Design Architect | Dubai, UAE | Design-Led Studio

A leading Dubai-based design studio is looking for a Design Architect to join its growing team and work primarily across the conceptual and schematic stages of projects. This role is ideal for someone who thrives in the early stages of design, shaping ideas, exploring possibilities, and translating ambitious briefs into clear, compelling architectural proposals.

You will work closely with senior leadership and project leads on competitions, masterplans, cultural districts, waterfront developments, and high-end residential projects across the UAE and the wider region. Your work will help shape how projects are conceived, presented, and won, from the first sketch through to the handover package for the technical team.

The studio is looking for someone with a strong design voice and the craft to support it. Someone who can develop ideas through massing, planning, sections, and visual storytelling, and bring concepts to life in a way that resonates with clients, juries, and collaborators alike.

Responsibilities

• Lead and contribute to concept and schematic design across competitions, masterplans, and live projects under the direction of senior leadership and project leads.
• Develop massing, planning, and design strategies that respond to site, climate, brief, and cultural context.
• Produce drawings, diagrams, and imagery that communicate design ideas clearly, including plans, sections, axonometrics, renders, and sketches.
• Support the development of client presentations and competition submissions in collaboration with visualisation and graphics teams.
• Collaborate closely with the wider design team through reviews, workshops, and internal design discussions.
• Assist with the handover of concept and schematic packages to the technical team, ensuring the original design intent is maintained.
• Mentor junior designers and contribute positively to the studio’s design culture.

Requirements

• 3 to 8 years of experience as a practising architect, with strong exposure to concept and schematic design within a recognised design-led studio.
• A portfolio demonstrating strong design thinking, spatial awareness, and visual communication skills across a range of scales and typologies.
• Strong Rhino skills, with confidence using Grasshopper for massing studies and parametric exploration.
• Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite, particularly InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop, for presentations and design communication.
• Strong visualisation and representation skills, with the ability to move fluidly between sketches, hand drawings, SketchUp, Enscape, V-Ray, or similar tools.
• Experience using AI tools within the design workflow for concept exploration and image generation.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to clearly articulate design ideas and narratives.
• Strong curiosity for place, culture, and context, with the ability to translate research into meaningful design responses.
• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Architecture from an accredited institution.
• Currently based in the UAE or open to relocating.

What’s on Offer

• Relocation package to support your move to Dubai.
• The opportunity to work on high-profile projects across the UAE and wider region.
• A highly creative and design-led studio environment where concept development is genuinely valued.
• Direct collaboration with senior leadership and experienced design teams.
• Access to advanced AI and digital design tools.
• A collaborative culture that values creativity, curiosity, and strong design thinking.

Please note: this is a Dubai-based position and requires relocation. A relocation package is provided.