Morgan State University’s School of Architecture and Planning becomes the first HBCU to adopt NCARB accelerated licensing program
The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) found that in 2021, Black women made up less than 1 percent of the total practicing architects in the United States. Additionally, Black architects on the path to licensure spent approximately 13.8 years obtaining licensure, while the overall average within the profession is at its earliest seven years, it hovers around 13 years for most applicants.
The NCARB and HBCU Morgan State University School of Architecture and Planning (SA+P) are taking steps to change this with the Integrated Path to Architectural Licensure (IPAL), an accelerated pathway to licensure that allows students to get a head start on the lengthy licensure process while also completing their coursework. Baltimore’s Morgan State University SA+P will become the first HBCU to offer the IPAL program to its students.
Founded in 2015, the IPAL “represents NCARB’s response to the ever-evolving pathways to licensure and our support of a more diverse and inclusive profession,” according to its program handbook. Whereas many architects start on the path to licensure after graduation, the IPAL program allows students to complete the experience and examination components of the architecture licensure process while earning their degree; students benefit from a structured approach to completing the Architectural Experience Program (AXP) and passing the Architect Registration Examination (ARE), which are required by the NCARB. As a result, students will be able to graduate licensed. Two recent Auburn University graduates completed the required hours and six-part examination in record time, just 10 months after receiving their bachelor degrees. The two speedy students worked throughout college, during winter and summer break, and began studying for the licensure exam in January, upon completion of the 3,740 logged work hours.
In order to adopt the IPAL program, schools must submit a proposal, which is then reviewed by NCARB’s Education Committee. Morgan State SA+P currently offers three National Architecture Accrediting Board (NAAB) accredited M.Arch programs, a prerequisite for incorporating the IPAL program. The university is the second this summer to join the roster of 31 programs at 25 colleges across the country participating in the program, closely following the Academy of Art University’s School of Architecture, which adopted the program in late July.
Recently the NCARB has made an effort to understand disparities across demographics on the road to architecture licensure. In 2020, the board partnered with the National Organization of Minority Architects (NOMA) to launch Baseline on Belonging, a joint study examining the experience of minority professionals and the obstacles they face when working toward their license. Key findings in the NCARB and NOMA studies suggest there is still much progress to be made, including those from a report published by the professional organizations earlier this year, which stated women of color and architects over the age of 40 were the most “likely” demographics to experience restraint in pursuit of their architecture education and career, cost was cited as the most prohibitive hurdle. NOMA joined forces with test prep provider Black Spectacles to offer discounted study resources to minority architects taking the ARE.
To mitigate those hardships and expand inclusivity the NCARB has since implemented a number of measures. Last month, the organization launched testing accommodations for non-native English speakers taking the Architecture Registration Examinations and in June, the NCARB announced the potential enactment of a licensure reciprocity agreement with the United Kingdom’s Architects Registration Board (ARB), which would allow architects from each country better access to opportunities, work, and contacts across the pond.
