#468, an international path to licensure
By Heba Bella
Licensed 2019

I’ll start my story a few years before I started the AREs, in Spring of 2012. I made a big decision; I was accepted into the Master of Architecture program at The Washington Alexandria Architecture Center (WAAC) of Virginia Tech, and I decided to go for it. At the time, I was working in Dubai, and had graduated a year earlier from university in a nearby city called Sharjah. In two months, I would need to quit my job, pack my life in a couple of suitcases, and find a new place to live near Alexandria, VA. At the time, I had no idea what AREs even stood for! Continue reading →

The Post-Passing Blues
Jordan Rhodes
Licensed 2019

Setting: Me sitting in the testing center looking at computer screen
Thank You…blah blah blah…Would you like to view the provisional feedback on your performance today? I literally submitted my answers with 40 seconds left. I really shouldn’t have moved up this exam. I wonder how close I am this time. I’m SO ready for a nap. What am I doing still sitting here?

I click Yes, View Feedback.

Provisional Feedback. This feedback…blah blah blah…Based on the preliminary assessment, you will likely pass this division. This concludes your test administration. Please collect your… WHAT! Based on the preliminary assessment, you will likely PASS this division. How in the world? I don’t remember checking out of the testing center or taking the elevator down to the lobby. My next memory is of me sitting in my car thinking I’m really done…What’s next? Continue reading →

Sudden Focus to Conquer the AREs
Smitha C. Vasan
Exams Completed 2018

With new rules for the licensing process, professionals can now complete their exams before their internship hours or other state requirements are completed. As the goal of ArchStories is to capture personal stories about the exam process, we may occasionally post stories from professionals who are not licensed yet, but on their way. This post comes from one such person, Smitha Vasan who completed her exams in 2018 and is working to complete her other licensure requirements by within the next year.

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I remember how I began to study for the AREs. Upon graduating in 2017, I already had it in mind to complete the exams as quickly as possible, thanks to a few select mentors. What I didn’t expect was the one experience, during my first summer working full time, that would fuel my determination and propel me to accomplish my goal. Continue reading →

Friends, Fears, Fulfillment
Valarie Franklin
Licensed 2014

Failure is something that many people fear. It can hinder people from pursuing their dreams. For Valarie Franklin, her fears actually propelled her forward. For her, getting her license represented a milestone in her architecture career that was a personal requirement. The path to get her license was long, but her determination fueled her toward this accomplishment despite her fear of not accomplishing her goal. Continue reading →

Check The Box
Deanna Van Buren
Licensed 2018

For Deanna Van Buren, getting licensed was a box she need to check to pursue the work important to her. She left corporate firms and founded her first company, FORUM design studio, in 2011. She spent a year as a Loeb fellow at Harvard University, researching the impacts of art and design within the public realm from 2013-2014. Then in 2015, she co-founded her current firm, Designing Justice Designing Spaces to use “architecture, design, and real estate development to attack the root causes of mass incarceration.” To fully take charge of the projects she wanted to do, Deanna needed to have her architecture license. This was not something that was not on her mind. Deanna started the process in 2007. She found the process and structure of the exam frustrating. This led to her focusing on other parts of her career and life. As she gained success in her work and had opportunities for her firm to be the lead architect on projects, having a license was more important and a necessity. She also realized the exam passes she had received earlier were going to expire. In 2016, Deanna channeled the same drive and passion for her work to get through the exam process. Continue reading →

Getting My Black Pin
Melanie Ray
Licensed 2018

Photo by Angela King.

Back in October, I attended the 2018 NOMA conference in Chicago. Along with being one of the busiest weekends of the season, it was also the most memorable. Exactly one year prior, I stood up when all of the ARE candidates were asked to be recognized during the general meeting. Exactly one year later, I was standing at the front of the banquet hall during the traditional ‘pinning’ ceremony, receiving my black NOMA pin from the same person who asked me to stand the year before, 2019 NOMA President Kimberly Dowdell. The black pin signifies that a member is a licensed architect. The timing is what is most striking about my story. Continue reading →

Conquering the ARE with Friends
Shelly-Anne Tulia Scott
Licensed 2011
Written March 2017

My ARE journey is built on perseverance, dedication, friendship, sadness and joy, all toward the culmination of being a registered architect. I became eligible to take the exam in April 2008 which was then 9 exams so I decided to wait until March 2009 so I could take the 7 part exam. I took my first exam on April 06, 2009 and my last on December 04, 2010 and finally got all paperwork in February 2011. I decided to take my exam through Florida since they allowed you to start taking the exams before completing IDP. I kicked it off with a bang taking Construction Documents first and passing. When I got out of the exam I was so confident, I felt that there was nothing more I could do so I had to have passed. Keeping the momentum going I took PPP and SPD next and failed both. It was like a kick in the butt. I had no recollection of failing any exam before in my life and it hit me really hard. I contemplated whether architecture was really for me and if I even needed to bother.
Continue reading →

Not getting licensed was not an option
Anna McCorvey, RA, LEED AP BD+C
Licensed 2016

To license or not to license, that was NEVER a question. To me, licensure was a integral part of the architectural journey: that seal attests to your ability and legitimacy.

When I finally finished my masters in city planning from UC Berkeley, the mission was clear; get licensed. In fact, I cut my educational aspirations a bit short in order to quickly return to the workforce. I intended to pursue a dual degree in planning and law (part of my master plan), but that would have put me out of the architectural workforce for 5 years; I had already taken a year “off” and the program was 4 years long.

When I finally began testing, I jumped into it head first and got into a good groove. A great groove actually. Until I failed my first exam; construction documents and services. I failed that one twice and it was the only one I failed. I felt so comfortable with the material. It boggled my mind that I wasn’t passing the exam. The vignettes were the culprit so I spent more time practicing those. It was smooth sailing after I finally got over that hump. It was stressful, but not horrible. My friends missed me, but they were always in my corner cheering me on. That would be my bit of advice. Find a good support system of friends and loved ones that will not feel slighted when you need to disappear for a while, but who are still there when you need a break!

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Learn more about Anna here.

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What ARE We Doing?
By Kimberly Dowdell
Licensed 2013
Written 6/26/2013

I definitely dumped my boyfriend because passing my last Architect Registration Exam (ARE) division had me beyond stressed out. It was not the only issue in our relationship, but it was big enough to put me over the edge. Having not been among the lucky few to pass all of my exams on the first attempt (or second in some cases), I built up a lot of anxiety over the situation. I had never experienced such disappointment, frustration, anger, fear and anguish in my entire life. I am not even kidding…it was rough. The only people who understood what I was going through were those who’ve done it, which is such a small percentage of my network that practically no one got it. Most people would listen to me complain and stare blankly at me. “It’s just a test, you can do it…didn’t you go to Cornell?” Umm, yes I am smart, but this test isn’t about being smart. For me, the ARE was about being resilient. I am very grateful that I made it through with my sanity and health mainly in tact. I thank God for the perseverance to keep getting back up again after being pushed down and around by the infamous Architect Registration Exam for nearly four years.

Continue reading →

When I first earned my license in 2010, I wrote a list of 11 do’s and don’ts that I though would helpful for those following behind me.

ARE Do’s AND Don’ts
Katherine Williams
Licensed 2010

As a newly licensed architect, I feel it is only right that I share what I have learned over the 3 years I have been testing. I wrote a short list. Use this as you see fit.

1. DO research your state requirements including fees, now and ongoing.
2. DO apply for eligibility as soon as you can and start studying.
3. DO create a line item in your personal budget for test fees, study materials, state registration fee, NCARB fee…. (If your firm pays, great, but still put something in your savings, just in case. Consider this your prize money at the end of your journey if you don’t need it.)
4. DON’T move across the country in the middle of the process. Not only does it interrupt the process, now you have to think about reciprocity or applying in a new state.
5. DON’T wait a year between tests. Momentum. Gone.

Continue reading →