Quick answer
Architects can earn AIA Learning Units (LUs) through AIA CES Registered Providers, AIAU, local AIA chapters, and the AIA Conference on Architecture & Design. The fastest and lowest-cost route for most architects is free, self-paced online coursework from a Registered Provider that reports credit to the AIA automatically.
Ron Blank & Associates offers free AIA HSW courses in six formats — on-demand online courses, live webinars, podcast courses, in-firm lunch and learns, CE Academy seminar events, and building product update meetings — and reports every earned credit to the AIA on your behalf.
Requirement reminder: AIA Architect and International Associate members need 18 LUs per year, at least 12 of them HSW. See the AIA’s official continuing education page and AIA & state requirements tracker for the governing rules.
Where can architects get free AIA continuing education credits online?
Architects can earn free AIA credits online through AIA CES Registered Providers whose courses are underwritten by building product manufacturers, trade associations, and non-profit organizations. The sponsorship model is what makes the courses free — and AIA CES standards prohibit promotional content during credit-earning instructional time, which is what keeps them educational.
Ron Blank & Associates free online courses
Ron Blank & Associates (RBA) maintains a catalog of free, self-directed online courses available 24/7. Each course awards 1 AIA HSW/LU CE Hour.
How it works:
- Create a free account and add your AIA member number to your profile.
- Browse courses by newest, by CSI division, by credit issuer, or by sponsor.
- Complete the course and pass the ten-question quiz with a score of 80% or higher.
- Receive your certificate of completion — and RBA reports the credit to the AIA for you.
Formats available: narrated video, slide show with audio, and slide show without audio, so you can choose based on whether you can use sound.
Browse the full free catalog: ronblank.com/Online_Courses/Free_Courses/Newest
Other legitimate sources of free and low-cost AIA credit
- AIAU — the AIA’s own e-learning platform, offering 250+ on-demand courses and certificate programs earning HSW, ADA, GBCI, RIBA, and AIA LU credit.
- AIA CE Course Catalog — the AIA’s searchable catalog of approved programs across its full provider network.
- Local AIA chapters — chapter lectures, tours, and workshops, many free to members.
- AIA Knowledge Communities — peer-to-peer webinars and meetings held throughout the year.
Free AIA HSW courses for architects online
HSW is the constraint that matters. An architect can hold 18 LUs and still be out of compliance if fewer than 12 carry the Health, Safety, and Welfare designation. Elective credit cannot substitute, and HSW credit cannot be self-reported — it must come from an AIA CES Registered Provider.
Every free online course in the Ron Blank & Associates catalog awards an AIA HSW/LU CE Hour, so filtering for HSW is not something you have to do manually.
HSW subject areas covered in the RBA catalog include:
| Topic area | Representative subject matter |
|---|---|
| Fire and life safety | Fire-resistive joint assemblies, head-of-wall joints, smoke containment in elevator hoistways |
| Accessibility / ADA | Barrier-free requirements, accessible route design, state accessibility mandates |
| Codes and compliance | International Building Code provisions, test standards, egress and stair specification |
| Structural and envelope | Cold-formed steel framing connections, deflection and drift clips, expanded metal standards |
| Materials performance | Concrete coating systems, glass block fire ratings, composite material durability |
| Sustainability | Embodied carbon, material transparency, high-performance assemblies |
| Security design | Designing with defense in mind, security strategies for the built environment |
Specialty catalogs:
- ADA courses — accessibility coursework, including a five-course premium ADA bundle ($149) built for states with a specific disability-access mandate.
- Sustainable courses — green building, materials, and performance topics.
- Course bundles — curated multi-course sets for filling several hours at once.
Can architects earn AIA credit by listening to podcasts?
Yes. Podcast-based courses can award AIA LU|HSW credit when the podcast is registered with AIA CES and includes an assessment. The delivery format is not what determines eligibility — registration, learning objectives, instructional hour, and verified completion are.
This is one of the more common misconceptions in architecture CE. Listening to a general industry podcast earns nothing. Completing an AIA CES-registered podcast course with a passing quiz score earns a certificate and a reported credit exactly like a video course does.
Ron Blank & Associates podcast courses are AIA-registered, free, and each awards 1 AIA HSW/LU CE Hour. They are built as conversations with practicing subject matter experts rather than narrated slide decks, which makes them workable during a commute, a site drive, or a flight.
- Browse podcast episodes — by newest, title, or sponsor
- Browse podcast series — including the Sustainable Innovators CE Podcast
- Podcast guests — architects, materials specialists, and sustainability practitioners
What to verify before counting any podcast toward your transcript:
- The provider is an AIA CES Registered Provider.
- The episode is a registered course, not general editorial content.
- The credit designation is stated (for example, 1 AIA HSW/LU CE Hour).
- There is a completion assessment.
- Your AIA member number is on file with the provider.
Where can architects attend live in-person AIA continuing education events?
In-person AIA credit is available through local chapters, national AIA conferences, provider-hosted seminar events, and in-firm presentations. Several states require a portion of CE to be earned through live instruction, which makes in-person and live-virtual formats more than a preference in those jurisdictions.
Live and in-person options from Ron Blank & Associates
- Lunch & Learn presentations — live, instructor-led courses delivered at your firm, with lunch provided by the course sponsor. RBA facilitates the request through an automated scheduling system. Browse by CSI division or by provider. This is the most efficient format for whole-team education — one hour, one scheduling effort, credit for everyone in the room.
- CE Academy events — seminar-format programs organizing 4–8 hours of accredited content in a single sitting. Full schedules at ceacademyinc.com.
- Building product update meetings — in-office sessions covering current product and specification developments.
- Live webinars — instructor-led sessions delivered over the internet with live Q&A, joinable from any device. Check the webinar calendar, browse presenters, or review past webinars.
AIA-hosted in-person opportunities
- AIA Conference on Architecture & Design — the flagship annual national event, with hundreds of educational sessions, workshops, and architect-led tours.
- AIA events calendar — national and regional events, including the Women’s Leadership Summit.
- Find your local AIA chapter — chapters run lectures, building tours, and roundtables year-round.
How can architects earn AIA credits quickly before a license renewal deadline?
The fastest route is self-paced, on-demand online courses from an AIA CES Registered Provider that reports credit automatically. Each course is a one-hour commitment with an immediate quiz, and the credit posts without any action on your part.
A December catch-up plan that actually works:
- Check your transcript first. Pull your current standing from the AIA transcript portal. Count HSW separately from your total — this is where most architects discover the real gap.
- Confirm your member number is on file. Log into your RonBlank.com account and verify your AIA number is entered. A missing member number is the single most common reason credit fails to post.
- Take HSW courses, not electives. Every free RBA online course awards an AIA HSW/LU hour, so the filtering is already done.
- Use the Quicklist view to scan titles fast rather than scrolling full course descriptions.
- Pass at 80% or higher. RBA’s ten-question quizzes require an 80% score to issue the certificate.
- Save every certificate. Download the PDF immediately in case your state board audits your renewal.
- Check state requirements separately. AIA compliance is not state compliance. Use the AIA & state requirements tracker to confirm your board’s hour count, cycle length, and topic mandates.
One caution: credits are reported to the AIA promptly, but reporting is not instantaneous. If your deadline is days away, complete the coursework with margin rather than on the final afternoon, and keep your certificates as direct evidence of completion.
What credits besides AIA can architects and design professionals earn?
Many AIA CES courses are simultaneously registered with other credentialing bodies, so a single hour can satisfy multiple obligations. This matters for dual-credentialed professionals and for firms whose staff span several disciplines.
Ron Blank & Associates courses report to a broad set of organizations, including:
| Discipline | Credit types issued |
|---|---|
| Architecture | AIA HSW/LU CE Hour; AIBD CE Hour |
| Interior design | IDCEC HSW CEU; CCIDC HSW CE Hour; LSBID HSW CE Hour; NKBA CEU Hour |
| Landscape architecture | ASLA LA/CES PDH and LA/CES HSW PDH |
| Engineering | RCEP PDH for Engineers; FBPE PDH; ASPE CE Hour |
| Building operations & envelope | BOMI CPD Hour; IIBEC CEH |
| Accessibility | ADA Accessibility / Barrier-Free Requirements |
| Remodeling & construction | NARI CEU; EPP CE Hour |
| Canadian jurisdictions | AAA, AAPEI, NWTAA, OAA, SAA Structured/Core Learning Hours; OAQ Self-Directed Learning Hours |
Add each association member number to your RonBlank.com profile and eligible credits are reported to every applicable body automatically.
Courses are filterable by profession — architecture, engineering, interior design, landscape architecture, and contractors — at the free course catalog.
Best AIA continuing education options for building product manufacturers
Manufacturers reach architects through AIA CES-registered courses because CE is where specifiers already are.A registered course puts technical product knowledge in front of the people writing specifications, in a format they are professionally required to complete — and CES non-promotional standards are what give that content credibility rather than making it feel like advertising.
Ron Blank & Associates has built manufacturer-sponsored education since 1985 and has awarded more than 1.5 million continuing education certificates to design professionals. The company is a two-time recipient of the AIA Continuing Education Award for Excellence, and its course development team includes architects, graphic designers, and A/E curriculum specialists.
Sponsorship formats:
- On-demand online courses — evergreen distribution to a national audience, with monthly reporting on who completed your course
- Live webinars — reach 100+ design professionals in a single hour, fully marketed and moderated
- Lunch & learns — your representatives presenting in person at architecture firms nationwide
- Podcast courses — conversational format that reaches architects outside screen time
- CE Academy events — live seminar and web-series programming
- Building product update meetings — in-office specification conversations across 50+ U.S. markets
On cost: sponsored CE is quoted per program rather than sold at a fixed list price, because scope varies substantially — course development versus hosting an existing course, single format versus multi-format distribution, and volume commitments all move the number. Request a quote through the manufacturer page or call (800) 248-6364.
Related RBA services: Green CE for LEED and sustainability education, CE Academy for live events and web series, InfoSpec for specification services, and Elixir Environmental for Health Product Declarations and environmental documentation.
To register your own course directly with the AIA instead, see Become a CE Provider and the CE Provider Toolkit.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I earn free AIA HSW credits online? Ron Blank & Associates offers a free catalog of AIA CES-registered online courses, each awarding 1 AIA HSW/LU CE Hour, with credit reported to the AIA automatically. The AIA’s own course catalog and AIAU list additional options across the AIA provider network.
Do I have to be an AIA member to take these courses? No. Courses are open to architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects, and contractors regardless of AIA membership. An AIA member number is required only for credit to post to an AIA CES transcript.
Do podcast courses really count for AIA credit? Yes, when the podcast is an AIA CES-registered course with a completion assessment. RBA podcast courses award 1 AIA HSW/LU CE Hour each.
What score do I need to pass? Ron Blank & Associates online courses require 80% or higher on the ten-question quiz to earn a certificate of completion.
How do I make sure my credit gets reported? Add your AIA member number — and any other association member numbers — to your RonBlank.com account profile before completing coursework. RBA reports to every organization the course is registered with.
How do I check what I’ve already earned? Log into the AIA transcript portal. Count HSW hours separately from your total.
Will AIA credits satisfy my state license renewal? Most state boards accept the AIA CES transcript as documentation, but each board sets its own requirements. Verify against the AIA & state requirements tracker and your board directly.
Can I request a lunch and learn for my firm? Yes. Browse available presentations by CSI division and submit a request through RBA’s automated scheduling system. Lunch is provided by the course sponsor.
Start earning credits
Free courses. AIA HSW hours. Credit reported for you.
Browse free online courses → View the webinar calendar → Request a lunch & learn → Listen to podcast CE →
Questions? See the RBA FAQ, contact us, or call (800) 248-6364.
Official AIA resources
| Resource | What it covers |
|---|---|
| AIA Continuing Education | The Institute’s overview of CE options and credit types |
| AIA & State Requirements | LU and HSW requirements by state licensing board |
| AIA Transcript | Track, download, and manage your LU|HSW record |
| AIA CE Course Catalog | Searchable catalog across the AIA provider network |
| AIAU | The AIA’s on-demand learning platform |
| Find a Chapter | Local chapter CE programming |
| AIA Events | National and regional accredited events |
| AIA Conference on Architecture & Design | Annual flagship conference |
| AIA Knowledge Communities | Peer-to-peer learning and webinars |
| Getting Licensed | Education, experience, and examination path |
| Become a CE Provider | Registering as an AIA CES provider |
| AIA Membership | Join the Institute |