Tomorrow’s Architects: FAQs

The new Competency Outcomes for architects and Standards for learning providers will apply to all ARB accreditation decisions from January 2024. This means that:

• New qualifications receiving their first accreditation by ARB must deliver these outcomes from January 2024.
• Existing qualifications are still prescribed until they are superseded by a new qualification based on the new Outcomes or until no later than December 2028, at which point they will cease to be recognised for registration.
• Learning providers delivering ARB accredited qualifications must meet the new standards from January 2024. Review dates for existing qualifications have not changed but these Standards will apply to them when they are due to take place, as well as applications for the accreditation of new qualifications.

Existing qualifications are still accredited until they are superseded by a new qualification based on the new Outcomes or until no later than December 2028, at which point they will cease to be recognised for registration.

If you are a learning provider and have any specific or detailed questions, you should contact ARB’s accreditation team by emailing  qualifications@arb.org.uk.

An important difference with the new accreditation process is that we expect providers to contact us before the new programme is developed, and not to wait until all the material (such as module specifications and mapping) has been produced.

Yes, providers will be allowed to do so.

To help inform our progress during the transition, over the next 18 months, we’ll be continuing to speak to learning providers and others, as part of our evaluation of the implementation of our changes.

The first iteration of the Handbook is expected to be ready by the end of November 2023.

Yes. Learning providers can either use our course change process to amend an existing qualification to meet the new outcomes, or they can submit an application for a new qualification. In both circumstances, ARB will need to approve either the new qualification or the course change before students can start the qualification or amended course.

There will be some changes to the annual monitoring process and the materials learning providers will be required to submit. Adjusted annual monitoring requirements will be contained within the Accreditation Handbook. While there may be changes to annual monitoring submission requirements, providers should note that institutions will no longer be required to submit applications to renew qualifications on a periodic basis.

Students with a non-cognate degree (that is, a degree for a subject that is unrelated to architecture) may not be entitled to the funding exception at master’s level. This is no different to the current funding model, but it could potentially limit funding access. We will explore further the impact on access to student funding for related or joint degrees through the guidance we intend to develop for learning providers, and we will look at undertaking research, too.

We will also appoint a Commission with an independent Chair to provide options and advice to ARB on the key challenges of professional practice experience identified through the consultation. It will be tasked with making recommendations to ARB on how to improve fair and consistent access to quality practical experience, and the recommended new minimum requirements for relevant experience. The Commission will be appointed in 2023 and report to ARB by the end of 2024.

However, for now, most applicants will still need to demonstrate that they have gained either an accredited Part 1 qualification or passed ARB’s Part 1 prescribed exam, in addition to obtaining a Part 2 and Part 3 qualification, until the changes take effect.

This may differ for applicants through mutual recognition agreements or memoranda of understanding. More information on eligibility for these is available here.

If you have completed your Part 1 and Part 2, as well as your Part 3, you need to register within two years of obtaining your Part 3. If you don’t register within two years, you will need to provide additional information to satisfy the Board of your competence to practise and this will be assessed by our Competency Standards Group.

More information on this is available here under ‘evidence of your qualification’.

In the future, we will no longer prescribe at Part 2 or Part 3. Instead, we will accredit master’s and diploma level qualifications which cover the academic and practice outcomes set out in the Competency outcomes for architects.

Please see here for our latest timeline for transition to the new framework.

 You should continue to complete your Part 3 qualification, as ARB will continue to accredit all existing qualifications until 31 December 2028.

ARB will continue to accredit all existing qualifications until 31 December 2028. If you have not yet started a Part 2 qualification, you can continue on to complete an existing Part 2 and Part 3 qualification. Alternatively, some new master’s level qualifications may be accredited by ARB by the time you have finished this period of practical experience. Once you have completed this period of practical experience, you could then complete a new master’s level qualification followed by your second year of practical experience and a new diploma level qualification.