Architecture Registration Exams Story: Sandra Mills

Welcome to the Architectural Registration Exam (ARE) experience stories series! This series is to share experiences, timelines and advice of professionals that have completed their AREs. We know it can be a daunting task to get started and overwhelming on the number of resources out there. We hope you find this information helpful in organizing how you proceed through your exams. Good Luck!

This is the experience, timeline, and advice from:

Sandra Mills, AIA

Sandra Mills, an architect at Eppstein Uhen Architects, credits her love of design to a lifelong curiosity for innovation, meaningful connections and artistic pursuits. Hailing from rural North Dakota, Sandra’s love for the iterative design process blossomed
through video games and sketching historic buildings in her community. Now licensed in Wisconsin, she resides and practices commercial architecture in beautiful downtown Milwaukee.

Her true passion lies in human-centric design, where she combines her design expertise with a deep commitment to enriching communities. As a project architect working in corporate design, Sandra draws inspiration from each building or client’s unique story and layers her designs with inspiration from local context and prioritizing sustainable materials and assemblies. Her hope is to create spaces that uplift their surrounding communities through thoughtful and deliberate design.

Beyond architecture, Sandra finds joy in life’s simple pleasures. From sipping herbal teas to embracing the cozy comfort of playing her ukulele and reading, she appreciates the small moments that make us all human. Sandra Mills is a passionate architect who
seamlessly combines creativity, community impact, and technical expertise. With unwavering enthusiasm, she shapes inspiring environments that positively impact lives.

“Completing the ARE grew into an entire journey of self-understanding, commitment and perseverance. Before you begin, really ask yourself if you’re ready.”

March 2, 2019	In Person	P&A	Pass
May 20, 2019	In Person	PcM	Pass
August 31, 2019	In Person	PjM	Fail
October 14, 2019	In Person	CE	Pass
November 25, 2019	In Person	PjM	Pass

Like many ARE candidates, my motivation for starting the exams began as a way to fill some downtime at work. I wanted to use my time to improve my skills and why not close the gap between new-grad and a successful architect? What surprised me was how
quickly that idea outgrew itself. Completing the ARE grew into an entire journey of curiosity-driven deep dives, self-understanding and most of all perseverance. Before you begin, really ask yourself if you’re ready. Will you truly show up for yourself day after day?

I passed my 4th exam just before Thanksgiving in that first year. I’d planned to take the holidays off and tackle the big two in the Spring but unfortunately COVID-19 had other plans.

I didn’t realize it then, but nearly a year would pass before I could take my next ARE. All that anxious time away resulted in a tough fail. Setbacks are simply part of the process and letting yourself recover from that disappointment is crucial to continuing on.

October 10, 2020	In Person	PPD	Fail
November 09, 2020	In Person	PDD	Pass
March 15, 2021	In Person	PPD	Pass

I often get asked “why do I need to get licensed?”. Why did you decide that you wanted to be a licensed Architect?

We know from architecture school that creative work is not a 9-5 job. If you want to get good at what you do” while adding value to your firm and making more money, it’s the hours between 5-9 that can make all the difference. I found the ARE gave me a framework to close the experience gap early in my career. Teaching myself how to practice architecture gave me confidence around the office and made me more informed in my work. If you reframe studying as a means to becoming a better Architect, taking the ARE’s is a great pathway to get there.

Often people don’t know where to start, do you have any advice for those looking to start their exams -or- how did you start?

There’s a bit of learning that you should do prior to studying. In the beginning, commit to learning as much as you can about the exam and your testing jurisdiction requirements before you move onto content. Check out NCARB’s Handbook and website for high level introductions to the exams then take the opportunity to connect with a friend/colleague who just completed their ARE’s. Their experience will be so much more current and it’s important to surround yourself with others who will support you.

What type of study materials did you use? Any particular ones that you’d recommend?

Try to get your hands on as many practice questions as you possibly can. Ask your friends, find old manuals on clearance, borrow books from work.. get creative!

I’m definitely a write-to-remember type, so I developed a strategy where I’d scan exams/quizzes out of my books and draw all over them. I’d highlight, add my own notes and draw diagrams in the margins. I used a few different ARE 5.0 David Kent Ballast textbooks but utilized the Reference Matrix in the NCARB Handbook quite a bit too. The third-party resources are great but the source material is key.

How did you fit study time into your schedule? Was there anything in particular that worked well for you?

Everyone’s studying success is different. As hard as it is, you have to discover this for yourself. Spend some time reflecting on your own experience and what worked well for you in the past. Do you like to study between classes, with friends or solo? Textbooks,
workbooks or videos? What do you find fun to keep you engaged? It’s really important to lean into what already works well for you.

My most consistent focus hours were after dinner around 8 pm until 10 pm. I usually studied longer on Saturday’s mornings with exams only ever scheduled on Monday’s (while still fresh from the weekend). I tried to give myself about 6-8 weeks per exam but it
varied depending on how much my work experience filled in. Your study strategy will evolve as you go so just try to embrace it and learn along the way. It doesn’t matter how slow you go, so long as you do not stop and everyone is rooting for you!!

We hope that this information helps you through our ARE journey, setting goals, and giving you some insight on how to get started.

Thank you again to Sandra Mills for sharing your story!

Edited by

Katelyn Rossier, AIA, NCARB, LSSBB