Submit Education, Work Experience, and Assessment

Step 3: Apply Your Education, Employment & Experience to the AICP Professional Planning Practice Requirements

After passing the AICP Certification Exam and earning the required amount of professional planning experience, submit your education and employment information. (Please note that once you pass the exam, you can submit the assessment in any future window once you have obtained all your experience.) You must also demonstrate your experience meets the AICP definition of professional planning experience in the Planning Experience Assessment. Please refer to the AICP Certification Guide for full details.

Visit to Are You Eligible? for detailed information on the eligibility requirements and the Eligibility Pre-Check.

Education, Employment & Experience Requirements

SECTION 1: EDUCATION HISTORY & VERIFICATION

Education information and supporting verification documents confirm you have received your degree, when the degree was conferred, and if the degree was in planning.

Wondering whether your master's degree qualifies as a non-PAB-accredited planning degree? Refer to the Experience Eligibility Requirements and use the Planning Curriculum Worksheet to confirm how much professional planning experience you'll be required to provide.

SECTION 2: EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

Enter professional planning employment information for each position needed to meet the experience requirements .

Does your experience meet AICP's definition of professional planning experience? Use the Planning Experience Worksheet to confirm that your experience qualifies. Use the Interactive Experience Calculator to total up your years of professional planning experience to see how soon you can submit your Planning Experience Assessment.

SECTION 3: PLANNING EXPERIENCE ASSESSMENT

Demonstrate your experience meets AICP's definition of professional planning experience as specified in the three criteria by selecting all items that apply from comprehensive lists that align with each criterion, and by completing open text fields with brief specific examples from your verified employment history provided in Section 2. Use the Planning Experience Assessment Worksheet to review the professional planning experience requirements for certification.

SECTION 4: SUMMARY & REVIEW

Review each section prior to submission. You will not be permitted to change or edit the assessment once it has been submitted.

SECTION 5: SUBMIT & PAY

A fee is due upon submission. Your assessment will undergo a review and APA will email you with your assessment status within 4 weeks of submission. If your assessment is approved, you've completed the requirements in the certification process and will receive an email with your last step, including your AICP initial dues invoice, that will begin your AICP Certification.