Now is the best time to get licensed, they say. You have all this extra time for studying, they say. Well, that might not be the case if you’ve been furloughed or negatively impacted this year. Fortunately, some AIA chapters have found ways to be of assistance with exam fee relief programs.
In September, we hosted a panel discussion on ARE Live surrounding this ever-present issue of passing the ARE during stressful times. One of our panelists, Jenny Kivett, suggested candidates pursuing licensure with financial hardship reach out to their AIA chapter to inquire about exam fee relief to reduce the overall ARE cost, as she did. "The AIA Colorado Licensure Advancement Fund is a great opportunity for anyone struggling during the COVID economy but still determined to achieve their ARE goals. The stress of the exams is enough without the added financial burden - this fund was the relief I needed, and helped me cross the finish line during very stressful times," she said.
These chapters each have different qualifications and offerings for recipients, all with the unified goal of increasing accessibility to licensure for candidates. Some of the known chapters with funds are:
Colorado - “The Licensure Advancement Fund is a new initiative of AIA Colorado, supported by the launch sponsor The Architectural Education Foundation, to help AIA Colorado Associate members experiencing economic hardship from the COVID-19 pandemic to continue on the path to licensure.”
Minnesota - “The Minnesota Architectural Foundation (MAF) is providing support to members of the architectural community and recent graduating students seeking professional licensing during the economic slowdown.”
San Francisco - “The ARE Challenge Scholarship Program recognizes that the effort and expense of the architectural licensing process as a barrier to achieving this professional milestone and disproportionately affects candidates of historically underrepresented identities in the profession. In light of the extremely challenging and economically unstable conditions that we are collectively facing, AIASF Equity by Design has established financial assistance scholarships for licensure candidates who are eligible to take the ARE exams.”
As AIA chapters nationwide are aplenty, please write in to inform us of other chapters with exam fee funds and scholarships; it is our goal to make this resource comprehensive to help lower the cost of the ARE for as many future architects as possible.