I am an architect with a capital A
Eighteen years ago, I was agonizing between the choice to be an architect or a bus driver. On the one hand, bus driver seemed like a very relaxing job where you could be friendly and help little old ladies get places. I imagined I would have regulars that would greet me, and I would know everything about the city so I could direct tourists.
On the other hand, architecture was the combination of art and science, both of which I was fond of. Plus, I imagined I would get to travel a lot as an architect, and that perhaps I could work from home when it was time to become a mom.
I ended up choosing architect, and never looked back (except for a brief time at the end of high school when I considered being a forest ranger instead).
I am proud to say I have just become licensed in the state of California.
Here’s what it took:
- 4-year “Pre-professional” degree from the University of Washington in “Architectural Studies.” Many states won’t allow this anymore, and you must get a M.Arch (a master’s degree in architecture).
- Logged all my hours in all the subjects for the Intern Development Program (IDP), administered by the NCARB. This took about 3.5 years.
- Passed all nine divisions of the Architectural Registration Exam (ARE) — now these have been condensed into seven exams. This took me 14 months.
- Did a bunch more paperwork for the California-specific CIDP program, proving that I learned stuff from doing the IDP.
- Practiced under a licensed architect for 8 years (with some credit toward the 8 years given for my time in school).
- Passed the California Supplemental Exam (CSE), which is now in electronic format instead of oral interview format.
- Paid the registration fee.
- Lots of patience, as the California Architects Board takes its sweet time in between each of these steps.
Now I can finally introduce myself as an architect at parties, without the caveats. That’s why we do this, right?
