Accreditation

In the United States, most state 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 U.S. professional degree programs in architecture, recognizes three types of degrees: the Bachelor of Architecture, the Master of Architecture, and the Doctor of Architecture. A program may be granted a 6-year, 3-year, or 2-year term of accreditation, depending on the extent of its conformance with established educational standards. 

Doctor of Architecture and Master of Architecture degree programs may consist of a pre-professional undergraduate degree and a professional graduate degree that, when earned sequentially, constitute an accredited professional education. However, the pre- professional degree is not, by itself, recognized as an accredited degree. 

The University of Washington offers the following NAAB-accredited degree programs:
2+year Master of Architecture (pre-professional degree + 91 credits)
3+year Master of Architecture (non pre-professional degree + 145 credits)

Both programs were granted full 6-year terms of accreditation in 2008. The next accreditation visit for both programs is in 2014.

For more information on accreditation of architecture programs in the United States, download a copy of the NAAB Conditions for Accreditation (2009 edition) or go to the NAAB website.

2007 Architecture Program Report (part 1), (part 2)
2007 Visiting Team Report
2007 UW response to the VTR
2008 Annual Report
2009 Annual Report
2010 Annual Report
2011 Annual Report