While much of your documented experience requires employment by an architecture firm, which is also known as setting A, there are other opportunities to satisfy your Architectural Experience Program® (AXP®) requirements. Setting O includes experience opportunities outside an architecture firm or while working for an architect licensed in a country other than the U.S. or Canada.

There are ten opportunities in which you can gain AXP experience under setting O. In the “Site Visit With Mentor” opportunity, you may earn up to 40 hours in the Construction & Evaluation experience area for visiting construction sites with a licensed architect.  

Why Visit a Construction Site?

You can’t beat a construction site visit for learning how architectural drawings come to life!  Visiting a construction site with the architect involved with the construction project is a great way to grow your understanding of the competencies in the Construction & Evaluation experience area. As you walk the site, look, listen, and ask lots of questions. Consider how the construction documents are used by the contractor, what happens when the contractor has questions about the documents, and the role the architect plays in administering the construction contract.  

Site Visit Expectations

To report experience under this opportunity, the site visit must:  

  • Be outside of a recognized employment setting
  • Provide opportunity for interaction with members of the design and construction industry involved in the project
  • Involve a review and discussion of the project relative to the drawings, including why particular design decisions were made and how the team solved relevant design issues

Though it's ideal for you to see the progress of a job over time, singular site visits with a mentor are also acceptable.

Who Counts as a Mentor?

In order to qualify for the site visit opportunity, the site visit must be led by an architect licensed in a U.S. or Canadian jurisdiction. They do not have to be licensed in the jurisdiction where they or you are located or where the site visit occurs. The architect may be a mentor you already have a professional relationship with—or they could be someone you haven’t met before. Either way, they will serve as your mentor for this experience, providing guidance about an architect's responsibilities during the construction phase of a project. Remember, if this is the first time you’re meeting the architect, you’ll need to get their contact information, add them to your AXP record as a mentor, and then ask them to review and approve your experience report for the site visit. Keep in mind, you are allowed to have more than one AXP mentor at any point in time.  

NCARB offers a variety of other experience opportunities that qualify for AXP credit outside of typical architecture work—including the opportunity to earn experience by completing certain self-directed online courses. Interested in learning more about setting O? Follow along with our setting O series on the NCARB Blog.