The Associate qualification demonstrates your competence for a commercial or technical role. It is suitable for those with work-based experience or vocational qualifications. When you achieve this qualification, you will be able to use the designation AssocRICS.

The five stages of assessment

Eligibility

You must have 4 years’ relevant work experience. However, certain qualifications can reduce the number of years’ experience required, as indicated in the table below.

More information

All Associate candidates must appoint a counsellor who is RICS qualified. Their role is to support you and guide you throughout your assessment journey. Counsellors for the Associate Assessment must be AssocRICS qualified for at least four 4 years, MRICS or FRICS.

Vetting

Your application information will be checked prior to assessment to confirm you meet the eligibility requirements.

Ethics

Candidates for all RICS assessments must complete the RICS online ethics module and test.

Submission

The submission for the Associate Assessment includes:

• Summary of experience – 3,000 word summary of your experience against competencies set out in your chosen pathway. 
• Case study – 2,500 words on one of your recent projects that demonstrates your technical ability 
• CPD – a record of 48 hours of CPD for the last 12 months

Assessment

Your counsellor will confirm when you are ready to submit for assessment.

Your submission will be assessed by a panel of trained RICS assessors to ensure you have met all the required competencies.

Download the Associate Assessment Candidate Guide

How long will it take me to qualify?

It will depend on your current experience, but generally it takes between 6 -12 months to complete the submission.

How much will it cost?

Candidate fees

An enrolment fee is payable when you apply to become an Associate candidate. This covers all the support materials, access to the online ethics module and test, access to the Assessment Resource Centre (ARC) where you will complete your submission, and the written assessment. A candidate subscription fee is payable every January to cover all the support materials and access to ARC up to the point you become qualified.

Qualification fees

When you are awarded the qualification an election fee and your professional subscription fee is payable. The election fee covers the award pack and election process giving access to all RICS professional services. The professional subscription fee covers your RICS professional status for your first calendar year. Depending on what month you qualify there may be a reduction in the professional subscription fee to take account of the candidate subscription you have paid.

Refunds

All fees are non-refundable unless you withdraw your application within a cooling off period of 14 days (10 working days) from the date your enrolment is processed by RICS. If you decide to withdraw your application please email apc@rics.org.

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