Making Sense of the Six ARE 5.0 Divisions

Questions: 80

Test Duration: 2 hr. 45 min.

This division is about the management of an architectural practice. The content encompasses everything from business formation to day-to day management and professional services. A course on professional practice is required for any program to be NAAB-accredited but, in my experience, the content on which you are tested in this division goes much more in depth than most college courses on the subject. This division is unique in that is the furthest removed from what you would think of as architecture. The Practice Management division is rooted in practice operations, relevant law, business finances, and management. These topics are typically not emphasized in academic programs-so you may not be familiar with them-but once you get into it, the concepts are simple. This division can also be difficult because these aspects of practice are often considered confidential, which means you may have little to no exposure at work to these scenarios. For me, the law and contract components were definitely the most foreign, so I was sure to focus on those areas.

Questions: 95

Test Duration: 3 hr. 15 min.

The Project Management division is, understandably, about how to manage projects. This division is also typically covered in a college's professional practice course, but not often in very much detail. The division includes resource management, planning, contracts, project budgeting, execution, and quality control. Most of these subjects are similar to those of the Practice Management division, but the key difference is that in this division, those concepts are applied at the project level. So, for example, where Practice Management would test how to determine the employees your business can afford, Project Management would look at how to plan work hours based on a project budget.

Questions: 95

Test Duration: 3 hr. 15 min.

This is the first division that begins to cover more content you will have learned during your college architectural courses. The Programming & Analysis division covers the content that is usually covered by the Pre-Design (PD) project and can get into the beginning of the Schematic Design phase. These topics center around initial design planning for a project, which is referred to as programming and site analysis. These are the first steps you'll take to work on a project after the contracts are signed and the project kicks off. This division focuses on understanding the site as well as any relevant codes or regulations. It also examines how to evaluate and synthesize the project requirements qualitatively and quantitatively. Sometimes the architect may even need to develop the project requirements if a client has difficulty articulating what they need.

Questions: 120

Test Duration: 4 hr. 15 min.

The Project Planning & Design division includes topics typically a part of the Schematic Design (SD) and Design Development (DD) project phases. While you're still responsible for understanding the site and regulations, this division gets into the nitty gritty of designing the actual building. Design is first developed by integrating technical knowledge with the preliminary programmatic and design moves established in earlier phases. At this stage, while working on design, the architect is also providing a preliminary selection of building systems and materials as well as developing early project cost estimates. PPD is about analysis, planning, and evaluation so that the project is set up for clear and concise construction documentation. This division can be thought of as a more preliminary version of the content testing expected during the Project Development & Documentation division.

Questions: 120

Test Duration: 4 hr. 15 min.

This division focuses on content covered by the Construction Documents project phase: the period of a project where everything gets finalized and documented in greater detail-these are the final steps before a project is sent to a contractor. A key objective of this division is the integration of building systems, materials, and assemblies. That means you must understand how the many elements of a building come together. In professional practice, this is referred to as coordination. It is the key role of an architect to manage and synthesize the various project disciplines. There are numerous disciplines that can be involved in a project; in addition to architecture, the most typical are civil engineering, landscape architecture, structural engineering, and MEP (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing) engineering. An architect must coordinate their design with all these disciplines to make sure that their plan fulfills project requirements and that any conflicts are resolved. The other critical aspect of this division is construction documentation. Architects must document their design and specifications so that the design intent is clear for the contractor. Documentation is, thus, how an architect communicates his or her design so that it can brought to fruition.

Questions: 95

Test Duration: 3 hr. 15 min.

The Construction & Evaluation division encompasses aspects covered by the Construction Administration (CA) project phase. Although every effort is made to provide the contractor with clear documentation of the project, there are still always discrepancies, unforeseen changes, and even mistakes. A major part of this division focuses on the architect's role of construction observation. Typically, architects perform regular site visits during a building's construction to ensure that reality conforms to design intent. They can also help resolve any questions that come up. You may be provided with photos from a building under construction and asked to identify potential construction issues, for example. This division also covers how a project becomes official finished as well as the various administrative procedures that occur during construction.

Hopefully, this blog has helped you understand the differences between these six divisions of the ARE 5.0 exam! Good luck with your exam preparation efforts!