Professional qualifications for property surveyors: all about the APC

For graduates with less than five year's vocational experience, the APC must take a minimum of 24 months.

Becoming a chartered surveyor involves passing the APC, for which you need to be employed as a surveyor and have an RICS-accredited degree. If you have been employed as a graduate without an RICS degree and are being sponsored through an accredited postgraduate conversion course, you can complete the APC at the same time as you study your postgraduate course. However, you can also put your APC on hold until after you've finished your academic study. Both the APC and the conversion course are serious time commitments, so you may find it more manageable to finish your postgraduate study before embarking on the APC.

Why do the APC?

Becoming chartered with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is a key milestone in a surveyor’s professional development. If you’re starting out in the profession, it proves that you’re an expert in your field, entitles you to put MRICS after your name and is usually rewarded with a substantial pay rise.

The RICS and Macdonald & Company Rewards and Attitudes Survey 2019 reported that qualification with the RICS resulted in a 38% salary increase.

• Read our salaries article to find out more about what you can expect to be earning at different stages throughout your property career.

What will I be assessed on?

The APC is based on competencies – the key skills you need to do the job. These include personal skills (eg communication), business skills and specialist professional skills. You will also need to know about subjects such as professional ethics and RICS rules. There are different competencies for the different disciplines, overseen by the various RICS faculties. Your employer will assess your competences before drawing up a programme of training for you.

How long does the APC take?

For graduates with less than five year's vocational experience, the APC must take a minimum of 24 months. If graduates have previously worked in the industry for five years or more, the APC can take less time.

Most large property firms run two-year graduate training schemes and the aim is that you’ll be ready to sit the final elements of the APC after this. However, the RICS allows you to defer the date of your final assessment if you’re not ready.

It is possible to begin studying for your APC while on a work experience placement, but at least 12 months of study needs to take place while on your graduate training scheme.

What will I do during the assessment of professional competence?

To complete the APC, you must:

• Show evidence that you’ve understood and applied the required competencies in your daily work through filling in RICS records.
• Have regular meetings with your APC supervisor and coordinator (see 'What will my employer do to help me pass my APC?’ ).
• Have completed 96 hours of continuing professional development (CPD) per year while undertaking the APC.
• Submit a critical summary of the mandatory and technical competencies you have completed. There is a 1,500 word count and a 4,000 word count for the mandatory and technical competencies respectively.
• Sit a final assessment interview.

Assessment for the APC is famously rigorous and many recently qualified surveyors have told us that it is among the hardest things they have ever done. Not all graduates pass the first time, but your employer can do a lot to support you through the process, so do find out about the support offered by each employer when you apply.

Advice from a partner...

Abigail Heyworth, a partner in London residential developments at Knight Frank LLP , told us: 'One of the biggest milestones in my career so far has been completing the APC.' We asked her to look back on her time studying and share her advice. She stated, 'One of the major mistakes that graduate surveyors can make is not staying on top of their APC preparation and letting the stress of catching-up be their downfall.'

As well as making sure you stay on-top of things, she also advises graduates to not neglect the support on offer. Abigail continues, 'I benefited hugely from having access to senior staff who acted as my counsellors and supervisors while I was completing the APC. Being able to go to them for guidance throughout the process and having their perspective on whether I was getting the right experience and how to document it correctly was extremely valuable. Make sure you're proactive in your preparation and make use of mentors.'

Choosing your APC pathway

The exact nature of the competencies depends on which of the specific pathways that you decide to follow. The pathways include:

• commercial real estate
• environmental surveying
• facilities management
• management consultancy
• planning and development
• project management
• property finance and investment
• residential
• rural
• valuation

As evidence of your competencies has to be found from your day job, your decision will be partly guided by the employers you choose to apply to: naturally, if you apply to a property recruiter that purely specialises in commercial property, you won’t be able to take a residential or rural pathway. Some firms, such as Cushman & Wakefield , only offer graduate jobs in specific pathways. At other property firms, the decision may be placed more in your hands and it can be possible to change your specialism at one of your reviews.

What will my employer do to help me pass the APC?

This depends on the employer. All employers should appoint you an APC counsellor or supervisor, who takes charge of your development and is usually a chartered surveyor themselves. All employers should also give you the time to attend RICS lectures and/or networking events to enhance your knowledge, if they don’t provide their own. It's important that you take an active interest in your own progress on the APC and notify your supervisor if you do not feel that you are gaining sufficient exposure to a particular competency. That way, your employer is in a position to rectify this early on in your studies.

Should I choose a rotational or non-rotational scheme?

To meet the APC's competency requirements, you need to undertake a broad variety of work. Many property firms ensure you do this by operating rotational training schemes; others will do this by placing you in one relevant department but ensuring you receive a range of work. There are pros and cons to each method and you should really decide which method you prefer before applying to schemes; different methods work best for different types of people.

Rotational

Non-rotational

The pros

The pros

You'll experience a range of different departments.

You'll work in a fixed role from the start and work closely with the same team.

You'll learn about yourself and where your career could take you.

You'll gain a deep insight into one particular are of the businesss.

The cons

The cons

You may find it frustrating to start work on new projects with each rotation.

You need to be sure about your career path early on.

Firms may not be able to accomodate all of your preferred options.

You may not get the variety you would get from a rotation-based scheme.

Non-rotational schemes may allow you early responsibility and recognition, give you a greater sense of continuity during your time as a trainee, and enable you to develop deep insight into your chosen field. However, if you don’t think you’re gaining a broad enough range of experiences for passing your APC, you’ll need to be proactive and raise your concerns with your supervisor.