Architecture Registration Exams Story: Brian Gruendl

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:

Brian Gruendl, AIA

Brian Gruendl is a Project Architect working with Desmone Architects in Pittsburgh, PA.  He graduated with a Bachelor of Architecture from Penn State University in May of 2015 and began working professionally shortly after graduation. He became a registered Architect in May of 2021 and joined the AIA in 2023. He lives in the Southside neighborhood of Pittsburgh with his wife, Julia Wattick, another Registered Architect and proud member of Penn State’s Class of 2015.

“Licensure brings opportunity. It opens the door to several related fields that emerging professionals may not realize.”

After graduating in May of 2015 my classmates and I believed that we would have to tackle ARE 4.0 to become licensed Architects. Shortly after it became known that the development of ARE 5.0 was underway and we were offered a choice: Seven 4.0 exams; Six 5.0 Exams; or a strategic combination of five exams from each series.

Facing an NCARB deadline I tried to pass the required three 4.0 exams in time for the transition so I would only have to pass two additional 5.0 exams. These exams are difficult enough to prepare and pass without facing an hourglass quickly sifting sand. I was unprepared as I barely had two years of experience practicing Architecture, undisciplined and out of practice with my study habits, and worst of all competing with friends who were far more successful in there ARE endeavors. My efforts (or lack there-of) lead to two failures of the same 4.0 exam in 2016 and 2017. The exam version transitioned, and I slowly gained momentum studying as my experience accrued.

Finally, in May of 2018 I took and passed the Programming and Analysis Exam on my first try. The weight of passing the first ARE is a unique experience. Better still, the weeklong weight between leaving a 4.0 exam and receiving an early morning email stating your fate was also a thing of the past. (Earlier versions of the ARE, there was a wait period of typically a week before knowing if you passed or failed.) Knowing it was not necessarily official did not prevent me from jumping out of my seat as the screen flashed with a very legalese explanation of how I “most likely” passed this 5.0 exam. As elating as the first pass is the weight of five more exams eventually makes its way back into your psyche.

Each exam prepares you for the next no matter the order. I took and passed Construction and Evaluation in February of 2019. The approach became very measured. I allowed myself about 8 weeks to really study to prepare for each exam. Only if I felt comfortable with the material and did well on practice exams would I schedule the exam at the testing. Even then I would schedule it only two weeks in advance. I was able to take and pass Practice Management in February 2020 before the testing centers started to implement restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Significant life events and COVID disrupted the studying for a time until early 2021.

My schedule and a growing impatience motivated a big testing push in 2021. I took and passed Project Management in March of 2021. Then, I immediately began studying for the final two divisions at the same time. I took and passed Project Planning and Development in early May of 2021. And finally, on May 17, 2021 on my 29^th birthday I walked out of the Prometric Testing Center in Monroeville, Pennsylvania glowing in the knowledge that I had passed Project Development and Documentation.

I was fortunate to take all six exams in person. I always felt that the complete separation from my personal surroundings inhibited maximum focus and ability. I got good at using the testing software and experience to my benefit. Routine mattered for me; I liked the 8:00 AM Saturday morning timeslot. I never studied on Friday night; If I didn’t know the material by then I was never going to learn it. Momentum didn’t matter so much for me. It was more about gaining targeted experience on the job. Do not be shy about asking your firm for help in obtaining study materials, in offering billable tasks that benefit your exam preparation, and rounding out lacking areas in completing the AXP. Licensure is a benefit to all involved and firms usually acknowledge the mutual benefit of aiding emerging professionals in the exam process. I would never diminish my efforts or accomplishments but I truly believe that if I can pass these exams, others can too.

Started studying for the ARE 4.0 with the goal of doing exams in ARE 4.0 and 5.0

March 2016	In person	PPP (4.0)	Fail
May 2017	In person	PPP (4.0)	Fail

NCARB transitions to ARE 5.0

May 2018	In person	P&A	Pass
February 2019	In person	C+E	Pass
February 2020	In person	PcM	Pass

Significant life events and Covid-19 disrupted the studying focus

March 2021	In person	PjM	Pass
Early May 2021	In person	PPD	Pass
Mid-May 2021	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?

Licensure became a goal for me the moment the registration process was explained. We all have professional dreams, and I was fortunate enough to pursue mine. Being a Registered Architect makes you a professional, but the general appeal of Architecture to me was vocational. Licensure emboldened me; It made me a more confident professional. Whether justified or not, licensure creates opportunities to pursue a litany of jobs in the AEC industry. It also opens the door to several related fields that emerging professionals may not realize. Licensure brings opportunity.

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?

My advice would be to find a mentor that has been through the process. You know yourself better than anyone else. Use a mentor’s experience along with your own personal gut feeling and abilities to draw up a work plan. Gather as much information as you can and ask your firm to help. Licensure is a benefit to all involved and firms usually acknowledge the mutual benefit of aiding emerging professionals in the exam process. I always studied for weeks before scheduling an exam. I never was able to achieve by scheduling an exam and planning backwards from that date. Things come up; life happens. You deserve some leniency given the professional demands that may surface at any time. Day one of studying is daunting if you consider the path ahead. Try to take it one day at a time and don’t feel like you have to power through if you feel any part of your experience, training, or studying is lacking. It’s okay to take a break and it’s okay to fail.

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

I studied with anything that I could get my hands on. I usually started by reading the Ballast Textbook for the Division that I was pursuing. At first, I took thorough notes from the readings but found that to be laborious and ultimately unhelpful. I found that retention was enough to move on to other resources. I leaned heavily on the other Ballast resources including the Practice Exam book (which I used as the ultimate determiner of scheduling the exam), the Practice Questions book, and the flash cards. With each test I found several new free online resources most of which I found on either YouTube or the NCARB blog for that particular exam. I also made sure to review the NCARB Exam Guidelines and testing software specific resources. So much of my success included mastering the exam software and using it to my benefit. By my last exam I had folders and folders worth of free online resources that I am always willing to share.

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 Brian Gruendl for sharing your story!

Edited by

Katelyn Rossier, AIA, LSSBB