2024-04-27T20:15:46-04:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/149999914/don-t-call-me-an-intern-aia-changes-title-to-design-professional Julia Ingalls 2017-03-28T13:05:00-04:00 >2021-10-12T01:42:58-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/g6/g692l75qccxdw6tj.jpeg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>In a bold semantic move years in the make, the AIA has renamed a NAAB-accredited, employed graduate on the path to licensure as either a "design professional" or "architectural associate." While you can still call a student pursuing their degree while working in an office an intern (which is apparently vastly preferred to thundering "hey, you!" while pointing at them), the new titles for their graduated peers are partly meant to reflect their commitment to the field. The <a href="http://new.aia.org/articles/70411-intern-no-more-aia-supports-two-new-titles-f" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">AIA has a detailed linguistic play-by-play</a> of how the titling process went down, including this nuanced observation from Danielle Mitchell:&nbsp;</p><p><em>"'Architectural' as the adjective and 'associate' as the noun means this individual is associating with the profession, with licensed architects, and working with them," she adds. "The phrase itself indicates that you're working toward licensure, toward the success of the profession, but you're not licensed."</em></p>