APC Frequently Asked Questions

03-Jan-07

This section provides answers to some frequently asked questions about the APC. Full guidance can be found in the Guide to the APC, and additional guidance for each element of the APC in the log book, PDP and mentor sections.

General

What is the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC)?

The APC is a structured, supported route to becoming a Chartered Town Planner for graduates of accredited course. It comprises a total of two years of experience, during which time candidates will keep a reflective log book, a professional development plan (PDP) and have the support of a mentor. At the end of the process candidates submit a written report reflecting on their experience, which is examined by APC Assessors. Success in this application results in election to Chartered Membership of the RTPI.

Who is the APC for?

The APC the route to Chartered membership for all students who completed their accredited degrees in or after 2006. It also applies to graduates of one-year Masters degrees from 2005 onwards.

Planners who graduated prior to these dates will continue to apply for Chartered Membership under the current arrangements until 01 January 2009. After this date, all applications will be through a route to the APC.

Do I need to register to start the APC?

Yes, as soon as you receive notification that you have been successful in your accredited degree you must apply to become a Licentiate member. This is the graduate membership class, and also registers you for your APC. You must become a Licentiate in order to count your post-qualifying experience towards your APC.

If you are still studying for your degree and are also working, you can begin to keep your log book and use this experience towards the APC (up to a maximum of one year). You cannot become a Licentiate member until you have successfully completed your degree, but you may wish to become a Student Member in order to access RTPI benefits and services. Free student membership is open to all students in their final year of an accredited degree.

How do I apply to become a Licentiate?

You can download the Licentiate application form from the RTPI’s website. Application forms should be printed and returned to the RTPI with original signatures. You will then be elected to membership, and be provided with a start date for calculation of your experience.

Experience requirement

How much experience do I need?

Candidates must be able to demonstrate two years of eligible experience, of which at least one year must follow successful completion of an accredited degree and be undertaken as a Licentiate member of the RTPI.

What type of experience counts?

In the first instance, you should consult Section 3 of the Guide to the APC for details of the types of experience that are eligible towards the APC. Eligible experience can be full or part time, and be of a paid or voluntary nature.

All experience should be gained at an appropriate professional level, i.e. you should have had opportunity to exercise independent professional judgement.

I’m working alongside my degree – is this eligible?

Subject to it meeting the eligibility criteria, experience from alongside an accredited degree can be used to demonstrate a maximum of 50% of the total two year experience requirement. This means that all candidates, regardless of their prior experience, will need to undertake at least one year of post-qualifying experience as a Licentiate member (see below).

Experience from alongside a full-time intensive Masters degree is not eligible for the APC. Candidates on this route can begin to count their experience only once their degree has been conferred, and must apply for Licentiate membership at this point.

Experience from alongside a full time undergraduate route degree (i.e. ‘3 1’ with diploma/specialist Masters, or four year MPlan) is unlikely to be eligible, unless it can be demonstrated that it was gained at a suitable professional level equivalent to the type of work that might reasonably be undertaken by a graduate.

Experience from alongside a part-time or distance learning degree is generally eligible, naturally subject to it meeting the eligibility requirements.

I’ve worked two and a half days per week for the last year of my course – does this mean I only have to do one year post-graduation?

No. Applicants for Corporate Membership must demonstrate a total of two years (24 months) full-time experience, or its equivalent gained part-time. Working for half the week means over a year you will accrue only 6 months experience, which would mean you would need to complete a year and a half following graduation to gain the full two years. Applications can and will be rejected if the applicant has not gained the minimum requirement for practical experience.

I have previous experience from prior to commencing my course – is this eligible?

In principle, experience from prior to beginning an accredited qualification is eligible. In practice, candidates should take care to ensure that all experience they are putting forward for assessment has been undertaken at a professional level. This may mean that there are candidates who have experience in planning from prior to beginning their degree which was largely administrative in nature, in which case they will undertake all of the two year requirement for professional experience post-qualification.

When does the post-qualifying experience start?

The period of post-qualifying experience, which may be anything upwards of one year depending on the prior experience held, begins once the candidates has received confirmation that he or he has been successful in the accredited degree, and has become a Licentiate member. For this reason graduates are encouraged to become Licentiate members as soon as they are eligible in order register for their APC and to begin counting their experience.

I’ve deferred/failed elements of my course – how does this affect my APC?

Candidates who are retaking any element of their qualification, or have deferred submission of any elements (including the dissertation) cannot register as a Licentiate or begin to count their APC experience until they have successfully completed and been awarded their qualification.

In the case of part-time students, they may well be continuing to gain experience, which can all be recounted in the final submission, but they cannot become a Licentiate and begin their post-qualifying experience until they have been awarded their qualification.

For full-time students who begin work whilst retaking elements or having deferred submitting their dissertation, it is not possible to begin to count this experience, in order to maintain equity between the two routes. Such students must become Licentiates and begin their total period of experience only once they know that they have been successful in their qualification.

I will be changing employers during my APC – is this a problem?

Changing employers during your APC is not a problem, but please ensure that you notify the RTPI of your new employment details (by email to the Membership Team). Some candidates will stay with the same employer for the duration of their eligible experience; other candidates may find themselves moving around. While either of these is fine, we would caution against too many changes in employment as this may prevent you from gaining a suitable level of experience. Please also be aware that periods of employment of less than three months’ duration are not generally eligible towards the APC.

If you are changing employers you may wish to consider whether you also need to change your mentor. This is not a requirement, and if both you and the mentor are happy to continue then there is no reason to make a change. However if you will no longer have easy access to your old mentor and wish to nominate a new mentor this is absolutely fine, and you can do so using the Change of Mentor form.

How can I know that I am getting the right breadth and depth of experience?

There is no straightforward answer to this question. Some candidates may work within a number of different disciplines, whereas others may gain their experience in its entirety within one discipline or function.

Candidates who are applying based on experience in just one post will need to ensure that they meet all the assessment criteria within this one role. They will also need to demonstrate that they have a good understanding of how their particular function or specialism relates to spatial planning more broadly. These candidates may particularly benefit from undertaking some volunteer work, for example through Planning Aid, in order to broaden their perspective on their current role.

Candidates who are applying based on a number of different posts will need to ensure that they demonstrate that they were able to take on a good level of responsibility in each post. They will need to be able to demonstrate all the assessment criteria, either within each post or through demonstrating different competencies through examples from different posts.

I’d like to go and work overseas – will this affect my APC?

Experience towards the APC can be gained in the UK or overseas, or a mixture of the two. Licentiates who are working towards their APC overseas (whether this is in their home country, or UK nationals working overseas) will still need to ensure their experience meets the eligibility criteria, and they are undertaking all the elements of the APC. This includes completing the log book, ensuring it is corroborated, and keeping a Professional Development Plan.

Identifying a mentor to whom you have easy access may prove the hardest part of undertaking the APC overseas, but there are ways around this. Chartered Members of the RTPI do work overseas, so you may actually have access to someone who will act as your mentor. Alternatively, you may wish to identify a UK-based mentor before you leave who will act as your remote mentor, and possibly continue as your mentor if you are returning to the UK. Many mentor volunteers on our database have also signed up to be remote mentors. While it is always preferable to try to identify a mentor with whom you can meet, remote mentoring offers an alternative to ensure that you still have access to the support of a Chartered planner.

You can make your application for Chartered Membership through the APC from the UK or overseas, but do bear in mind that all experience you wish to use towards this application needs to be signed off by corroborators who are able to confirm that you have gained the experience. Corroborators do not need to be Chartered Planners. Candidates who are using experience that has been gained overseas are therefore encouraged to indicate to their employer that they will need to contact them again once they reach the point of application in order to corroborate their experience.

I’d like to take a career break/go travelling before or during my APC – will this affect my APC?

There is no time limit on how long you can wait to apply to become a Licentiate, nor on how long you can be a Licentiate. This means that taking any form of break in planning employment either directly after completing your accredited degree or during your APC is not a problem, as long as you ensure that you become a Licentiate member once you return to planning employment to ensure that your experience is eligible.

Clearly breaks in employment where you are not actually engaged in planning are not eligible towards your APC. However, you may wish to continue your Licentiate membership during this time in order to continue to receive information and updates relating to APC. If you do elect to resign your Licentiate membership, do remember to reapply once you return to planning employment.

APC Submission

What is required in the final submission for the APC?

The APC submission requires applications to provide details of the work they have undertaken (practical experience statement) and a reflection on how this has contributed to the development of professional competence (professional competence statement). Within the conclusion they are also required to produce a professional development plan. Candidates should send this submission, in triplicate, to the RTPI, along with the application cover sheet and a copy of the log book.

How long is the final report?

The report should be 5000 words, with an error margin of /-10% (i.e. 4500 – 5500 words).

When are the submission dates?

Submission deadlines take place four times a year, and are published on the website under Information for Licentiates.

How much does the APC cost?

Fees for the APC are broken down as follows:

£50 Licentiate registration fee, payable on application to become a Licentiate
£180 Assessment fee, payable with the final submission
£50 Administration fee, payable with the final submission
Total cost: £280

Bearing in mind these fees, the subscription rate for Licentiates has been set at £30, which is comparable with the lowest subscription rate for non-earning members. Licentiates are able to take advantage of all the benefits of Chartered Members (though they may not yet use the designation MRTPI), and also have access to their own online learning account through PlanningMatters.co.uk, where they may download modules for free up to a value of £100 in their first year of Licentiate Membership (see Section 1.5 of guidance). Licentiates are also encouraged to join the Young Planners Network in order to engage in networking and exchange best practice relating to the APC.

How will I know if I have been successful?

Success in the APC is tantamount to election to Corporate Membership, and Licentiates will be notified of the outcome of their assessment by post from the RTPI. Regardless of the outcome of their assessment, Licentiates will receive a copy of the assessors’ composite feedback form.

What happens if I am unsuccessful?

There is a distinction between referrals, for matters of clarification, and failure, where it is clear that the candidate has not met either or both of the practical experience or professional competence requirements. Candidates who are unsuccessful will receive notification of the reasons for the assessors’ decision and, in the case of referrals, a time frame within which the queries should be resolved. It is the Licentiate’s responsibility to work (with the mentor if appropriate) to resolve these issues before the next submission. The candidate will remain in Licentiate class, and not be elected to membership until they have been successful in their resubmission. Candidates who fail their APC submission will be liable for the full submission fee when they come to resubmit. For this reason, the RTPI would strongly discourage speculative submissions.

Publisher:: The Royal Town Planning Institute
Date:: 03-Jan-07
Categories:: Assessment of Professional Competence

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