NCARB

The Architect Registration Examination is one of the most visible parts of the licensure process—but like practice itself, the exam continues to evolve. This episode explores how NCARB updates the ARE and what those changes mean for candidates.

Andy speaks with Jared Zurn, NCARB’s Chief Programs Officer, about the evolution of the exam, recent accessibility improvements, and why the future of licensure requires a more holistic view of education, experience, and examination.

Then, Brent Lance, Chair of NCARB’s Examination Committee, discusses upcoming ARE updates, case study changes, competency alignment, and the research-driven proces...

Experience is essential to becoming an architect—but access to meaningful experience is not always equal. This episode looks at how candidates earn experience today and how firm culture can shape the path to licensure.

Andy speaks with Gabriella Bermea, Chair of NCARB’s Experience Committee, about the Architectural Experience Program, recent AXP updates, and how the program is being aligned with NCARB’s Competency Standard.

Then, Jenny Kawecki joins to discuss what NCARB’s data reveals about attrition, supervisor relationships, firm support, and the challenges candidates face when trying to complete experience requirements.

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Education has long been one of the pillars of architectural licensure—but what does a degree actually demonstrate? This episode examines how education fits into licensure today and why it is central to conversations about access, equity, and competency.

Andy speaks with Jeremy Fretts, NCARB’s Assistant Vice President for Education and Certification, about NAAB-accredited degrees, jurisdictional requirements, and how NCARB’s Competency Standard may create new ways to recognize learning.

Then, Ingalil Wahlroos-Ritter, a licensed architect and educator, shares her perspective from both NAAB-accredited programs and community college education. She discusses affordability, career readiness, profes...

If the current licensure system works for many people, why change it? This episode explores the barriers, disparities, and broader pressures that led NCARB to launch Pathways to Practice.

Andy speaks with Bryan C. Lee Jr., President of the National Organization of Minority Architects, about access, representation, and how systemic barriers shape who enters—and remains in—the profession. Drawing on NCARB and NOMA’s Baseline on Belonging research, the conversation highlights how cost, exposure, and structural inequities affect the path to licensure.

Then, Mike Armstrong, NCARB’s CEO, explains how research, public expectations, evolving technolo...

Before we can understand where licensure is going, we need to understand how it got here. In this opening episode, Andy introduces NCARB’s Pathways to Practice initiative and explores the history of architectural licensure in the United States.

Andy first speaks with Ed Marley, NCARB’s FY26 President, about why NCARB is reimagining licensure and what a more flexible, competency-based future could look like. Then, Amanda Pica, NCARB’s Assistant Vice President of Marketing and Communications, joins the conversation to trace the origins of architectural regulation—from early building failures and public safety concerns to the formatio...

Get an inside look at licensure, regulation, and the initiatives shaping the future of architectural practice. The NCARB Podcast, hosted by Andy McIntyre, Vice President at NCARB, brings together architects, educators, regulators, researchers, and industry leaders to unpack the systems behind licensure—and how those systems are evolving to better serve candidates, the profession, and the public.

Season 1 explores Pathways to Practice, NCARB’s multi-year initiative to reimagine the path to architectural licensure. Across the season, Andy and his guests examine how licensure evolved, where today’s process creates barriers, and how a more flexible, competency-based model could...