Requesting Exam Eligibility

Before you can schedule an ARE division, you will need to be made eligible to test by your jurisdiction’s licensing board. Each jurisdiction sets its own rules regarding when you are eligible to take the ARE; in most cases, you can begin testing after completing your jurisdiction’s education requirement. Explore your jurisdiction’s requirements before requesting eligibility.

To request eligibility through your NCARB Record, follow these steps:

1. Log in to My NCARB and click on your NCARB Record
2. Go to “Exams”
3. Click “Request Eligibility”

After our system confirms that you meet your jurisdiction’s requirements, an email will be sent to your board asking them to approve your request. If you have any questions about eligibilities, contact our Customer Relations team for more information.

You will receive a confirmation email immediately after submitting your request with instructions for next steps, and a second confirmation email after your eligibilities have been established. If you don’t meet your jurisdiction’s requirements, you will receive a message indicating why.

Maintaining Exam Eligibility with Your Jurisdiction

You are responsible for maintaining your exam eligibility with your registration board. Because the rules vary from board to board and are subject to change, it is important for you to stay informed of your individual registration board’s policies and procedures. This includes notifying them of any address changes so they can contact you about eligibility renewals or any other important licensure information.

Test Activity Status

Most jurisdictions have implemented a test activity requirement to maintain exam eligibilities. Your eligibilities to test may expire if no attempt to test (pass or fail) has been completed within a five-year period. If your state-based eligibility period expires before you successfully complete all divisions of the ARE, you must contact your board of architecture (or NCARB if you were made eligible to take the ARE through a jurisdiction participating in the Exam Eligibilities Services Program) to establish a new eligibility under the current procedures of the registration board.