The RIBA and Arb have teamed together to examine UK architectural education, with the aim of bringing the UK into line with other EU countries.
The move is part of a new EU directive, due to be ratified next month, which seeks to establish more uniformity across Europe by aligning the time it takes to qualify and by making mutual recognition of title easier between countries - a move which would make architects more free to move between countries.
Read more about the aims of the RIBA and Arb after the break...
Recently, the RIBA estimated that the average length of time it takes for an architect to become fully qualified in the UK has risen to almost 10 years, longer than in most other EU countries. Former RIBA president Jack Pringle described that as a "crazy" amount of time, adding "it can’t take that long to go into one of the poorest-paid professions."
To aid the discussion, the RIBA and Arb are working with the Standing Conference of Heads of Schools of Architecture (SCHOSA) and representatives of student bodies.
The move by the two governing bodies of architecture comes in addition to the government's review of UK architecture, led by Terry Farrell, which has already sparked a report by the UK Architectural Education Review Group finding that the high cost of architectural education creates a barrier to the profession.
Farrell's review, the report by the UK Architectural Education Review Group, and now the move by the RIBA and Arb all reflect the growing belief that UK architectural education is in desperate need of a significant overhaul.
