April 12, 2016 by Kimberly Tuttle

Many of you will decide to go into traditional practice and many of you will venture off and create your own path. Whether that’s in marketing, construction management, research, interior design or something completely unrelated to architecture, an architectural license is still a very valid and helpful tool in your career.

You’ve all heard the spiel several times. Heck – you’ve probably heard me give you the licensure talk. NCARB only comes to your school once every two years, maybe once a year – if you’re lucky (cue eye roll). Hear me out though.

Many of you may not understand what you need to be doing, which equates to missing out particularly on the easy opportunities.

This is where a Student Architect Licensing Advisor comes in handy. This person is trained and updated each summer at the NCARB Licensing Advisors’ Summit. And you know what? In the past, NCARB has completely funded students to attend this event. Yes, I said completely funded – plane ticket, hotel, transportation and registration costs – essentially a FREE networking/educational trip to a cool city every summer. This summer’s in Chicago.

So what are the benefits of having this role involved within the AIAS?

  • IDP (Intern Development Program) updates
    • You might have heard that IDP is evolving and will be called the Architectural Experience Program (AXP) starting in June of 2016, right? Well, your Student Licensing Advisor would also be able to tell you to get your leadership and service hours reported NOW, as you will no longer be able to record those hours as of June 29, 2016! The hours already in your record as of that date will roll over and count in the ­­­­Practice Management area, but you will not be able to add more hours after that date. Think of all that volunteer work you have been doing with the AIAS – chapter leadership, planning events, Freedom By Design, attending Grassroots and FORUM. You should get those hours reported now.
  • Starting your NCARB record
    • Is the process confusing, you don’t know where to start or aren’t sure how to report those hours? A Student Licensing Advisor is trained up on this as well, and can even host sessions for your AIAS chapter about how to get started.

I’m interested in signing up for this role. What’s in it for me?

  • Networking
    • Each summer at the Licensing Advisors’ Summit over 250 professionals from around the country get together to talk about licensure. It’s not as boring as you would think. Trust me! I attended these events for several years before I worked for NCARB, and it was as inspiring to me as FORUM and Grassroots.
  • FREE Registration to FORUM and Grassroots
    • NCARB currently covers the registration costs for two Student Licensing Advisors at each conference. It’s something that you have to apply for, so look for details in the months approaching each event.
  • Professional Development
    • Many of the sessions offered at the Licensing Advisors’ Summit are considered American Institute of Architects (AIA) Health Safety and Welfare (HSW) continuing education credits. What this means for you: AXP (IDP) hours!
  • ARE insider information
    • You get a first-hand view of what’s coming down the pipeline in regards to the licensure process. Thinking about starting to take the ARE soon? Come listen to what’s happening in the testing world and how it affects you.
  • Another connection between administration/faculty and the students
    • While the role of the Student Architect Licensing Advisor may sound a little scary in terms of what’s expected, you’re not alone. Each NAAB accredited program is required to have a faculty member in the role of the Educator Architect Licensing Advisor, formerly known as an IDP Coordinator. This means that if you can’t answer a question, there is a faculty member that you can turn to.

I’m the Chapter President, how do I appoint someone to this role?

That’s the easy part. When NCARB set out to start including students, they wanted the student to be appointed by the student body. Just as you select your Chapter Leadership in the elections – you can either elect a student into this position, or the Chapter President can appoint the person.

Once the student has been selected, the Chapter President sends an email to advisors@ncarb.org with the information:

I, (name), Chapter President of AIAS (school name), appoint (student advisor) to the role of Student Licensing Advisor for AIAS (school name) for the 2016-2017 school year.

Student Licensing Advisor
Name
Email
Phone Number

Sincerely,
AIAS Chapter President

Are you interested in becoming a Student Licensing Advisor or appointing one?

Join NCARB’s webinar, “Student to Student: Advising Your Peers,” on Thursday, April 13 at 3pm EDT. Register here.