APC pathways: ploughing a new path

Kate Taylor reviews the new pathways to professional qualification and finds that the RICS has delivered a practical approach. Since 1 August 2018, RICS APC candidates have had the option to declare competence for final assessment under the new pathways to professional qualification. Session 2 2018 is the first time both candidates and assessors were faced with determining a candidate’s surveying competence using the new pathway guides. The pathway guides define the criteria for establishing competence and the candidate’s final submission and interview responses will be measured against the requirements articulated in the guides. It is therefore essential that candidates, supervisors, counsellors and assessors are familiar with any new or altered requirements. This article will examine the key changes relevant to the commercial property pathway and provide practical insights to help candidates prepare for final assessment. Please note that the first change to highlight is a pathway name change: Commercial Property Pathway is now titled Commercial Real Estate Pathway. All new pathway guides have the date August 2018 emblazoned on the front cover. This is the edition that all candidates enrolled after 1 August 2018 should be working to. The RICS has produced a useful summary of changes.  Mandatory competencies The mandatory competencies represent the general professional skills and they apply equally to all surveyors no matter what the pathway. The updates reflect changes in the wider business environment and an ongoing modernisation of the RICS APC. A key theme to the mandatory competency updates is an increased emphasis on diversity. There are many minor updates to language in the competency descriptions and candidates are advised to read the requirements and competencies guide carefully. Below are the key changes. Level 3 The title of the level 3 mandatory competency “Conduct rules, ethics and professionalism” has changed to “Ethics, rules of conduct and professionalism”. This subtle change reflects the growing importance of ethics to the RICS and candidates are advised to ensure that this emphasis flows through everything they say and write. Top tip Candidates should review their competency evidence and ensure that it reflects an ethical approach. Level 2 Two of the mandatory Level 2 competencies have been updated. The most relevant change to commercial real estate candidates will be the inclusion of the “Analysis of client requirements” competency within “Communication and negotiation”. This competency has been deleted from the technical list of competencies. This will come as a blow to some agency candidates as it was often declared on the commercial property pathway. Level 1 There is a completely new competency: “Inclusive environments”. This is unfamiliar language to many but essentially it refers to the need to ensure that real estate is accessible to all users. This goes beyond the Equality Act 2010 “protected characteristics” and requires a common sense overview in much the same way as the sustainability competency. In other words, don’t panic! Teamworking has become “Diversity, inclusion and teamworking”. Along with the other changes, this reflects a modern business mindset. The focus on diversity across the mandatories is not expected to be a challenge for most candidates, it comes naturally and the key point is to be authentic. Finally, there is the disappointing news for many commercial real estate candidates that the “Property records” competency has been deleted and subsumed into “Data management”. Top tip All pathways now have an optional plus – this means that candidates may choose any competency from the full requirements and competencies guide to level 2. This can introduce an interesting wild card for assessors. Candidates may still be able to capitalise on their property records skills by declaring ‘Data management’ to level 2 as their optional plus competency. Technical competencies There are no changes to the core competencies. Many of the changes to optional competencies will affect all commercial real estate candidates, so please do read all areas of practice below. The changes have been separated into area of practice to provide a practical approach: commercial real estate valuers; corporate real estate surveyors; property managers; and public sector surveyors. Commercial real estate valuers Loan security valuation competency For candidates specialising in valuation there is a new optional competency: Loan security valuation. This can be declared to Level 3 by candidates who have substantive experience in providing Red Book valuations for loan security purposes. The focus of this competency is the specific requirements of the financial sector and this can be declared in addition to valuation level 3. Corporate real estate surveyors There is now an entirely new pathway for this area of practice. Prior to the 18 August updates, corporate real estate surveyors would declare competence under the commercial property pathway. The competency “corporate real estate” has been deleted altogether and replaced with four new competencies: Business case; Business alignment; Performance management; and Workspace strategy. In-house surveyors working for a specific corporation should ensure that they are following the correct pathway. Property managers A competency often declared by property managers pre-August 2018 was “Property management accounting” (which usually focused on service charges). This has been deleted and subsumed into “Property management”. Option appraisal has also been deleted. Top tip Candidates with competence in “Option appraisal”, should consider declaring “Change management” as their optional plus Level 2 competency. Public sector surveyors Public sector surveyors and valuers should be delighted to see the addition of “Legal and regulatory compliance” to the optional list. This competency is mainly about knowledge, application and advice about secondary legislation and, as any public sector surveyor will confirm, that is not just building regulations. Surveyors in the public sector who appear at tribunals as expert witnesses or advocates should also consider declaring “Conflict avoidance and dispute resolution” competency. The wording has been updated to make it clear that appearing at tribunals is Level 3 conflict avoidance. The planning competency has been split into “planning and development management” and also “spatial planning policy and infrastructure”. Both of these competencies are in the optional list for commercial real estate pathway. Welcome change The APC changes are a much needed update and no doubt will continue to evolve to reflect the profession. There are opportunities for specialisms to be better reflected. Top tip Candidates must think carefully about the correct pathway to demonstrate their competence and ensure that they have read the relevant RICS pathway guide. Advice for supervisors and counsellors Help a candidate to choose the appropriate pathway and competencies by discussing what they actually do, day to day. Ask candidates to share their learning with the team on the competency changes to practise their presentation skills. Useful resources APCeye magazine Critical APC information in a free monthly magazine. APC101 – WhatsApp Open group on APC Process discussions. All welcome. APC presentation Online masterclass discussing key elements of the APC final assessment interview. Hints and tips on best practice. Free timeline wallchart A2 pictorial view of the APC process, based on the RICS guides and Jon Lever’s professional knowledge. Supervisor and counsellor APC training – formal CPD Tips on how to manage and support your candidates. APC mock interviews Practice your APC final assessment interview, including the presentation and competency-based questioning. A full hour interview just like the real thing and immediate feedback from the two assessors. Commercial property and residential revision guides Every forward-thinking APC candidate’s reference book for APC preparation: www.apctaylormade.co.uk Free trial: myAPCDiary This resource can save up to 60% of a candidate’s day-to-day APC admin. RICS APC guides These should be read at least once every three to four months. Candidates from outside the UK also need to check their regional websites for any local APC requirements. Kate Taylor FRICS is an APC chair. Follow Kate Taylor and Jon Lever on Twitter:  @katetay73593006 and @deleverapc