Glossary of terms related to the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC):

• APC Passport:  the application form that candidate members in continental Europe complete online on MyAPC to apply for APC Enrolment, Final Assessment and Election as a Professional Member of RICS.


• APC Pathway: the APC Pathway is the area you decide to specialise in. There is a wide range of pathways available to qualify as an RICS member, covering 21 areas of practice. Each pathway defines the set of competencies that you need to achieve in order to become a chartered surveyor.


• RICS Approved professional organisation: membership organisations with specific academic and experience requirements that have been approved by RICS, taking into consideration e.g. the similarities of the qualification process, professional practice they cover and life-long learning.


• Assessment of Professional Competence (APC): the APC is a period of structured practical training and professional development that ends with the Final Assessment and ensures that candidates joining RICS are competent to practise as a chartered surveyor. Depending upon the route to membership that is relevant to the candidate, the APC consists of: 0-24 months structured training, 48-96 hours professional development, record of progress/professional development, critical analysis (Graduate 1, 2, 3 and Adaptation routes), completed by the Final Assessment interview.


• Assessor/Assessment panel: the Final Assessment panel consists of two to three assessors who are all chartered surveyors and are active in the specialism of the candidate's chosen faculty route. RICS has developed a structured training programme to ensure the quality of assessors around the world.


• Competencies: a statement of the skills or abilities needed to perform the specific task or function. It is based upon attitudes and behaviours as well as skills and knowledge.
  The competencies have three distinct categories:
  
  • Mandatory competencies: personal, interpersonal and business skills common to all routes to membership
  • Core competencies: primary skills of the candidate's chosen faculty route
  • Optional competencies: selected by the candidate as additional skill requirements for the chosen faculty route.


• Counsellor: a chartered surveyor, the counsellor is usually a colleague at the candidate's place of employment, normally from the same faculty as the one  chosen by the candidate. The counsellor works in partnership with the candidate's supervisor and will assess his/her record of progress. It is the counsellor who helps decide when the candidate is ready to apply for Final Assessment, who signs off all the documents that are submitted for Final Assessment and ensures that the candidate's training is structured to meet the needs of the faculty route.


• CPD (Continuing Professional Development) or Life-Long Learning: CPD is vital in assuring best practice among members. They use it to keep up to date with the latest developments in the profession and its markets, and to expand their areas of expertise, giving them and their clients the competitive edge. Given its importance, our members' CPD is monitored by RICS Regulation. For further details on RICS CPD requirements, see the relevant CPD requirements file.

• Critical analysis: under Graduate 1, 2 and 3 and Adaptation 1 routes, this is a written report (3 000 words) demonstrating the candidate's personal involvement in a project or projects during his/her training. The conclusion is a critical appraisal of the project together with an outline of the lessons learned. The critical analysis must give the assessors detailed evidence of the candidate's ability to work competently and his/her ability to apply the core knowledge relevant to his/her faculty. It will be used to assess his/her understanding of the project and process, the breadth and depth of his/her professional experience, his/her communication skills, and as a basis for questions during the Final Assessment interview.


• CV: under the Graduate 3, Adaptation 1 and Senior Professional routes, candidates are requested to provide a CV at application (using the RICS CV template) to demonstrate that the candidate has obtained the required competencies. 

• Professional development (template 3 of APC Passport): as part of the structured training and depending on the route to membership, the candidate must do a minimum of between 48 and 96 hours of professional development, e.g. formal training courses, distance learning programmes, informal structured reading and secondments.

• Professional Group (previously called Faculty): because the profession is extremely diverse, many surveyors specialise in one or more fields. RICS has grouped these fields into 16 'Professional groups': arts and antiques, building surveying, commercial property, construction, dispute resolution, environment, facilities management, geomatics, machinery and business assets, management consultancy, minerals and waste management, planning and development, project management, residential, rural and valuation.

• Professional qualification: to count towards RICS membership any professional qualification must be relevant to the field of surveying and comparable to RICS membership in terms of the entry criteria (which must be to a degree level), assessment process and ethical standards. Based upon the knowledge and understanding of the local market, the National Group of the candidate’s country of residence will decide on the relevance of the professional qualification for RICS membership.


• Record of competence (template 2 of APC Passport): under Graduate route 3 and Adaptation 1 routes, candidates are requested to provide a record of competence showing that they have met the competency requirements of the chosen faculty route.
  
  
• Record of progress (template 1 of APC Passport): quarterly reports which summarise in 500 words how your experience and training meet the competency and professional development requirements.
  
  
• Referral: if the candidate has not been successful in his/her Final Assessment, he/she will be ‘referred’. He/She will receive a referral report explaining why the panel reached this decision. It will also provide help on preparing for a future Final re-Assessment.


• Rules of Conduct: under the Royal Charter and Bye-Laws, all RICS members are expected to comply with regulations governing their conduct. These include provisions relating to the keeping of members’ accounts, professional indemnity insurance (PII) and general standards of behaviour. For full information on the new RICS principles-based regulatory regime launched in June 2007, go to www.rics.org/newregulation.
  
  
• RICS Student: a property professional who is studying on a course accredited by RICS and has registered with RICS as an RICS Student (see the 'I want to become an RICS Student' registration form on this website).


• RICS Trainee: a property professional who has enrolled on the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) which ends with the Final Assessment. If the RICS Trainee is successful in the Final Assessment, he/she then qualifies as an RICS member and can add the designation MRICS after his/her name.


• Structured training: the formal, structured approach to the training and development of the candidate, based upon a training agreement between the employer and the candidate.
  
  
• Supervisor (under Graduate routes 1, 2, 3 and Adaptation 1): normally a chartered surveyor, the candidate’s supervisor is appointed at the candidate’s place of employment. The supervisor is responsible for giving the candidate guidance on his/her training and day-to-day work.