ARE 5.0 Study Materials: A complete list
Here you’ll find a comprehensive list of ARE 5.0 Study Materials. This includes everything that NCARB recommends as well as additional study guides and resources. We’ve put together a handy key below for you so that you can easily see the price point of each of the study materials.
To help guide you I’ve located [$] below for any links that lead to paid resources.
[Free] means it’s free
[$] means less than $50
[$$] means between $50 and $100
[$$$] means over $100
Designer Hacks ARE 5.0 Study Materials
ARE 5.0 Practice exams
The Designer Hacks ARE 5.0 practice exams are the only resources (that we’re aware of) that offer a pass guarantee. If you receive a 93% or better on the timed practice exam and fail your exam you’re eligible to a refund or exchange (subject to terms and conditions).
PDD Practice Exam
PPD Practice Exam
PcM Practice Exam
PjM Practice Exam
PA Practice Exam
CE Practice Exam
NCARB Recommended ARE 5.0 Study Materials
| Reference | PcM | PjM | PA | PPD | PDD | CE | $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 ASHRAE Handbook: Fundamentals, I-P Edition ASHRAE, 2009 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design U.S. Department of Justice, 2010 | ■ | ■ | -- | ||||
| The American Institute of Architects Official Guide to the 2007 AIA Contract Documents The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, 2009 | ■ | ■ | ■ | $$$ | |||
| The Architect’s Guide to Small Firm Management: Making Chaos Work for Your Small Firm Rena M. Klein, FAIA, The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, 2010 | ■ | $$ | |||||
| The Architect’s Handbook of Professional Practice The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||
| Architectural Acoustics M. David Egan, J. Ross Publishing, 2007 Reprint. Original publication McGraw Hill, 1988 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| Architectural Graphic Standards The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Architectural Graphic Standards for Residential Construction The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| BIM and Integrated Design: Strategies for Architectural Practice Randy Deutsch, AIA, LEED-AP, The American Institute of Architects, John Wiley & Sons, 2011 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| Building Codes Illustrated: A Guide to Understanding the 2012 International Building Code Francis D.K. Ching and Steven R. Winkel, FAIA, PE, John Wiley & Sons, 2012 | ■ | ■ | ■ | $ | |||
| Building Construction Illustrated Francis D. K. Ching, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $ | ||||
| Building Structures James Ambrose and Patrick Tripeny, John Wiley & Sons, 3rd edition, 2012 | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct AIA Office of General Counsel, The American Institute of Architects, latest edition | ■ | -- | |||||
| CSI MasterFormat The Construction Specifications Institute, 2004 edition | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Dictionary of Architecture and Construction Cyril M. Harris, McGraw-Hill, 4th edition, 2006 | ■ | ■ | ■ | $$ | |||
| Fundamentals of Building Construction: Materials and Methods Edward Allen and Joseph Iano, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| Heating, Cooling, Lighting: Sustainable Design Methods for Architects Norbert Lechner, John Wiley & Sons, 3rd edition, 2008 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| The HOK Guidebook to Sustainable Design Sandra F. Mendler, William Odell, and Mary Ann Lazarus, John Wiley & Sons, 2nd edition, 2006 | ■ | ■ | $ | ||||
| ICC A117.1-2009 Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities International Code Council, 2010 | ■ | $$ | |||||
| International Building Code (2012) International Code Council, 2011 | ■ | ■ | ■ | $$$ | |||
| Landscape Architectural Graphic Standards Leonard J. Hopper, Editor, John Wiley & Sons, 2007 | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| Law for Architects: What You Need to Know Robert F. Herrmann and the Attorneys at Menaker & Herrmann LLP, W. W. Norton, 2012 | ■ | $ | |||||
| Mechanical & Electrical Equipment for Buildings Walter T. Grondzik, Alison G. Kwok, Benjamin Stein, and John S. Reynolds, Editors, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Mechanical and Electrical Systems in Buildings Richard R. Janis and William K. Y. Tao, Prentice Hall, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Minimum Design Loads for Buildings and Other Structures (7-10) American Society of Civil Engineers, 2013 | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| Olin’s Construction Principles, Materials, and Methods H. Leslie Simmons, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Planning and Urban Design Standards American Planning Association, John Wiley & Sons, 2006 | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| Plumbing, Electricity, Acoustics: Sustainable Design Methods for Architecture Norbert Lechner, John Wiley & Sons, 2012 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| Problem Seeking: An Architectural Programming Primer William M. Peña and Steven A. Parshall, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Professional Practice: A Guide to Turning Designs into Buildings Paul Segal, FAIA, W. W. Norton, 2006 | ■ | ■ | ■ | $ | |||
| The Professional Practice of Architectural Working Drawings Osamu A. Wakita, Nagy R. Bakhoum, and Richard M. Linde, John Wiley & Sons, 4th edition, 2012 | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| The Project Resource Manual: CSI Manual of Practice The Construction Specifications Institute, McGraw-Hill, 5th edition, 2005 | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| Rules of Conduct National Council of Architectural Registration Boards, latest edition | ■ | -- | |||||
| Simplified Engineering for Architects and Builders James Ambrose and Patrick Tripeny, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Site Engineering for Landscape Architects Steven Strom, Kurt Nathan, and Jake Woland, Editors, John Wiley & Sons, 2013 | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Site Planning and Design Handbook Thomas H. Russ, McGraw-Hill, 2nd edition, 2009 | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Space Planning Basics Mark Karlen and Rob Fleming, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Steel Construction Manual American Institute of Steel Construction, Ingram, latest edition | ■ | $$$ | |||||
| Structural Design: A Practical Guide for Architects James R. Underwood and Michele Chiuini, John Wiley & Sons, 2nd edition, 2007 | ■ | ■ | $$$ | ||||
| Structures Daniel Schodek and Martin Bechthold, Pearson/Prentice Hall, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| Sun, Wind, and Light: Architectural Design Strategies G.Z. Brown and Mark DeKay, John Wiley & Sons, 2nd edition, 2001 | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Sustainable Construction: Green Building Design and Delivery Charles J. Kibert, John Wiley & Sons, 2005 | ■ | $$ | |||||
| Time-Saver Standards for Architectural Design: Technical Data for Professional Practice Donald Watson and Michael J. Crosbie, Editors, McGraw-Hill, 8th edition, 2004 | ■ | ■ | $$ | ||||
| A Visual Dictionary of Architecture Francis D.K. Ching, John Wiley & Sons, latest edition | ■ | ■ | $ | ||||
| A101-2007 Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Contractor where the basis of payment is a Stipulated Sum | ■ | -- | |||||
| A201-2007 General Conditions of the Contract for Construction | ■ | ■ | -- | ||||
| A701-1997 Instructions to Bidders | ■ | ■ | -- | ||||
| B101-2007 Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Architect | ■ | ■ | ■ | -- | |||
| B101-2007A Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Architect | ■ | ■ | ■ | -- | |||
| C401-2007 Standard Form of Agreement Between Architect and Consultant | ■ | ■ | ■ | -- | |||
| A305-1986 Contractor’s Qualification Statement | ■ | -- | |||||
| G701-2001 Change Order | ■ | -- | |||||
| G702-1992 Application and Certificate for Payment | ■ | -- | |||||
| G703-1992 Continuation Sheet | ■ | -- | |||||
| G704-2000 Certificate of Substantial Completion | ■ | -- |
General ARE 5.0 Study Materials
NCARB’s ARE 5.0 community [Free] – If you’re studying for a specific exam, it’s good to have your finger on the pulse and see what others are saying about it. Checkout NCARBs ARE 5.0 community for great questions and answers from NCARB professionals.
Ballast ARE 5 Review Manual for the ARE [$$$]- Always a good resource to have, very in-depth, but many have reported lots of errors in the first edition and that the content is too broad.
Ballast ARE 5 Practice Exam [$$] – The reviews for this seem pretty negative. There are some 5 star ratings that give no context which make me question their validity.
Black Spectacles [$$] – We love black spectacles but there’s a lot of video content to get through and some of it is very general. That might be a strategic move as their resources are based on a monthly subscription at $80+.
Architect Exam Prep [$$$] – A lot have found that AEP simply ported over their 4.0 content for some of their ARE 5.0 study materials. There are even cases of their 5.0 audio companions referring to 4.0 exams. While Architecture hasn’t changed, the way the content is presented between 4.0 and 5.0 is very different. I’d trust their PjM and PcM resources though, since they have been forced to make new content for that.
Youtube Playlists
We spent a lot of time with the AREs so when we find video content on youtube that’s relevant to a certain practice exam, we like to add it to a playlist. Checkout each of the individual resource pages for exam specific playlists.
PcM – Practice Management
PjM – Project Management
PA – Programming & Analysis
PPD – Project Planning & Design
PDD – Project Development & Documentation
CE – Construction & Evaluation
Know of any other ARE 5.0 study materials you’d like to see added to this list? Let us know in the comments below!
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