The question I seem to be getting the most right now is when will we open the public application process again. Our web site says early 2007 and it is getting to be early 2007. I'm working right now to reopen the application process in April/May/June timeframe. A couple of thoughts of why that is my target.

• Capacity - This process is very labor intensive for the people going through. They have a lot of work (about 60-120 hours) to prepare for the interview. They also work with 4 or 5 different MCA advisors that help them prepare with 4 separate and specific goals. We have limited MCAs and, as you might imagine, architects stay quite busy. Getting the candidate and the advisors connected and the candidate creating the documentation they submit take s a little time and commitment. We don't want to have more people going through the process that we can support in a timely fashion so we don't want to open the process to new applicants to early or too often.
• Timing - When I say "let's open the application process" it takes a few months to align all of the pieces to make it happen, and to give the people that are interested a chance to figure out if they truly are interested in going through the process. That said, I’ve just started focusing on where people are in the pipeline and when we will be able to reopen the open application process.
• Need – How often is often enough? My gut feeling is once a year is good for now, and as we get more people certified and have more capacity to support people going through the process, we can adjust that timing. For now, my master plan will be to open the application process once yearly, but will review where candidates are in the pipeline, how many people are interested in applying (based on how often I am contacted and by how many), and what goals I’ve set for growth of the program on a quarterly basis.

Anyway, like it or not, there’s you answer. If you have comments and suggestions, I’d love to hear them.

-andy