The pool of candidates pursuing licensure continued to grow in 2024—but the pool of licensed architects fell. While the total number of U.S. architects saw a 4% decrease to 116,000, the number of reciprocal licenses rose to an all-time high of over 150,000.
The number of individuals actively working to become architects rose by 5% to more than 39,000. The number of newly licensed architects (typically between 9-10% of the active candidate pool) held steady at close to 3,600. However, those new architects completed the path to licensure faster than the previous year: On average, it took candidates 12.9 years to earn a license in 2024, approximately 6 months less than in 2023.
Recently, NCARB has implemented several programmatic changes that could impact the state of licensure—including the retirement of the licensing exam’s five-year expiration date on passed divisions, the reinstatement of thousands of previously expired exam divisions, and the launch of free practice exams, which have contributed to higher pass rates.
Typically, 36-38% of candidates stop pursuing licensure over a 10-year period. As NCARB reduces unnecessary impediments and improves accessibility on the path to licensure, we hope to see these changes reflected in attrition rates and licensure statistics in the years to come.
The number of U.S. architects fell by 4%.
The number of U.S. architects fell by 4% in 2024, according to NCARB’s annual Survey of Architectural Registration Boards. This is the first significant drop in several years. Since 2020, the number of architects has hovered close to 120,000; now, there are fewer licensed practitioners in the U.S. than there were prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year’s decline may be a sign that baby boomers (individuals born between 1946-1964), who have long made up a significant proportion of the practitioner population, are beginning to filter out of the pool of architects. However, architects who are over the age of 65 continue to make up nearly 13% of the total architect pool. NCARB has anticipated that the retirement of the baby boomer generation might result in a smaller architect population. As the oldest baby boomers begin to reach their 80s, the number of architects might continue to fall over the next several years before evening out at a “new normal.”
DID YOU KNOW? Traditionally, many older architects have held on to a single license long past their "official" retirement.
The number of active licensure candidates increased by 5%.
The number of candidates actively pursuing licensure continued to rise in 2024. Nearly 40,000 candidates reported experience, took a division of the exam, or both in 2024. This is the highest number of active licensure candidates NCARB has seen since 2018, a sign that the pipeline of new architects is healthy and growing.
Since most active candidates eventually become licensed architects, the increase in the candidate pool suggests that the number of new architects will increase in the years ahead. If enough candidates complete the path to licensure, they could offset any potential decline in the number of architects due to baby boomers’ retirement.
The number of new architects remains unchanged, but candidates are getting licensed faster.
Just over 3,600 licensure candidates finished the path to licensure and became architects in 2024, taking an average of 12.9 years to do so.
This is relatively equal to the number of new architects who earned a license in 2023. Typically, 9-10% of the total candidate pool completes the path to licensure each year, which remains true for 2024.
WHO'S CONSIDERED A "NEW ARCHITECT?" “New architects” refers to individuals who completed their final requirement for licensure in a given year. The last requirement for most candidates is the exam, which is why the number of new architects closely aligns with the number of exam completions.
The average time to complete the path to licensure—including earning a degree, completing the experience program, and passing the exam—fell by 4% in 2024. This is the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic that NCARB has seen a decrease in the time to licensure. As the pandemic’s impact continues to fade, NCARB anticipates that candidates may continue to get licensed slightly faster over the next several years.
However, other factors are at play when it comes to the average time to licensure. NCARB has been working to implement programmatic changes designed to make licensure more accessible, such as retiring the exam’s five-year rolling clock. By removing artificial time constraints on the path to licensure, these changes have the potential to increase the average time it takes to become an architect. That’s why we’re shifting our focus from time to licensure to flexibility of licensure: NCARB believes it’s critical that all candidates can choose a pathway to practice that aligns with their goals, timeline, and experiences.
The number of reciprocal licenses rose by 6%.
Many architects are licensed in more than one state, which allows them to meet existing clients’ needs and expand their potential client base. In 2024, the number of out-of-state (or reciprocal) licenses rose to 150,638—an all-time high—according to NCARB’s annual Survey of Architectural Registration Boards.
While the overall number of reciprocal licenses has generally been trending upward, NCARB has historically seen a pattern of alternating increases and decreases from year to year. In this context, 2024’s growth is likely a part of this pattern as architects respond to ebbs and flows in client demand. If the total number of architects continues to decrease in future years, demand for reciprocal licenses may increase to make up for new gaps in the practitioner pool.
Over 10 years, 38% of candidates stopped pursuing a license.
NCARB tracks candidate activity on the path to licensure to identify potential impediments that might be preventing candidates from becoming architects. While some changes in career plans or professional fields are expected, ideally, NCARB would see a similar level of attrition across demographic groups.
More than a third of candidates stop pursuing licensure over a 10-year period.
In 2024, 50% of individuals who started the path to licensure 5 years ago (in 2020) were still actively working toward earning their license, and 36% were no longer pursuing licensure. For candidates who started the licensure path 10 years ago (in 2015), 27% were still actively working toward earning their license, and 38% were no longer working to pursue licensure.
Compared to 2023’s attrition data, there was a slight decrease in the proportion of candidates who have finished the licensure path at the 10-year mark, as well as a slight increase in attrition for candidates who started the path to licensure 10 years ago. However, for candidates at the 5-year mark, NCARB has seen a slight decrease in attrition—potentially a result of NCARB’s efforts to remove unnecessary impediments on the path to licensure over the past several years.
White candidates are nearly twice as likely as candidates of color to become licensed after 10 years.
While attrition from the licensure path is equal for men and women, there are disparities at the 10-year mark based on racial and ethnic identity. Compared to candidates of color, white candidates are far more likely to be licensed at the 10-year mark. In 2024, 40% of white candidates were licensed after 10 years, compared to 23% of candidates of color.
People of color were also more likely than their white peers to stop pursuing licensure over a 10-year period: 45% of candidates of color fell off the path to licensure, compared to 35% of white candidates.
Additionally, men and women are equally likely to stay on the path to licensure.
When it comes to attrition on the path to licensure, there are no significant disparities between genders at the 10-year mark. Women and men have had nearly equal rates of attrition at the 10-year mark for the past several years. In 2024, 34% of both groups were no longer working toward licensure after 10 years—a drop compared to the 36-37% seen in 2023.
In addition, women have been consistently more likely than men to remain active at the 5-year mark.
WHERE ARE NONBINARY CANDIDATES? Currently, the number of licensure candidates who have identified as nonbinary does not meet NCARB’s standard sample size, which is 30.
Candidates of color are most likely to fall off the path to licensure during the experience program.
For licensure candidates who started their NCARB Record between 5-10 years ago but haven’t earned a license yet, navigating the experience program is the most common pinch point. For both white candidates and candidates of color, 1 in 5 fell off the path while working to complete the AXP.
In addition, a large proportion of candidates stop pursuing licensure before beginning either the AXP or the ARE: 14% of white candidates and 15% of candidates of color start an NCARB Record but never progress further along the path.
Additionally, women and men experience similar rates of attrition at every point on the path to licensure.
When comparing men and women who started their NCARB Record between 5-10 years ago but haven’t earned a license yet, rates of attrition are nearly equal at every stage of the licensure path. Overall, women are 2 percentage points more likely than men to stop pursuing licensure while completing the experience program. Men, by comparison, are 2 percentage points more likely to stop pursuing licensure while taking the exam, and 2 percentage points more likely to stop pursuing licensure before beginning either the AXP or ARE.