Under the current licensure process, candidates typically complete some combination of the same three components: earning a degree in architecture, documenting related experience, and passing a national licensing exam. Through Pathways to Practice, NCARB is reimagining the licensure process—exploring new methods of assessing competency that have evolved thanks to advancements in technology and practice.
Over the past several years, members of NCARB’s Licensure Process Research & Development Task Force, along with other members of the NCARB volunteer community, have researched a range of assessment methods, from self-guided courses to virtual reality-based exams to work sample-based evaluations. While not all of these assessment methods are feasible options within the next few years, exploring each possibility has allowed NCARB to consider where the licensure process is now, how it could evolve in the near future, and what new opportunities could have a future licensure process look like a decade from now.
As NCARB develops Pathways to Practice, we hope to offer a modular, competency-based approach to licensure that fairly and accurately assesses an individual’s ability to practice safely and independently. By providing a larger variety of assessment methods and greater flexibility in how candidates demonstrate their competency, NCARB can ensure that individuals of all educational and career backgrounds have a pathway to architectural practice while still maintaining the level of rigor needed to protect the public. Learn more about how the assessment methods will be tailored to the competencies outlined in the NCARB Competency Standard.
NCARB’s volunteers are in the process of refining a draft of the future licensure process and building prototypes of potential assessment methods that incorporate feedback from our members, volunteers, architects, and licensure candidates. We’ll share more updates on what a modular licensure process will look like in the months and years ahead, so stay subscribed to NCARB’s newsletters to learn more.
