Six-Month Rule—Are You Ready?
The Six-Month Rule will go into effect for all interns at 12:01 a.m. EDT on 1 July 2010. The Six-Month Rule is already in effect for interns that established an NCARB Record on or after 1 July 2009.

If you established your Record prior to 30 June 2009, you must submit all previous experience earned prior to 12:01 a.m. EDT on 1 July 2010. Experience reported on or after 1 July 2010 that falls outside of the requirements of the Six-Month Rule will not be accepted if it has not been submitted to your supervisor. Your supervisor does not need to approve it by this date.

The Six-Month Rule requires interns to submit their training hours in reporting periods of no longer than six months and within two months of completion of each reporting period. Once interns have submitted their training hours to their supervisor through the electronic Experience Verification Reporting (e-EVR) system in My NCARB Record, those hours are protected while under review. To be protected, you must have a "submitted" status on the upper right of the report. A report that has a "saved" status is not protected.

Interns will not be affected by any delay caused by their supervisor or NCARB. However, submitted training hours can be lost if they are deemed invalid by their supervisor, or if they are not earned in accordance with the rules of the IDP.

Extensions are available for the birth or adoption of a child, military service, or serious medical condition. An extension form with supporting documentation must be submitted to NCARB. Extensions apply only to the experience-filing period. There are no exceptions or extensions granted for missing the deadline to establish an NCARB

Record by 1 July 2009 or the 12:01 a.m. EDT 1 July 2010 deadline in accordance with the requirements of the Six-Month Rule.

The Six-Month Rule is designed to encourage better supervision, encourage interns to target the needed experience sooner, and encourage better reporting habits. Six months is the maximum amount of time in which to report. NCARB encourages interns to report more frequently.

IDP 2.0: Phase Three Set for January 2011
The third phase of IDP 2.0 will go into effect in January 2011 and will usher in changes to the Intern Development Program (IDP) work settings and experience areas. While the overall experience requirement will remain the same in terms of actual work hours (5,600), the distribution of the core minimums will be slightly different. For those in the midst of completing the program, previously entered training hours will be automatically reassigned to the appropriate area, and no experience will be lost.

The new experience areas are based on the results of the 2007 Practice Analysis of Architecture. As the most in depth study of its kind, the Practice Analysis provided up-to-date, empirically derived data that defines the comprehensive experience essential for competent practice of architecture upon initial licensure. The study identified 88 tasks and 100 knowledge/skills that are important for competent performance by recently licensed architects practicing independently. Each of the IDP 2.0 experience areas will be defined by the tasks an intern should be able to perform upon completion of their internship.

The development of IDP 2.0 also presented an opportunity to clarify and simplify the acceptable settings for earning IDP credit. The current seven work settings will be combined into three acceptable experience settings in IDP 2.0. They are:

• A: Architectural Practice
• O: Other Work Settings
• S: Supplemental Experience

Experience earned under the direct supervision of an architect while working at an architecture firm (work setting A) will be considered experience area "A: Architectural Practice." Experience earned under the direct supervision of a licensed engineer, currently (work setting D) will continue to be acceptable experience under "O: Other Work Settings." All experience earned in the current work settings will be moved to their related experience setting in IDP 2.0. No experience will be lost.

For more information on the third phase of IDP 2.0, read the Spring 2010 Direct Connection, which includes the all the new experience areas and how they compare to the current areas.

How to Earn Supplementary Education Training Hours
With the introduction of IDP 2.0, NCARB introduced more possibilities for interns to earn IDP experience whether or not they are employed. Most of the additions fall under supplementary education, which are activities that can be completed outside of the work place. In most cases, you do not need to be employed to earn credit. All supplementary education activities can be reported through the e-EVR under the "My Supplementary Education" tab.

AIA Continuing Education
One AIA learning unit equals one IDP training hour. Examples of activities that can be completed through AIA Continuing Education are NCARB's mini-monographs (free for Record holders!), NCARB monographs, and reading articles in Architecture Record. To earn credit, you must report the activity to AIA's Continuing Education reporting system, enter the required information into NCARB's e-EVR under My Supplementary Education, and upload a copy of your AIA Continuing Education transcript to the e-EVR. NCARB cannot approve these submissions until they are verified on your AIA transcript.

Emerging Professionals Companion (EPC)
You can earn up to 40 core minimum training hours in each of the 16 IDP training areas for the competent successful completion of EPC Application Activities. All other Application Activities and Practice Exercises can be completed for supplementary education credit. You do not need to be employed to earn credit for activities and exercises completed after 1 July 2009. Either your IDP supervisor or mentor can sign off on EPC activities and exercises.

Certificate Programs
You may earn 40 training hours by passing the LEED AP, or CSI Construction Document Technologist (CDT), Certified Construction Specifier (CCS), or Certified Construction Contract Administrator (CCCA) certification exams. A copy of your accreditation must be uploaded to the e-EVR. You do not need to be employed to earn credit.

NCARB Professional Conduct Monograph
Interns employed or not, may earn 16 minimum (core) training hours in Training Area 15 - "Office Management" by reading the NCARB Professional Conduct Monograph and passing the related quiz. You can download the monograph for free in My NCARB Record.

Post-Professional Degree
You can earn 936 training hours in supplementary education for completing a post-professional degree after earning a professional degree in architecture from a program accredited by NAAB or CACB. Credit hours must be in subjects evaluated by NCARB as related to architecture. You do not need to be employed to receive credit.

Read the January 2010 IDP Guidelines or visit NCARB's web site for more information on supplementary education.

IDP 2.0: Phase Two
For more information on all of the changes to the IDP that went into effect on 1 January 2010, refer to the January 2010 IDP Guidelines and the December 2009 special edition IDP e-News.
 
Updated IDP and IDP Supervisor Guidelines
Several updates to the Intern Development Program (IDP) went into effect on 1 January 2010 as part of phase two of IDP 2.0. All the changes can be found in the January 2010 IDP Guidelines, and IDP Supervisor Guidelines.

NCARB Expert Series
NCARB staff may be coming to a school, firm, or AIA chapter near you! Through NCARB's expert series, our staff will explain how NCARB works as an organization, how to successfully progress through the IDP, how to obtain a license, and the value of an NCARB Certificate. They will also explain all the new and upcoming rule changes affecting NCARB's programs and services and answer your questions.

Events will be posted on our home page. Some events listed (particularly those held at a college campus or a firm) may be closed events. Please check with the contact person for event details.

Not coming to location near you? Contact Martin Smith at msmith@ncarb.org to find out about NCARB outreach opportunities. Also, check out our webcast and podcast series for more information on NCARB programs.

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