age 25, 3 years out of school.

age 28; 4 years after graduation

age 50; 25 years after graduation, i get the dedication and re-focus cake.. i hope to inspire other late bloomers.;.)

28, 2 years after grad school with 2 years worked after undergrad

age 34, 1 year after grad school.
obviously i spent a few years working between undergrad and grad.

39 yrs and 5 after finally getting a degree.

Age 34-ish, which would be 6 or so years after Masters degree.

Funny that I can't exactly remember when it was - it's hugely significant to me, but I don't remember anything about getting licensed except the surprise party my husband threw for it!

32 1/2- 6 years after post-professional masters.

however...

i finished idp 2 years after the masters. took way too much time to start. also, took 18 months to finish (had a 6 month interruption to teach in a place where the closest exam site was 2+ hours away).

29 years old. To be honest it means much more to me now that I'm doing things. Back then the glow faded out after a few weeks - but it was absolutely the right thing to do at that time.

I don't know that any useful pattern will emerge for you, but if I could, I would tell my dumber 29 year old version to not join the AIA. And to stay away from Indiana.

36, after 12yrs of work and then going back for grad school. (i had finished idp by 26 tho...)

34, 2 years after grad school having spent 2.5 years working between BArch and MArch.

How many of you guys have actually put up your own shingle with your name on it?

29, same year of getting my masters...took some time off between

Don, don't assume just because some people get licensed earlier that they never spent any time in construction. The question is very good though, because I know many people that never held a brick in their hand, never went to a construction site and then have the balls to argue about construction in some meetings.

I started my firm in my late 30's.

My advice is to get your license as soon as you possibly can. It just becomes more difficult the longer you wait. Take the test the second you qualify, NO EXCUSES. And for those of you who have a four year degree and are thinking of not going and getting the masters, don't wait. It will just cause you problems and lost opportunities later. I have two employees that I would like to give shares in the company to, but they are not licensed, and would have a very difficult time getting licensed due to lack of that extra year or two of schooling.

Age 22, after a 5y B.arch. I was a younger student and grew up in a family of architects and builders.

Just 2 weeks prior my 30th birthday. My goal was to get it done before my 30's and I barely made it.

I'm surprised at how young a lot of you were when you got registered. Amongst co-workers I was very young to get it done at 29. Most people I know that are recently registered are late 30's and 40's.

my wife was licensed at 26 - she could have taken it earlier, but between our wedding, move, etc., she put it off a bit.

Age 29, six years out of school.

thank you, everyone, for your responses. some preliminary data -

median age: 29
average age: 31.7 years old
standard deviation: 6.4 years

total entries: 17

Registered Architect 30
Registered Landscape Architecture 31
Leed AP 40

RA at 41 (that's pretty late considering I drafted my first line at the age of 13).
Non-professional Arch degree at 25
M. Arch at 28
Finished IDP at 31
Why the 10 year gap btwn IDP and RA? Because I'm slow? Maybe. Could also be because of a 50 to 60 hour work week and trying to have a life at the same time. When does one really have the time to study? Although I did pass all the exams the first time around.
Now at 43 and working on my first commission under my own seal.
That's 30 years since my first line - how scary is that?

Sectionalhealing, are you going to compile stats and publish results?

29 (3 years ago & about to get slapped in the face by the recession)

6 years out of school

I then took the LEED exam & got a 169; needed 170 for certification -DAMN...still have not gotten over that! haha

I agree that it is smart to go after getting your license as early as possible. I know a lot of 'unlicensed architects' that are in their 40's, married w/ children, mortgage, etc. and have trouble making time to study & take exams.

age 27, 3.5 years after my masters.

age 37, 11 years after MArch.

age 35, 7 years after M.Arch I. Same year I hung my shingle.

licensed, well-hung with shingles.
all before 30.

age 31, 7 years after B.Arch

age 33, 5 years after finishing my BArch

but I hadn't been full-time in school for 7 years...

i'm pretty sure scarlo scarpa will break the record that he received a license after he died.

I was 24 when I passed my last exam. Three years exactly to the day after graduationf. Three months later I was laid off and haven't found a job since.

I basically see it as a waste of money. The interviews I have had lately have all been for firms that are looking for licensed Architects but they are paying 20% less than what I was making before I was licensed and laid off. it's all moot because i didn't get any of those positions anyway because they found a licensed architect with more experience.

I sincerely feel like I wasted 7 years of my life and money on this profession.