The Top 10 Tips for Passing the ARE

Mike Newman famously said, “There is no big secret to passing the ARE.” That doesn’t mean don’t prepare, it means there are no shortcuts or magic spells to recite to automatically game the system and pass. However, we know this exam series is surmountable, so we had resident ARE expert, Mike Newman, discuss his Top 10 Tips for Passing the ARE.

He reveals them in our Top 10 Tips for Passing the ARE report, which ranges from study tips to content-related insight (with accompanying graphics) to general inspiration that will give you a tsunami of confidence going into test day.

Spoiler: One of the tips is “Find Your Resources.” Whether that means to find an architect mentor or confidant who can pass on their “dos” and “don’ts”. Join a community; check out our ARE Community for other ARE candidates and architects. Get your test prep materials down! Try out our NCARB-approved online test prep. Talk to your coworkers, or network with other architects at events (online or in person), and visit your local AIA chapter to make connections and utilize their resources. In this section, Newman also outlines a solid reading list you could fit in between dystopian trilogies.

To get more tips to you in a different format, we had him on an episode of ARE Live to go through these tips with our founder, Marc Teer. You’ll get a game plan for how to tackle ARE 5.0, equipped with the best strategies for answering various question types and test taking tips. They use one of our famous Practice Exams, which are the closest thing to the real deal, as a backdrop for outlining their advice.

While Newman said there is no big secret to passing the ARE, he also noted, “If you’re feeling overwhelmed, and don’t know where to start, just remember these 10 tips and you will be well on your way to passing the ARE, and becoming a licensed architect.”