What is the APC and which route are you on?
The APC is how RICS checks that a candidate is competent to practise as a chartered surveyor. Pass it and you are eligible for election to MRICS. Your route depends on your degree and experience. With an RICS-accredited degree and under five years' experience you do 24 months of structured training. Five to ten years means 12 months. Ten years or more needs no structured training, only 48 hours of CPD in the previous 12 months.
Without an accredited degree, a bachelor degree or higher, or membership of an RICS-approved body, plus five years' relevant experience lets you take the preliminary review route. At least 12 months of that experience must be post qualification. You also pick a pathway, such as valuation or building surveying, which sets the competencies you will be tested on. Once enrolled you have six years to qualify, so plan the timetable from day one.
Structured training, counsellor and supervisor
You need a counsellor who is a chartered surveyor, appointed on the RICS Assessment Platform when you enrol. Finding one is your job. A supervisor who oversees your daily work is optional but recommended. Expect formal meetings every three to six months. You cannot apply for final assessment until your counsellor, and supervisor if you have one, certifies that you have reached the competency levels and finished the minimum training period.
Structured training means 400 days over 24 months or 200 days over 12 months, recorded in the diary on the platform in blocks of no less than half a day. Record core and optional competencies, mostly at Levels 2 and 3. The diary feeds a logbook, and a submission without the logbook is invalid. Enrolment can be backdated by up to six months with a support letter. You also need 48 hours of CPD per 12 months, at least half of it structured.
Competencies, the summary of experience and the case study
Every competency has three levels: Level 1 is knowledge and understanding, Level 2 is applying it, and Level 3 is reasoned advice and depth of knowledge. Ethics, Rules of Conduct and professionalism must reach Level 3. Client care, communication and negotiation, and health and safety must reach Level 2. Your summary of experience allows 1,500 words for mandatory competencies and up to 4,000 for technical ones, using real examples of your own work.
The case study runs to 3,000 words and must cover a project you worked on personally in the 24 months before submission. It follows a set template: project and role, key issues and options, your solution, then lessons learnt. At least one core competency must be shown at Level 3. Before submitting you must also pass the RICS Professionalism module: four e-learning units and a 20-question ethics test, valid for 12 months.
The final interview and why candidates are referred
The interview lasts 60 minutes on MS Teams with two or three chartered assessors. You give a 10-minute presentation on your case study, take 10 minutes of questions on it, then face 30 minutes on your experience, CPD, technical competencies and the Rules of Conduct. The chair uses the last 10 minutes. You cannot look at your submission during the call. Results come within seven days.
The assessor guide lists the common faults: submissions in the wrong format or with significant errors, a presentation that does not match the written work, unprofessional communication or attitude, and gaps in knowledge of declared competencies, even just one. Assessors must refer anyone who falls short on ethics and conduct. Questioning carries the most weight. A weak Level 1 optional competency alone would not normally lead to a referral.
Pay
GBP a year, before tax. Ranges run from the 25th to the 75th percentile for surveying roles, based on ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, April 2026 (provisional), moved to the current year with a wage index. Regional figures are modelled and cover all surveying staff, so chartered status, pathway and employer type will move where you sit. Refer to the Surveying salary guide for figures from live adverts.
What you need
- Eligible entry routeAn RICS-accredited degree, or a bachelor degree or higher (or RICS-approved body membership) with five years' relevant experience for the preliminary review route.
- Chartered counsellorA counsellor who is a chartered surveyor, appointed on the Assessment Platform at enrolment. A supervisor is optional but recommended.
- Structured training400 days over 24 months or 200 days over 12 months, logged in the platform diary. Not required for candidates with an accredited degree and ten years' experience.
- CPDAt least 48 hours per 12 months of structured training, with 50% or more structured. Other routes need 48 hours in the 12 months before preliminary review or assessment.
- Professionalism moduleFour e-learning units and a 20-question multiple-choice ethics test, passed no more than 12 months before submitting.
- Written submissionSummary of experience (1,500 words mandatory, up to 4,000 technical), a case study of up to 3,000 words and, for structured training candidates, a logbook.
- Proposer and secondersThree chartered members (MRICS or FRICS) who support your election, at least one from a different firm. Your counsellor can be one of them.
How to get there
- Month 0Enrol and choose a pathwayEnrol as an RICS candidate, pick the pathway that matches your work and appoint your counsellor on the Assessment Platform. Backdating is capped at six months.
- Months 1-23Train and recordLog diary entries against core and optional competencies, build CPD and meet your counsellor or supervisor every three to six months.
- Months 12-20Pick your case study projectChoose a project from the last 24 months with a real problem you solved, and agree a synopsis with your counsellor.
- Month 11 or 23Register intent and submitUK candidates register intent to submit once they have done 11 or 23 months of training, then submit the summary, case study, logbook, CPD record and proposer details.
- Month 12 or 24 onwardsFinal assessment interviewA 60-minute online interview with a 10-minute case study presentation. Results arrive within seven days.
- After resultsPass or address a referralA pass leads to election to MRICS. A referral report follows within 21 days, and you retake the full assessment at a later session.
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Questions people ask
How many times can you sit the APC?
From 1 January 2026 you get four attempts at the chartered assessment, plus a fifth and final attempt once you have built up 12 more months of experience. Attempts made before 1 January 2026 do not count.
What happens if you are referred?
You get a referral report within 21 days explaining the decision. Before trying again you normally need more relevant experience, continued CPD, a new or updated case study and a plan agreed with your counsellor. You are reassessed on every competency, and the next panel does not see your old report.
Can you be referred on ethics alone?
Yes. The interview puts heavy weight on the Rules of Conduct, professional practice and ethics, and assessors are told they must refer a candidate who does not show the required competence in that area, whatever their technical performance.
Can you appeal an APC result?
You have 21 days from the issue of your referral report to appeal in writing, with the fee and stated grounds. If the appeal succeeds you get a new interview based on your original submission. The appeal panel cannot award MRICS, and its decision is final.
Does the case study have to be one whole project?
No. It can cover part of a project, or a project that is still running, as long as you were personally involved within the 24 months before submission. It must show at least one core competency at Level 3.
