No Recognised
Qualifications
If you do not have a formal
qualification in architecture or your qualification has not been assessed as
equivalent to an accredited qualification, but you have substantial skill and
experience in the architectural profession, you may wish apply to undertake
the National Program of Assessment (NPrA). Information on the NPrA is
provided below:
THE NATIONAL PROGRAM
OF ASSESSMENT (NPrA)
The NPrA is project
based. You are required to submit a report and companion design drawings in response
to a detailed brief for a specific project on a particular (hypothetical)
site. In making the submissions, you are required to demonstrate to the
assessors the possession of skills (competencies) taken from The Competency
Standards - NCSA 01.
The NPrA is centrally
coordinated by AACA; currently one program is offered per year. Applicants
accepted into the program will be required to complete a project submission
within 6 months of the date of commencement.
The National
Competency Standards in Architecture
These Standards are listed fully in the document The Competency Standards -
NCSA 01 issued by the AACA. Please refer to the "Publications" page of this website for
details.
Competency Standards
Relevant to the NPrA
The particular Competency Standards that NPrA submissions must address and
satisfy are:
Unit 1 Design
(Contextual Reference - A
Complex Building)
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Context
1.1
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To create
a design, which is capable of realisation, through the exercise of
knowledge, imagination, judgement and professional responsibility.
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Context
1.2
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To
formulate an initial response to a project brief sufficient to obtain
endorsement, of overall objectives and concept, by a client and other
interested parties.
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Context
1.3
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To
develop a design proposal from an initial concept.
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Context
1.4
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To
resolve a Schematic Design sufficient to obtain agreement and authorisation
to proceed to documentation for its translation into built form.
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Context
1.5
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To
continuously comply with the brief and meet contractual agreements
throughout the course of implementation of a design project.
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Unit 2 Documentation (Contextual Reference - A
Building of Moderate Complexity)
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Context
2.1
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To
communicate information, throughout the course of determining a brief and
throughout the conceptual, design development, documentation and
construction phases of the engagement.
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Unit 3 Project
Management
(Contextual Reference - A Building of Moderate Complexity)
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Context
3.1
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To
confirm objectives and conditions at inception of the project.
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Eligibility
To enrol for the National Program of Assessment, you must satisfy academic,
English language and work experience requirements as follows:
- Academic Requirement - Pass
in Year 12 or accepted equivalent OR minimum of year 10 plus a minimum
of two years full time (or part time equivalent) tertiary study.
- English Language Requirement
- Year 12 standard or accepted equivalent (ie an overall score of 6.5 on
the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) scale or other
recognised equivalent, eg Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)
- Work Experience - Minimum of
7 years work experience in the last 10 years (architectural, planning, building or other
related fields); 3 of the 7 years must be in an architect's office. A
minimum 1 year of the 3 must be in an architect's office in Australia.
- Residency - A candidate
must be a Permanent Resident and reside in Australia throughout the Program.
A partially completed
qualification is not recognised as work experience.
Where candidature is
refused on the grounds of eligibility, you may seek review of the
determination upon the submission of additional evidence.
Quota
The number of candidates is generally limited to 20, admitted in order of
receipt of application.
Applications
Each program is advertised in 'The Australian' newspaper. For
information on the date of the next advertisement, please contact the AACA.
Once a Program has been
advertised, Candidates must forward the NPrA application form, together with
all the required documentation to the Registrar, AACA, PO Box 236, Civic
Square ACT 2608.
The fee for the program is $4500.
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Additional notes
on the NPrA
- It should be noted that
this Program has been established to assess fully and
comprehensively the architectural competency of each individual
candidate.
- Admission to the Program cannot
be taken as an indication of a successful outcome of the assessment
process.
- Before embarking on the
Program, you should carefully assess the abilities and knowledge you
have gained during your eligibility period and make a judgement as
to their appropriateness as background to complete what is a
demanding and rigorous task.
- For your information, the
current success rate is less than 50% of the total number of
candidates admitted to the Program.
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