Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Informal poll: do you have a need for LEED?

I may have asked this before, but if I have, then it's been a while, and we have a bunch of new readers here at Intern 101. So I'll ask again:

  • Are you a LEED AP?
  • How many people in your firm are (percentage-wise) LEED APs?
  • Was/is passing the LEED exam a factor in your employment, achievement, or ability to get a promotion at work?
  • Does your firm value having LEED APs? How do they reward or show value to someone who passes the exam?

4 comments:

  1. yes, I am a LEED AP.
    at least 75% in the firm are LEED APs.
    yes, passing the exam was a factor in my achievement and an ability to receive a $300 bonus. also, the company would pay for us to take the exam up to 2 times.

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  2. I am a LEED AP. I am the only one at my office of 8 employees that is LEED AP. I think passing the exam back when I was still in school (havent been out but a year) was actually really a smart thing to do. It garnered attention during my interview process and I have actually put it to good use here at my office. Before I arrived, our office had never worked on a LEED project. We are now working on one and I am the LEED Project Administrator, luckily with a little help from a LEED Consultant, but I have major responsibilities in regards to making sure this project we are doing becomes LEED Certified.
    I was given no promotion for becoming LEED AP, but they have rewarded me with giving me opportunity for valueable experience, which in all honestly is the only thing I really truly want right now.
    I highly recommend it to anybody thinking about it. I don't believe that you have to be a LEED AP to be able to practice sustainability at all, but I think becoming one just puts more emphasis on your dedication to doing so. It shows that you value where the industry is going, not just architecture, but everything. Just as long as you do it because you really value it and understand what it means to your profession then yes its a definitely something to shoot for.

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  3. 1) I'm not LEED AP (or GA)
    2) At my last firm around 30% were LEED AP, with that number trending upwards.
    3) I believe it is a factor, more relevant to some firms than others but it is definitely something I have been asked about in interviews.
    4) My last firm valued it largely because it was good marketing to say "Half our staff are LEED AP's" even if we didn't complete many LEED projects. They would reward passing the exam by offering to pay the exam cost, similar to their practice with ARE's.

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  4. Not sure if my answers count since I recently graduated and am not working yet, but:
    1 - I'm a LEED GA. Took the exam when I was in school, shortly after they'd switched the exam format over (I'd been studying abroad when they made the switch).
    2 - N/A
    3 - I've had a lot of "almost" job offers - before the firms realize they aren't ready to hire again. But each time, my LEED accreditation has impressed those interviewing me. I think it's really helped separate me from the other hundreds of graduates also desperately looking for a job...
    4 - N/A

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