Architecture Registration Exams Story: Katherine Karczmarczyk

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:

Katherine Karczmarczyk, RA

Architecture has always been a passion of mine. As the daughter of artists, who ran a church restoration company restoring some of the most beautiful churches around Chicago, I grew up surrounded by art, design, and construction. I have always been determined to become an architect since childhood.

I attended the Illinois Institute of Technology, where I received an Accredited Bachelor’s Degree in Architecture. During my third year of studies, I was fortunate enough to receive an internship where I worked part-time for nearly three years. Soon after graduation I received a full-time position at another firm. Life, however, brought its share of challenges. In the midst of professional growth, I also embraced significant personal milestones – marriage, the unanticipated global pandemic, the joy of becoming a mother to a loving daughter, the anticipation of welcoming soon a son, as well as other personal challenges – all unfolding in the background of achieving my professional goals. Though the journey took a bit longer than expected, each hurdle became a stepping stone, fostering greater strength and resilience.  I take immense pride in getting my Architecture License amid life’s curveballs, making the accomplishment all the more satisfying and meaningful. 

Currently, I am living in Chicagoland and working at SmithGroup. Happy to share my story and hope to inspire others who may be in similar life situations.

“It’s not easy, and it’s a long process, but you will get there just keep having faith!”

My first exam was quite spontaneous, with a group of a few coworkers at my level, we all set to tackle the same test at the same time and study together, a venture that ended up in failure for all six of us.  After that we all took a bit of a hiatus from the discouragement.

A year later, I had a new passion for fitness, mental well-being, and planning a summer wedding in 2020, with that I recommitted to my exam preparation. 2020 was going to be my best year yet! I completed my AXP hours as I had already started them during college, and now only the exams remained.

My routine involved dedicated sessions at the library 3-4 days a week right after work, complete with a rewarding pit stop at Starbuck. I secured a study room for 3 focused hours, with a great mental mindset, excited for the year of wedding arrangements and examinations, which let me to successfully completing 2 exams back-to-back of each other in February 2020. However, as the world closed down to Covid-19 and a global pandemic unfolded a month later, my plans were abruptly altered. What was meant to be a season of intense studying, running, and planning had transformed into a period of adjusting to the new indoor-centric way of life.

Originally envisioning a sequence of marriage, exams, and then parenthood, the global “pause” had rearranged my plans. My husband and I opted to marry first, then welcoming our daughter into the COVID era. I chose to invest my time and joy into motherhood before resuming my focus on exam preparations. 

Returning to studying in the fall, I made a few failed attempts. I then reexamined my study method and tried something new, choosing to invest and buy Amber Books myself. This resource, which is a visual approach, worked well for me personally as I have a particularly artistic background and reshaped my exam strategy and thought-out concepts. I also combined exams while studying, to get a more rounded approach to the material, learning to understand direct but also broad aspects of given items at the same time. Occasionally taking exams back-to-back, as well as taking practice exams for both sections the few days prior to exam days.

The year of 2023 became a dedicated pursuit for getting my license and the goal to welcome another child before my 30^th birthday in February 2024. Juggling the demands of being a working mom, I was immersed with the dual role of professional and parental responsibility, creating immense time management skills. Despite exhaustion, I kept to a disciplined routine – work, daycare pick up, dinner, play, bath, bedtime and then study.  I banned TV for myself during exam months and enrolled my daughter in daycare for an additional day a week, dedicating that time to the library, as my pre-Covid study habit.

Pressure was high in October, taking my last and final exam. This was my 3^rd attempt and last chance if I wanted to be licensed before turning 30 and before expecting my son in December. With my mom flying in from Florida to support me by caring for my daughter, I poured all my energy into studying in the evenings leading up to the exam. I passed that last and final exam, officially earning the title of a licensed Architect.

December 14, 2018	In Person	PcM	PASS
December 15, 2018	In Person	PjM	FAIL
June 29, 2019	In Person	P&A	FAIL
August 3, 2019	In Person	PjM	FAIL
November 23, 2019	In Person	C&E	FAIL
February 22, 2020	In Person	PjM	PASS
February 28, 2020	In Person	C&E	PASS
November 7, 2022	In Person	PPD	FAIL
March 11, 2023	In Person	P&A	FAIL
March 20, 2023	In Person	PPD	FAIL
April 14, 2023	In Person	PDD	FAIL
May 10, 2023	In Person	P&A	PASS
August 17, 2023	In Person	PPD	PASS
August 18, 2023	In Person	PDD	FAIL
October 17, 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?

Do it for yourself! Not for others, the money or status. Yes, things come along with it but the main part is the self-motivation and how proud you will be after you’ve accomplished it. You did all this school and have all the experience, getting the title to go with it and you will be proud of yourself through this huge difficult journey. It’s not easy, and it’s long, but you will get there just keep having faith!

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?

Book the exam first, then start studying. It will motivate you to actually study. You’ll always find excuses not to study otherwise, knowing you have a “due date” helps you to stay accountable for your timeline.

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

Everyone has their own approach. For me it was going to the library, somewhere different than working remotely or going into the office, so that it didn’t feel like “work”. Additionally, seeing other college students studying made me feel as if I was back in college. It felt as if it were finals week, everyone in their sweatpants, having our Starbucks and snacks, that way it became more of a ritual and “semi fun”. I put away my phone into my backpack and restricted my time for looking at it.

For example, if I study 2 hours straight then I can do a 5-minute break on the phone. I overpacked snacks so I had no excuse to go home early. As a mother I also did study at night after my daughter was asleep but I found that I didn’t retain as much information as I could in the limited time I had at the library.

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

Take it before you may have kids and more of life’s hurdles. I have friends from college telling me how they are very tired because all they do is work, study and sleep. Trust me, that sounds like a dream to have so much free time to study when you want. Life is only about to get a lot harder, so do it sooner and commit!

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

Thank you again to Katherine Karczmarczyk for sharing your story!

Edited by

Katelyn Rossier, AIA, NCARB, CSI, LSSBB