According to a new report from NCARB and NOMA’s Building on Belonging study, licensure candidates with disabilities are more likely to face major barriers on the path to licensure than those without. This includes specific challenges related to reporting Architectural Experience Program® (AXP®) experience and taking the Architect Registration Examination® (ARE®).
Earlier this year, NCARB released a survey gathering insights into how disabilities and chronic health conditions affect individuals working toward earning their architecture license. Nearly 2,000 licensure candidates and recently licensed architects completed the survey, revealing significant disparities for candidates with disabilities.
Respondents with disabilities reported more major barriers on the path to licensure than their peers.
Overall, 62% of respondents with disabilities indicated that their condition had directly or indirectly interfered with their ability to complete the requirements for licensure. Additionally, 50% of respondents with disabilities said they encountered major barriers on the path to licensure, compared to 42% of nondisabled respondents.
As a result, respondents with disabilities were generally more likely than their nondisabled peers to say they no longer felt licensure was achievable for them.
Respondents with disabilities were slightly more likely than their peers to face challenges navigating the AXP.
This includes challenges related to receiving mentorship from their supervisor and gaining access to experience in all areas of the AXP. The data also showed that respondents with physical impairments were more likely to report challenges related to their treatment in the workplace, while respondents who were neurodivergent were more likely to report challenges related to their supervisor relationship.
Respondents with disabilities were more likely than their peers to face challenges completing the ARE.
This includes challenges related to staying focused while testing, caring for their physical needs while testing, and applying for and receiving exam accommodations. Thirty-nine percent of respondents indicated they found it difficult to remain attentive throughout their exam appointment—including 26% of nondisabled respondents and 53% of respondents with disabilities. Respondents with physical impairments were even more likely to indicate difficulty remaining attentive at 60%—a 34 percentage point gap.
NCARB currently offers a variety of accommodations for candidates taking the exam, including access to a separate testing room, additional testing time, and additional break time. NCARB will continue to work with exam delivery vendors to enhance this process based on candidate feedback.
To explore these findings in detail, read the Accessibility and the Impact of Disabilities on Architectural Licensure report.
Next Steps
NCARB is in the middle of a multi-year effort to re-envision the process of becoming an architect. Through this initiative, we are working to ensure that the path to licensure is accessible for candidates of all backgrounds. Over the next several years, we will explore opportunities to create additional licensure pathways that might allow candidates to navigate around specific programmatic challenges. The findings from this survey will help inform this work.
About Building on Belonging
In 2020, NCARB and the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) launched Baseline on Belonging, a joint study to identify how underrepresented professionals experience obstacles on the path to licensure. In September 2023, NCARB and NOMA released an action plan to address disparities on the path to licensure identified by the Baseline on Belonging study, including areas for additional research. Since then, NCARB has conducted surveys digging deeper into topics like early licensure awareness, firm support for the experience program, the impact of supervisors and mentors, and licensure accessibility.
