Please note: This page was last updated on February 4, 2021.

Throughout the pandemic, NCARB has monitored the impact of the coronavirus on the Architect Registration Examination® (ARE®) and issued several temporary policy changes for exam candidates.

Current Exam Status

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the delivery of the ARE at some in-person test centers around North America. The ARE is currently being offered at available Prometric test centers, as well as via online proctoring.

If you are testing in-person, please keep in mind the following:

  • Candidates may still experience test center closures. As regional restrictions and instances of positive COVID-19 cases at test centers require, Prometric may cancel ARE appointments with short notice.  You can check Prometric’s list of closed test centers on their website.
  • If your exam appointment is canceled, Prometric will contact you informing you that your appointment has been canceled. Please confirm that your contact information in your NCARB Record is up-to-date and add Prometric as a safe sender in your email settings. NCARB will provide you with a seat credit allowing you to reschedule the canceled division or any other division.   
  • If you are testing in-person, keep in mind that you must wear a mask at the test center at all times. This can be a cloth or medical grade mask and cannot have an exhale valve. If you arrive at your test center without a mask, you will not be allowed to test and will not be offered a free seat credit to reschedule. Prometric staff must also wear a mask at all times. If you encounter staff at your test center who are not wearing a mask, please contact Prometric.
  • Prometric test centers are enforcing social distancing in compliance with state or other local restrictions. Your test center may not follow social distancing standards if not required by law. You can check to see if your test center is enforcing social distancing by contacting them in advance, or checking the status on Prometric’s website. In most cases, test centers that are social distancing will be listed as “Limited Occupancy.”
  • If you are diagnosed with COVID-19 within 14 days of your appointment or are experiencing cold or flu-like symptoms, please reschedule your appointment. If you are diagnosed or experience symptoms within three business days of your appointment and are unable to reschedule, please contact us as soon as possible.
  • Prometric will notify any individuals who may have been exposed to the virus while at a Prometric test center based on the timing of a known infected individual’s presence at the specific location.

Online proctored appointments are also available for all ARE divisions. If you are testing online, please keep in mind the following:

  • You are responsible for meeting all system and environmental requirements for online proctored appointments. If you cannot meet these requirements, do not plan to test via online proctoring. Read the requirements
  • Once you’ve set up your testing environment, you can use NCARB’s test run resource to schedule a free, 30-minute trial appointment with Prometric to confirm your computer and testing space meet the requirements for online proctoring. Learn more
  • NCARB understands that requiring an external webcam may create an additional expense for candidates. To help offset this, NCARB will provide all candidates who schedule their first online appointment a $50 prepaid card.  
  • With online proctoring, you can schedule appointments 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. However, appointment times are open to all candidates in Prometric’s larger testing network, so certain time slots may be limited.

Previous Updates

  • NCARB issued a total of a 15-month rolling clock extension to all exam scores that were valid as of March 1, 2020. This ensures that no exam scores are impacted by the rolling clock until June 2021 at the earliest.
  • NCARB automatically administered a 15-month extension to all “Test Activity Status” dates for ARE candidates to align with the combined rolling clock extensions. Your Test Activity Status is tied to your exam eligibilities as granted to you by your licensing board.
  • Rescheduling fees were waived from mid-March through December 31, 2020. Starting January 1, 2021, rescheduling fees were reinstated at a reduced rate.
  • To enable online proctoring, NCARB made several changes to the exam’s format and navigation. These updates impact all future exam appointments, whether in person or online. Read more

We encourage you to reach out to us for assistance if you have any questions or concerns regarding our services. Our staff is here to support you online or at 202-879-0520. As a reminder, our normal business hours are Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. (ET).

Thank you for your ongoing patience and support.