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:
Levi Pfeil, AIA
Levi is a Project Architect at Co-Op Architecture in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. His work involves a variety of project types in rural/urban locations primarily focused on public and K12 typologies. He graduated from South Dakota State University with his Bachelors of Science in Architecture in 2016 and Masters of Architecture in 2018.
Having originally gone to school for Wildlife and Fisheries science followed by Graphic Design, he enjoys practicing Architecture because it combines arts with science and you can learn something new every day. His favorite designs incorporate culture, history, and craftsmanship and he tries to bring these elements into his work regardless of whether their context is in rural or urban settings.
Outside of practicing architecture Levi tries to serve his community through the Sioux Falls Zoning Board of Adjustment, AIASD, Young Architect Forum, and attending SDSU architectural reviews.
“Build a routine around studying so you are consistent. If you took too many breaks, you might forget what you worked so hard to learn.”
Exam Order
| March 19, 2021 | In Person | P&A | Pass |
| March 20, 2021 | In Person | PPD | Pass |
| March 26, 2021 | In Person | PDD | Pass |
| March 27, 2021 | In Person | PcM | Pass |
| March 29, 2021 | In Person | PjM | Pass |
| April 2, 2021 | In Person | C&E | Pass |
Advice for you!
I often get asked “why do I need to get licensed?”. Why did you decide that you wanted to be a licensed Architect?
A few reasons but mainly… so I could call myself an Architect!
From a career perspective licensure felt like the first thing to work towards after graduation and once you get through this milestone you are free to explore your passions while becoming more valuable as a professional. From a life perspective, before licensure I felt like there was a weight looming over me and sometimes, I even felt guilty for enjoying my time off work instead of studying.
Often people don’t know where to start, do you have any advice for those looking to start their exams -or- how did you start?
When I graduated, I set a goal for myself to be licensed in two years. When that time came and eventually passed, I felt accountable for getting licensed as soon as I could. I started researching the NCARB ARE forums to see what others were doing currently in the process. Eventually I found a method that seemed to work for others and I felt like I could devote myself to the process.
What type of study materials did you use? Any particular ones that you’d recommend?
Amber Books! The amount of study materials and methods out there is overwhelming. I learned of AB from the NCARB forums and was intrigued by some of the stories there. I found the visual nature of the Amber Books helped me understand and retain the information more efficiently.
How did you fit study time into your schedule? Was there anything in particular that worked well for you?
I am incredibly thankful for my supportive partner who recognized and gave me the time I needed during this process.
I hibernated in my bedroom and followed the Amber Book method as close as I could. This meant preparing to take all of the tests in a short time frame. For 2 months I studied 2-4 hours per day after work and more or less on the weekends when I was able. The visual nature of this study method made it feel more like watching TV so I didn’t have any problems with the long duration of studying. The takeaway here is finding what works for you and trying to build a routine around studying so are consistent. If you take too many breaks, I believe there is a risk of forgetting what you worked so hard to learn.
Another thing that helped me was studying during winter. We experience frigid winters in South Dakota so this kept me inside and focused during my studying.
Do you have any other advice for someone studying for their exams?
Study the exams by similar content so that they build on each other. ARE 5.0 seems more comprehensive and process oriented so they have overlapping subject matter. I grouped PA, PPD, PDD | PcM, PjM, CE.
Before taking the actual exam make sure to take the sample ARE exams on the NCARB website to get familiar with the interface and how it works.
Research ARE test taking strategies. What worked well for me was giving myself a time limit on each question so I didn’t waste any time dwelling on the difficult ones. Flag and move on. This gave me time at the end to revisit the tricky questions.
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 Levi Pfeil for sharing your story!
Edited by
Katelyn Rossier, AIA, NCARB, LSSBB
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