This ARE Live episode walks candidates through five Project Management (PjM) practice exam questions with architect and Black Spectacles educator Chris Hopstock.
The session focuses on the contract-based scenario questions that make up much of the PjM division, covering consultant hiring responsibilities, non-conforming work during construction observation, delay responsibility under a Construction Manager as Constructor (CMc) delivery method, owner-hired consultant scope gaps, and the difference between an architect's basic services and additional services.
Throughout, Chris ties each question back to the three AIA documents PjM candidates need to know: the B101 (owner-architect agreement), the A101 (owner-contractor agreement), and the A201 (general conditions of the contract for construction).
ARE Live is Black Spectacles' free, monthly webinar series in which a licensed architect walks through real ARE 5.0 practice exam questions for one division at a time, explaining why each answer choice is correct or incorrect and answering candidate questions live. Registration for each live session is free, and every episode's recording is also available afterward as a free podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. This episode covers five practice questions for the Project Management (PjM) division — one of six divisions on the Architect Registration Exam (ARE 5.0), not to be confused with the PMI Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.
Try answering these before reading the explanations below — it's the same format used in the free live ARE Live session.
Question 1 — Consultants: An architect is negotiating a contract for a new two-story community center, and the owner wants the same basic services outlined in AIA B101. Which three consultants are most likely required?
A. Structural engineer
B. Electrical engineer
C. Civil engineer
D. Kitchen consultant
E. Historic preservation consultant
F. Mechanical engineer
Question 2 — Non-conforming work: During a site visit, an architect notices installed exterior doors that don't match the contract documents, and the contractor hasn't submitted a substitution request. What should the architect do?
A. Direct the subcontractor to remove and replace the doors immediately
B. Approve the installation of the replacement doors
C. Document the observation as non-conforming
D. Withhold the entire payment application until the doors are replaced
Question 3 — CMc delay: On a Construction Manager as Constructor (CMc) project, the structural engineer delivers drawings three weeks late, delaying the coordinated permit set. Who is responsible to the owner for the delay?
A. The structural engineer
B. The construction manager
C. The architect
Question 4 — Owner-hired consultant: An owner directly hires a kitchen design consultant for a restaurant project, and the consultant later says a server area near the main dining room wasn't included in their scope. How should the architect address this?
A. Negotiate an additional service request with the kitchen consultant
B. Direct the kitchen consultant to design the server area
C. Request that the owner address the dispute with the kitchen consultant
D. Submit an additional service request to design the server area
Question 5 — Additional services: An owner asks the architect to revise restroom layouts for code compliance, prepare a detailed cost estimate, help create a contractor list, and assist with competitive bidding. Which task should be an additional service?
A. Revising the restroom layouts for code compliance
B. Preparing a detailed cost estimate
C. Assisting in preparing a list of prospective contractors
D. Assisting the owner in obtaining competitive bids
Scroll down for the full answer and reasoning behind each question, or register for the next free ARE Live session to ask your own questions live.
Under the standard AIA B101, the architect's basic consultant team typically includes the structural engineer, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer. This list comes from B101 Article 1.1.11, which spells out the consultants the architect is expected to retain as part of basic services. In the practice question, candidates were asked to pick three consultants from six choices — structural, electrical, civil, kitchen, historic preservation, and mechanical engineer — and the correct answers were structural, electrical, and mechanical.
Civil engineers, along with geotechnical engineers and surveyors, are generally hired by the owner, not the architect, because their scope relates to the land the project sits on rather than the building itself. Specialized consultants like a kitchen designer or historic preservation consultant aren't part of the architect's basic consultant team at all; if needed, the architect could bring them on as an additional or supplemental service, but they fall outside the base scope described in the B101. As Chris notes, real project teams can structure these hiring relationships however an owner and architect agree — the B101 simply describes what's typical and what the ARE expects candidates to know.
When an architect observes installed work that doesn't conform to the contract documents, the correct action is to document the observation as non-conforming in a field observation or site visit report. In the practice question, an architect notices that installed exterior doors don't match the specified door types, and the contractor hasn't submitted an approved substitution request.
Two answer choices contain red-flag language that signals they're incorrect: directing the subcontractor to remove and replace the doors immediately (the architect shouldn't "direct" a contractor's means and methods, and "immediately" suggests an unreasonable rush to judgment), and withholding the entire payment application over a single non-conforming item (an overly absolute remedy — the architect would instead withhold only the portion of payment tied to the non-conforming work). Approving the replacement doors outright skips a necessary step, since the architect hasn't yet determined whether the doors are acceptable. Documenting the non-conformance keeps the owner reasonably informed, a core responsibility during construction administration, and preserves the record for whatever resolution follows — approval, replacement, or a negotiated credit.
The architect is responsible to the owner for delays caused by consultants the architect hired — even on a Construction Manager as Constructor (CMc) delivery method project. In the practice question, a structural engineer delivers drawings three weeks late during the contract documents phase, preventing the team from submitting a coordinated permit set on schedule.
Because the architect hires the structural engineer under standard AIA documents, the architect holds the direct contractual relationship with the owner and is therefore responsible to the owner for that consultant's delay — the responsibility "passes through" the architect, who can in turn hold the structural engineer accountable. The construction manager, meanwhile, is responsible for coordinating the overall project schedule across both design and construction phases on a CMc project, but that doesn't make the CM responsible for a delay caused by a consultant it didn't hire. The key lesson: whoever contracts directly with a consultant is the party responsible to the owner if that consultant falls behind, so architects need to proactively track their consultants' progress rather than waiting for a delay to become a crisis.
When the owner, rather than the architect, has directly hired a consultant, the architect should request that the owner address the dispute with that consultant rather than stepping in to resolve or absorb the gap. In the practice question, an owner hires a kitchen design consultant directly for a restaurant project, and during design development the consultant reveals that a server area near the main dining room wasn't included in their scope.
Because the architect didn't hire the kitchen consultant, the architect's responsibility is limited to coordinating the consultant's work product — making sure the kitchen designer's space planning, fixtures, and specifications show up correctly in the architect's drawings — not coordinating the consultant's contract, schedule, or scope of work. That means it isn't the architect's job to negotiate an additional service with the kitchen consultant, direct the consultant to design the missing area, or submit their own additional service request for that scope. All of those responses would have the architect taking on a scope of work — and the associated liability — that was never part of their contract with the owner.
Under AIA B101 Article 3, the architect's basic services already include revising documents for code compliance and assisting the owner with a list of prospective contractors and competitive bidding; a detailed cost estimate prepared to replace a contractor's estimate is the item that qualifies as an additional service. In the practice question, an owner asks the architect to do four things at the end of the contract documents phase, and only one — preparing a detailed cost estimate — falls outside the architect's basic scope.
Revising restroom layouts to address code review comments is a basic service because architects are responsible for correcting their own code-compliance mistakes regardless of project phase, and a detailed estimate of this cost should already be reflected in the architect's fee. Assisting with a contractor list and assisting the owner in obtaining competitive bids are both explicitly listed as basic services in B101 Article 3. A detailed, itemized cost estimate, by contrast, goes well beyond the conceptual, cost-per-square-foot estimates architects typically provide at the end of each design phase, and usually requires hiring a dedicated cost consultant — which is why it's billed as an additional service. Chris also flags a related nuance: the same scope of work can be called a "supplemental" service if it's negotiated into the contract up front, or an "additional" service if it's added after the fact, as in this question.
Chris Hopstock is a licensed New York architect and Black Spectacles educator. In this episode, he breaks down the AIA contract knowledge — spanning the B101, A101, and A201 — that underlies many of the scenario-based questions on the PjM, PcM, and CE divisions, with a particular focus on who is contractually responsible for what when consultants, contractors, and owners interact during a project.
Have a follow-up question about consultant hiring, non-conforming work, or additional services under the B101? Join the conversation on the ARE Live: PjM Practice Exam August 2026 thread in the Black Spectacles Community.
Topics from the live Q&A included:
Yes. ARE Live is Black Spectacles' free monthly webinar in which a licensed architect walks through real ARE 5.0 practice exam questions — including the five Project Management (PjM) questions covered in this episode — with full reasoning for why each answer choice is correct or incorrect. Registration for the live session is free, and the recording is also available afterward as a free podcast on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Project Management (PjM) tests a candidate's understanding of contract negotiation, consultant management, project scheduling, and the architect's responsibilities during design and construction phases. Many PjM questions are scenario-based and require applying knowledge of AIA contract documents like the B101, A101, and A201 to realistic project situations.
The three most important AIA documents for PjM are the B101 (owner-architect agreement), A101 (owner-contractor agreement), and A201 (general conditions of the contract for construction). Together they define who is responsible for hiring consultants, managing schedules, and administering the contract during construction.
No. A detailed cost estimate prepared to replace or supplement a contractor's estimate is an additional service under B101 Article 3, since it typically requires a specialized cost consultant. The architect's basic services only include more conceptual, cost-per-square-foot estimates at the end of each design phase.
The scope of work can be identical — the difference is timing. If a service is negotiated into the owner-architect agreement up front, it's called a supplemental service; if it's added to the scope after the contract is already signed, it's called an additional service.
Understanding who's contractually responsible for what — architect, owner, consultant, or contractor — is one of the most consistently tested skills across the PjM, PcM, and CE divisions, and it's exactly the kind of knowledge that's easy to underestimate until you're staring down a scenario question on exam day. Black Spectacles' ARE 5.0 prep includes on-demand video lectures, full-length practice exams, flashcards, and guided study plans built around each division's real content — all backed by the Pass the ARE Guarantee.