In the United States, most registration boards require a degree from an accredited professional degree program as a prerequisite for licensure. The National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB), which is the sole agency authorized to accredit professional degree programs in architecture offered by institutions with U.S. regional accreditation, recognizes three types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture, the Master of Architecture, and the Doctor of Architecture. A program may be granted an eight-year term, an eight-year term with conditions, or a two-year term of continuing accreditation, or a three-year term of initial accreditation, depending on the extent of its conformance with established education standards. Doctor of Architecture and Master of Architecture degree programs may require a non-accredited undergraduate degree in architecture for admission. However, the non-accredited degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree.

The Architecture Program in the Department of Art, Architecture and Design of Harding University is currently in candidacy and pursuing NAAB accreditation for the Master of Architecture (M. Arch) degree. The M.Arch degree consists of 134 credit hours of undergraduate coursework and 34 hours of graduate coursework for a total of 168 credit hours.

The NAAB grants candidacy status to new programs that have developed viable plans for achieving initial accreditation. Candidacy status indicates that a program expects to achieve initial accreditation within six years of achieving candidacy, if its plan is properly implemented. In order to meet the education requirement, set forth by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, an applicant for an NCARB Certificate must hold a professional degree in architecture from a program accredited by the NAAB; the degree must have been awarded not more than two years prior to initial accreditation. However, meeting the education requirement for the NCARB Certificate may not be equivalent to meeting the education requirement for registration in a specific jurisdiction. Please contact NCARB for
more information.

The Architecture Program in the Department of Art, Architecture and Design at Harding University was granted candidacy status in 2024 for the Master of Architecture (M.Arch) degree consisting of 134 credit
hours of undergraduate coursework and 34 hours of graduate coursework for a total of 168 credit hours. The next site visit for Continuation of Candidacy will be in 2025. The projected year to achieve
initial accreditation is 2028. The earliest graduation date projected to meet NCARB education requirements is 2027.

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