Architect license and expanding practice model: A conversation with Jeeyea Kim and Dorian Bybee

Architect license and expanding practice model:

A conversation with Jeeyea Kim and Dorian Bybee

Jeeyea Kim, Assistant Professor Kim’s work experience has involved many projects, including art installations, product design, residential design, office headquarters, cultural centers, museums, and urban design. As a lecturer, she joined the interior design program at Indiana University in 2014. She started teaching at the J. Irwin Miller Architecture Program of the Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design as an assistant professor in 2019.

W. Dorian Bybee, Assoc. AIA, NCIDQ Bybee’s professional experience has included health care projects, schools, high-end residential work, and large-scale mixed-use projects. Most recently, he has focused on R&D and cutting-edge digital fabrication using Indiana limestone. He teaches as a lecturer at the Interior Design Program of the Eskenazi School at Indiana University.

How do the core values of the diverse architecture experience and AIA credentials support future careers and industry possibilities? Regarding those questions, I talked with two designers exploring alternative practice models to discuss the core values of architecture education/training and how the licensing process benefits candidates. The conversation centered on how professional licensure produced by the current path provides a strong foundation for the potential future directions of practice.

Li Ren (LR): What benefit results from an architectural license for your career and practice?

W. Dorian Bybee (DB): First, neither of us is yet licensed, which you know puts us in a precarious position of discussing this. But it’s because we are not licensed that we were interested in participating in this conversation. After all, we recognize how important it is. For both of us, part of our path towards licensure has included periods of our life where we were not interested, and our role models were not licensed. Those roles we saw were practicing international projects, doing a lot of competitions, and not necessarily building things, and licensure was not their priority. Now I understand how important it is for all the reasons, and I am interested in managing our practice as academic plus art. Sometimes, I need to use my Assoc. AIA designation to prove my experience. Licensure is one reason clients can put their trust in us because being licensed is a nationally recognized credential.

Jeeyea Kim (JK): I was part of the interior design accreditation process when I was teaching at Indiana University. I found it is critical for the faculty to have a license for teaching, and it

Above un(bespoke), a modular table accessory that can be arranged in a variety of formations.

Above Between Imitation and Arbitration, research project aimed to identify a distinct material culture significance

has become quite popular for them to check the box how many majorities of the teachers teaching in the studio are licensed or not. This license accreditation and AIA credential will benefit the practice and academia. Today, the academic adviser in the college catches this trend and can prepare to have a better understanding of this licensure and AIA credential.

LR: What types of challenges may be encountered with the current licensure process?

JK: When I graduated, the Great Recession made me practice internationally and I did many projects in Asia. For those international projects, I had to stop the design at the DD phase and give the rest of the work to the local design institute, which limits the chance to touch CD and CA work. The challenge is that I had to go to Asia to find a job in an international firm when I graduated, and now I want to come back to be a local architect in Indiana. The significant difference in life and work frustrates me and brings a lot of challenges to pursue my license.

DB: I think it is critical here to not just complain or point out the problem of the traditional linear career path, that you must work in the conventional architectural firm, fill your AXP and pass the exam, and understand the whole process of architectural service. The current AXP portfolio could be described as a reasonably non-linear path. It allowed me to put in a highly diverse portfolio of work from different industries and companies I have worked for from multiple sides of the planet. So I think the direction that AIA and NCARB are going is to encourage diverse practice, skills, and career opportunities. A joke I shared with my students is “to be a politician. We need more politicians who can think creatively, who have that kind of design thinking.”

LR: What refinements could we implement to assist the advocacy and advisement of future architectural license candidates?

JK: I would encourage my students to consider doing work differently from what they were getting from their mentors when they were in school or the firm. Many students and young designers follow their mentor or supervisor’s perception of the career path and limit their choice. I would encourage the license candidate to explore other possibilities and take advantage of the architect license and AIA credential as a tool to learn about this industry and figure out your practice model.

DB: I always tell my students to start their licensure as early as possible even though they are not sure what they would like to pursue at last: Working for the architect license and AIA credential won’t hurt you; sooner or later, you will find you can learn so much from the licensure and exam and finally help your professional growth.

Above FMRL - Ephemeral Permanence, modular limestone wall panel system

Li Ren, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP BD+C

Ren is a licensed architect in the District of Columbia with a LEED Accredited Professional. Li serves as a board member/Director-at-Large in the AIA Washington Chapter, affiliate faculty at the Virginia Tech WAAC, and an active member of the NCARB Examination Committee.