Members earn learning units by attending programs offered by AIA/CES registered providers or through self-reporting.

Registered providers offer varied programs from chapter meetings and lunch programs to weekend conferences by manufacturers, universities, and professional organizations. The provider records the event and reports the units earned by the participants to the recording center in Oklahoma.

Member self-reported activities include either a self-designed activity or a structured self-reported program.

A self-designed activity is a learning activity organized by the member specifically to meet the member's individual needs. Note that it is not acceptable for health, safety, and welfare (HSW) credit and some state licensing boards will not accept this type of reporting for mandatory continuing education requirements. A self-designed activity frequently involves more than one type of medium or method, such as research, reading, interviewing subject experts, and/or viewing videos.

A structured self-reported program is a structured activity offered by an organized third party who is not a CES provider. For learning units to be properly recorded, a member completes the preprinted AIA/CES Self-Report Form and sends it to the records center in Oklahoma.

To determine what qualifies for self-reporting ask yourself: a) Is this a planned learning activity? b) Is this activity intended to be educational or operational? c) Is this new knowledge for you or are you sharing your knowledge with others? d) How will you apply this new knowledge to your practice? To be eligible for credit the activity must be planned, educational, and new knowledge for you. Members calculate learning units for self-reported study by determining the number of hours spent in architecture-related learning. All self-report forms should be sent to the AIA/CES office at the University of Oklahoma.