The number of U.S. architects is on the rise, according to data released today by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) at its 2015 Annual Business Meeting from its forthcoming NCARB by the Numbers report. The profession is also drawing in more women and minorities. NCARB’s earlier preview of the annual report last month also reviewed the number of architect candidates in 2014 was at a record high.
Additional points in today’s release include:
- U.S. licensing boards reported 107,581 licensed architects in 2014, a 3 percent increase since 2011.
- Women comprised 38 percent of aspiring architects who completed the IDP in 2014, compared to 25 percent in 2000. Women also accounted for 35 percent of candidates who completed the ARE in 2014, a percentage that has nearly doubled since 2000.
- Racial and ethnic minorities comprised 41 percent of aspiring architects in 2014, compared to 22 percent in 2007.
- 37,178 aspiring architects reported experience hours through the Intern Development Program (IDP) and/or tested for the Architectural Registration Examination (ARE) in 2014—the highest number ever recorded by NCARB.
- The average age of an architect upon​ initial licensure was 33.3 in 2014, cutting 2.7 years since 2008.
The full 2015 report, scheduled for release in July, will provide more data on gender and minority numbers in the profession, the status​ of graduates from accredited architecture programs versus non-accredited programs on the path to licensure, and year-over-year completion times for the IDP and ARE.
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