Become a Counsellor

Eligibility

• For candidates on the Chartered assessment, you must be MRICS or FRICS to be their counsellor.
• For candidates on the Associate assessment, you must be AssocRICS, MRICS or FRICS to be their counsellor.
• All counsellors must have completed the counsellor e-learning module before they can approve their candidates for prelim review or final assessment. This module plus the reading including the Counsellor Guide is 2 hours of formal CPD.

Requirements

You must familiarise yourself with the counsellor guide as well as the relevant candidate and pathway guides.

When becoming a Counsellor, you must complete the official RICS Counsellor Module available on the Assessment Platform before you can approve your candidates for either Preliminary Review or Assessment. Reading the June 2025 Counsellor Guide alongside the module provides valuable preparation and support for you in your role —together, these activities count toward two hours of formal CPD. 

While each assessment route has elements that may vary, the counsellor role principles are the same for every candidate.

The level of support candidates require will vary depending on their qualifications and experience. For example, if the candidate is following the senior professional assessment, your role will likely be peer-to-peer support. For APC structured training candidates, you will need to give more direct technical support and regular quarterly reviews.

Your declaration

Your candidate cannot apply for assessment until you have certified that, in your opinion, they have reached the required level of competence. This verification is a mandatory assessment requirement.

When you approve a candidate as ready for assessment, you are confirming that through careful enquiry of the candidate’s experience and knowledge of the assessment requirements, you consider the candidate to be suitable to become MRICS if they are undertaking a Chartered assessment or AssocRICS if they are enrolled onto the Associate assessment. You are also confirming that the content of the submission if reflect of the candidates experience and is their own unaided work.

Your declaration is in your capacity as an RICS professional. It must be carefully considered and with reference to the RICS Rules of Conduct.

When you are nominated as a candidate to act as their Counsellor you will be emailed, to the email address we hold for you, and asked to log onto the Assessment Platform and confirm you are willing at act as the candidate Counsellor this is an important verification step, once completed your will be given access to your new candidate’s assessment details on the platform.

Important notes

As a counsellor, the number of candidates you choose to support is up to your own personal judgement. RICS strongly encourages all counsellors to carefully consider the time commitment involved and your duty of care to candidates. You should also consider your professional and technical ability to provide appropriate support and advice in respect of relevant pathways in accordance with the RICS Rules of Conduct.

You cannot perform the counsellor role if you have any active regulatory sanctions, including interim measures, on your membership record. If you are subject to a regulatory investigation whilst acting as a counsellor, you may be required to suspend practice in this capacity until such time as investigations have been concluded. This will depend on the nature of the investigation, and you should seek advice from RICS.

Counsellor training

All RICS counsellors must complete the RICS Counsellor Training that prepares them for the role. via the Assessment Platform. There is also a Counsellor Briefing – Part 2 which focusses on preparing candidate for Final Assessment available free on the Online Learning Academy.