Architecture is a broad and varied field, and its practitioners are equally diverse. However, there are a few skills that nearly all architects will share with each other, and which aspiring architects would do well to practice:
While there are a few rare exceptions, individuals with the aim of becoming licensed architects in the United States must attend an architectural school. In order to be licensed in 38 of the 55 US jurisdictions, the school attended must be accredited by the National Architectural Accreditation Board, or NAAB for short. Because of the restrictions that face graduates of unaccredited schools seeking licensure, it is generally not recommended that students go this route.
Prospective students still have quite a bit of choice when it comes to structuring their education, however. According to the website of the NAAB, 137 programs across the country are currently accredited by the Board as of December 2022. Additionally, future architects in the United States have the opportunity to choose between attaining a bachelor of architecture (BArch), or first obtaining a bachelor’s degree in a different or related field, and then going on to complete a master of architecture (M.arch).
In order to call yourself an architect in one of the 55 US states and jurisdictions, it is required that you have a valid and active license from that jurisdiction’s licensing body. According to the National Council of Architectural Licensing Boards, the following criteria must be met by nearly all candidates for licensure in the United States, regardless of jurisdiction:
Once these requirements are met, an individual may apply for licensure through the state or jurisdiction in which they are planning to practice their profession.
As a varied field with many applications, architects can be found in a range of positions and industries. This leads to some variation in the average salary of licensed architects in the U.S. Additionally, individuals who go beyond the base education and licensing requirements to complete a master’s or PhD can expect to earn more than their counterparts. Numbers released by the Bureau of Labor from May 2021, show the current mean annual salary for architects in the U.S. at $91,900.
Additionally, these are the current average salaries for a few different fields within architecture as currently listed by the BLS (May 2021):
These are the wage estimates for architects in the U.S. Please note that the Bureau of Labor Statistics counts naval and landscape architects in separate categories and that they are not included in these numbers.
Individuals hoping to become an architect have a bit of choice regarding the path they choose to achieve their goal. They may either attend an NAAB-accredited program for a bachelor of architecture or first obtain a bachelor’s degree in a different discipline, to be followed by a master’s of architecture.
A high school diploma or general equivalency diploma are required to enter most four year universities in the U.S. Prospective architecture students can bolster their applications by taking classes to prepare them for the field. Future architects can benefit from an enhanced STEM curriculum as well as from art and shop courses, as their discipline combines scientific knowledge as well as an appreciation and practice of design and the arts.
After graduating high school, individuals seeking a future in the field of architecture will need to choose a path. While graduating with a degree from an NAAB-accredited program is a requirement for those seeking licensing in the future, students can choose to either pursue a bachelor of arts in architecture or a master’s of arts in architecture. Because the latter requires a bachelor’s degree to attend, most students choosing this route will attain a BA in a different discipline. Some individuals choose a major that is specifically geared toward their future careers in architecture. Landscape architects may first graduate with a degree in forestry or biology before pursuing their architects’ credentials through a master’s, for example.
An additional requirement for anyone seeking to complete a BA or MA in architecture and go on to the licensing process is the completion of the architectural experience program (AXP). The AXP consists of 3,750 “experience” hours that students must complete before going on to the final exams for licensing.
Students are able to begin their architectural experience program hours as soon as they begin their studies, and will usually take a few years after graduating with an architectural degree to complete all of them.
There is a range of architecture master’s degrees that a person can earn, including:
The architectural registration examination (ARE) is the final step in becoming a licensed architect in the United States and its territories. The current version of the ARE is divided into six divisions, divided into the following categories:
Each division of the ARE is taken on a separate occasion at an official testing site, and all divisions must be completed within the span of five years. Some jurisdictions may require completion within an even shorter time frame.
Because of the different routes an individual can take, there is no set time frame to become an architect.
A recent blog post by the New School of Architecture in New York City estimated that students take an average of seven years to complete a bachelor’s of architecture with all 3,750 hours of practical experience required by the architectural experience program.
Since the architectural registration examination adds more time to the process, prospective architects can expect to spend an absolute minimum of seven years to complete the process.
The field of architecture is quite broad and encompasses many different specializations. Because elementary schools have completely different design needs than hospitals or oil drilling platforms, most architecture firms working today focus on one or several closely related areas.
While this list is by no means exhaustive, it should help as an overview of the diverse roles that modern architects play.
Industrial architects work under the principle of “function over form,” and are responsible for the design of working buildings. An industrial architect may design warehouses, factories, or other facilities that are built to serve a particular purpose. Because of the highly specialized needs of certain styles of structures, an industrial architecture firm may focus very strictly on one particular area. Some industrial architects specialize in the design of chemical plants, for example, and have additional qualifications in the field to qualify to design these complicated structures.
Like their name implies, residential architects are responsible for the design of residential buildings of all kinds. This can mean a high-rise condominium complex in a major city as well as a simple, single-family dwelling in a rural area. Some residential architects work directly with homeowners in the design process of their new homes and are tasked with implementing their particular wishes.
The municipal architect also often works under the title of urban, or city planner. Municipal architects oversee a broad range of construction, repair, and demolition projects in the name of a town, county, state, or municipality.
Depending on their particular expertise and area, municipal architects may oversee anything from the construction of a small city park to a multimillion-dollar sports stadium.
Johannes Stitz is a freelance writer and researcher based in the Southwest. He’s written about various topics in engineering careers. Before turning to freelance writing, he spent nearly a decade in the arts as a booker and event manager.
Environmental engineers apply their math, science, and engineering savvy to prevent and solve environmental problems. One might think such a field is too specialized to offer much professional variation, but there is a wealth of career paths in this high-growth area of the discipline.
Earning a master’s degree in civil engineering can lead to careers in urban and regional planning, landscape architecture, construction management, and surveying, among others.
The cost of energy, the rise of illnesses related to pollution, and most importantly, climate change, have all prompted engineers to come up with sustainable ideas for development and innovation. These ideas range from the construction of residential and commercial buildings designed to be environmentally friendly to the development of new technologies for pollution control, waste disposal, or other public health concerns. Sustainable engineering uses current resources in an optimal manner so that it does not harmfully impact the environment, ensuring that present and future generations live in a safe and healthy world.
While it may be the oldest field of engineering, civil engineering is a field embracing modern approaches and applying them to major problems like urban traffic congestion, water harvesting and purification, and infrastructure deterioration. These professors are helping to lead the way.
Meet 20 professors who teach their students to protect us from environmental threats, and ultimately reduce or eliminate them.