Architecture Registration Exams Story: Maria Ross

Welcome to the Architectural Registration Exam (ARE) experience stories series! This series is to share experiences, timelines and advice of professionals that have completed their AREs. We know it can be a daunting task to get started and overwhelming on the number of resources out there. We hope you find this information helpful in organizing how you proceed through your exams. Good Luck!

This is the experience, timeline, and advice from:

Maria Ross, RA

I landed in the architecture world because of my love for art. From childhood, I was always creating three-dimensional art through ceramics, sculptures, fashion pieces, installations, metals and jewelry… it fascinated me that architecture is such an interactive form of design – people use buildings every day and they form the landscape of everything around us. It’s a career where I can still be a 3D artist every day.

I chose to go to college in an urban environment at Drexel to be immersed in a dense, built environment that is so rich with culture and arts where I graduated with my Bachelors of Architecture in 2018. It really encourages creativity and new ideas living here in Philly, which is probably why I’ve lived here for over a decade now.

I started my professional career in 2014, working at a small residential firm for about 3.5 years while completing my school. In 2018 I began working where I still work today, gaining a strong background in community planning, with an emphasis on the design of living environments that include residential amenity clubhouses, housing for aging environments, and multifamily/mixed-use spaces.

“There was so much exam content that I knew from the 5 years of work experience ahead of starting to study for the exams.”

April 1, 2023	In Person	CE	Pass
April 5, 2023	In Person	PcM	Pass
April 6, 2023	In Person	PjM	Pass
April 7, 2023	In Person	PPD	Pass
April 10, 2023	In Person	P&A	Pass
April 13, 2023	In Person	PDD	Pass

I often get asked “why do I need to get licensed?”. Why did you decide that you wanted to be a licensed Architect?

I took my sweet time getting into the exam process. I waited almost 5 years post graduating to start at all. I always had excuses, there was never a “good time” in my life to start and it was really intimidating. It just happened one day – I woke up and decided that I was going to be licensed this year.

Some people say “you need to start ASAP after you get your degree!” and I disagree with that. There was so much exam content that I knew from my years working professionally. Yes, a lot of it is memorization and a lot of it was relearning things I had already knew from college, but the working experience was truly the most useful in passing. I like to tell people that are starting to study that you know way more than you think you know!

What type of study materials did you use? Any particular ones that you’d recommend?

I took a more nontraditional approach to the exams. I used the Amberbook exam prep. It is an online course that I completed in 3 months, although can be done quicker. The curriculum is designed to teach you all of the information you need for all six exams at once, since so much of the material overlaps from test to test.

After I finished the course, I scheduled all six exams within a two-week period and passed them on my first attempt. It was a bit expensive but I think completely worth it for how it got me through it in such a short period of time, especially if you can manage to get your employer to contribute to the cost. The course included practice exams, quizzes, and flashcards which were all split up by exam division. I found those really helpful, along with the free NCARB practice exams on the NCARB website.

How did you fit study time into your schedule? Was there anything in particular that worked well for you?

I work well under pressure, so it helped me to set a deadline and schedule the exams before I was even ready to take them, giving me no choice but to study! I chose January through March to dedicate to studying – I did not plan any trips or make any big plans during those months so I could spend the weekends studying. I probably spent an average of 16 hours per week studying for those three months.

It helped me to actually put “Study 7pm-9pm” on my calendar for week nights and “Study 10am-4pm” on my weekends to really make me commit. I also rewarded myself with a little vacation once it was all over, which was also motivating.

Do you have any other advice for someone studying for their exams?

Don’t announce that you are taking them – it will just build up unnecessary pressure!

We hope that this information helps you through our ARE journey, setting goals, and giving you some insight on how to get started.

Thank you again to Maria Ross for sharing your story!

Edited by

Katelyn Rossier, AIA, NCARB, LSSBB