Here's one for y'all to chew on: at what point can I legitimately call myself an architect, and be compensated as such, after completing all of my ARE and state licensing exams? NCARB is taking forever (going on week 4) to review my record and send it to the State. Not much I can do but be patient, the reason I ask the question is because I am looking at new job opportunities but want to be honest with my prospective employers about the status of my licensure, without selling myself short.
A friend of mine who is also waiting to do her oral interview/get her license number has been applying for jobs recently and was actually offered a position of 'Intern 4' or some nonsense like that, with a start date two days before she was going in front of the state board. This seems lame to me--technically she is not yet licensed but, she's 99.9% of the way there!
(Also, my state board meets every other month, which means the earliest Ill be licensed is October 31, even though I took my last exam on August 4th!) So, as a job applicant I am not yet 'licensed' but, being so close now, can I call myself an architect? Understood we are in the long game here, and we all believe in the sanctity of being licensed or else we wouldn't be going through this process... just curious to get some perspectives.