NCARB's FY24 President Jon Alan Baker, FAIA, NCARB, LEED AP, wrote an op-ed for Architectural Newspaper on NCARB's advocacy for multiple paths to architectural licensure. Following up on October's "Pathways to Practice" statement from the NCARB Board of Directors, President Baker's op-ed shares insights from his own licensure path and highlights the need for additional education pathways into the profession.
"To support our efforts to create additional pathways, NCARB has publicly called for a feasibility study for a four-year accredited degree option to assess whether NAAB core requirements could be delivered within a four-year time frame. We have also launched a new initiative called 'Pathways to Practice' to more formally recognize the value of two-year associate degrees, as well as non-degree education, provided through community colleges."
NCARB is committed to improving access to the profession for traditionally underrepresented groups and will continue to work toward revising its existing programs to improve access to licensure. Currently, NCARB is in the middle of a multi-year effort to re-envision the process of becoming an architect. Over the next several years, NCARB's expert volunteers will explore how best to measure and assess competency on the path to licensure—including opportunities to incorporate more flexibility into the core licensure requirements.
