American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP)

The American Institute of Certified Planners is APA's professional institute. The institute provides leadership nationwide in the certification of professional planners.  To use the AICP designation, a member must meet certain education and experience requirements and pass a written examination. Certified individuals must adhere to a code of ethics and engage in continued professional development. More than 16,000 planners have earned the aicp credential.

Certification
To become a certified planner entitled to use the AICP designation, APA members must meet certain education and experience requirements and pass a written examination.

Certification Maintenance (CM)
APA's continuing education program is designed to advance the quality and integrity of the planning profession. The mandatory continuing education requirement was enacted by the AICP Commission in 2007.

Members holding AICP certification must earn 32 CM credits within a two-year reporting cycle. The credits are earned from participating in a variety of training and professional development opportunities. A certain number of credits are required on the topics of ethics and current planning law.

The Fellows of AICP (FAICP)
The highest honor bestowed upon a planner. Election to the College of Fellows recognizes a member's significant contributions to planning and society. An individual member must hold AICP certification and be nominated to the College of Fellows. Fellows are inducted every two years, in even numbered years, during a special ceremony at APA's National Planning Conference and are permitted to use the special designation, FAICP, after their name. Since the College of Fellows was established in 1999, 435 certified planners (living and deceased) have been inducted.

AICP Commission
The eight-member AICP Commission is responsible for overseeing the certification process and representing the needs of AICP members. Six regional commissioners are elected by the AICP membership to serve four-year terms. The AICP president leads the commission as well as represents AICP-members on the APA Board of Directors.

AICP Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
A guide to the ethical conduct required of members of the American Institute of Certified Planners. The Code aims at informing the public of the principles to which professional planners are committed.

Community Assistance Program (CAP)
The Community Assistance Program addresses social equity issues by providing pro bono planning services to communities in need. AICP members work with community residents and stakeholders to address planning challenges.

The annual community planning workshop is held during the APA National Planning Conference in a neighborhood of the host city. Recent workshops have assisted Philadelphia's Sharswood neighborhood and the West Las Vegas neighborhood.

The planning assistance teams are dispatched to communities that would benefit from certain planning expertise. Recent teams have worked in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, South Bend, Indiana, and Greensboro, North Carolina.

Practicing Planner
A quarterly online publication for AICP members. It provides a forum for discussion as well as case studies that affect professional planning practice.