Surveyor.

About the Role

The term surveyor covers a wide range of careers and job profiles within a hugely diverse range of industries and sectors. The more general reference to a ‘surveyor’ arguably relates to those operating within the property and construction industries, such as quantity surveyor, building surveyor and valuation surveyor.

All of these require a general, basic understanding of the surveying industry, but each has its own specific skill set, from costings and negotiation to planning and asset management.

Routes to Becoming a Surveyor

The governing body for surveying disciplines is the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). There are a number of different routes to membership, developed to enable individuals from school-leavers through to professionals working in land, property and construction to gain RICS membership.

1. 1

   Graduate route: for those with an RICS-accredited degree – how much further structured training you need depends on your relevant work experience.

2. 2

   Associate route (AssocRICS): a vocational qualification route for those with relevant work experience and vocational qualifications rather than a degree – this is now a full standalone membership grade in its own right, not just a stepping stone.

3. 3

   Experienced professional route: for those with significant relevant experience.

4. 4

   Apprenticeship route: an increasingly common alternative, combining paid work with RICS-accredited study.

All routes lead to the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) – a structured period of logged work experience (length depends on prior experience), a written submission, and a final interview – culminating in RICS membership (MRICS).

Good to know: Membership offers an internationally recognised professional qualification that increases your status in the sector, although it isn’t necessarily a requirement for working in the industry – many people work successfully as ‘surveyors’ without RICS membership.