Each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands sets its own education, training, and examination requirements for initial and reciprocal registration in their jurisdiction. Every jurisdiction requires that interns acquire experience under the direct supervision of a registered architect for some period of time.
Most of NCARB’s 54 jurisdictions have adopted the Intern Development Program (IDP) as their training requirement for initial registration.
Interns must acquire 5,600 training hours to satisfy the IDP Training Requirement. One training hour equals one hour of acceptable experience in an IDP work setting.
It is an intern’s responsibility to understand the requirements of any jurisdiction where they may seek either initial or reciprocal registration. More information on jurisdictional requirements can be found here: Registration Boards Requirements.
All participants in the Intern Development Program must adhere to the rules and regulations defined in the IDP Guidelines and the Handbook for Interns and Architects.
Work Settings
To earn training hours, you must be employed in a recognized work setting. [more]
Core Hours
Experience earned in IDP training categories and areas. Core minimum hours are the minimum number of hours you must earn in a given training category or area.
Elective Hours
Experience earned through core hours or supplementary education to satisfy the elective training requirement of 1,880 elective hours.
Note: The minimum training hours in each category do not add up to 5,600. You must earn 1,880 elective training hours to complete the IDP.