Colorado Real Estate Journal - September 16, 2015
Once again, we have arrived at the end of another amazing Colorado summer. The warm days are giving way to cooler nights and we now turn our thoughts to the start of the new school year. As students return to their classrooms to embark on a new journey of learning and growth, there are changes coming to the licensing rules for architects in the state of Colorado that affect the growth and development of those starting out in the architectural profession. In line with the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards’ recommendations last fall, the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies’ Architect, Engineer and Land Surveyor Licensing Board has adopted revised requirements for architectural internships that reduce the required experience hours across all educational backgrounds, including the NCARB-recommended reduction for those with a NAAB-Accredited degree from 5,600 to 3,740 hours of experience. This requirement is part of a three-legged stool of education, experience and examination. Never ones to shy away from strong opinions, architects have expressed varying levels of support for and opposition to the reduction. Those opposed to the changes cite everything from “the way it’s always been done” to the need for extensive hours of training to gain a broad and meaningful experience on the path to licensure. Those in support voiced a desire to keep the requirements consistent across jurisdictions (Colorado was one of only nine jurisdictions that had not yet adopted the recommended changes) and a sense that quality can be more meaningful and useful than quantity, and not all experience hours are created equal. According to NCARB, the current average amount of time it takes interns to become licensed (experience plus examination) is over seven years. NCARB expects that by streamlining the IDP, this time could be reduced to closer to five or six years. The hours removed from the experience requirement all fall in the “elective” category, while all the primary core experience hours remain intact. Of the 17 core experience areas, many interns fill some with double and triple the amount of time needed while struggling to reach the minimum requirements in others. This statistic begs a larger question that impacts all of us across the design, development and construction industries: If experience is only gained through repetitive tasks over an extended period of time, what are we really teaching our future leaders? Does this model of training provide valuable and robust opportunities for young professionals to explore their profession and develop their skills and interests as they progress in their careers?
Whatever your personal stance, there is certainly an opportunity to reflect upon the quality and type of experience we are providing in our offices. How are we fulfilling our duties in teaching future leaders to be effective, creative, responsible and productive members of their profession and of the larger design and construction community? Are we simply miring them with traditional menial tasks as they “pay their dues,” or are we taking the time to explain why we’ve given them the assignments and tasks we’ve tasked them with in the first place? Are we supporting them in seeking out experiences in different areas, or are we pigeonholing them with tasks they may not have any interest in or that do not enhance their knowledge? The framework of the NCARB Intern Development Program strives to provide well-rounded and broad experiences on the path to licensure. While there is something to be said for just “doing the work” that needs to be done, there also is a tremendous opportunity for licensed professionals to reconsider how they mentor those just starting out. We shortchange ourselves by viewing this revision as a sacrifice of development and learning opportunities. Rather, we should take this opportunity to work with those who will one day take our place and jump-start our mentoring efforts in order to advance and strengthen the architectural profession as a whole. This is an opportunity that reaches far beyond architects alone. Who knows, during this process, maybe we’ll all learn something new. And isn’t that the real promise of those warm and hazy late-summer days?