By Don Bradley, AICP, PhD
Register now for our spring PREP COURSE at UC Berkeley
The American Institute of Certified Planners is the only national organization for professional planners. Becoming a member will enhance your career opportunities.
The window to apply to take the May 2020 AICP Certification Exam is open only through December 30, 2 PM Pacific, so don’t delay. Apply here.
APA California–Northern Section sponsors exam prep workshops
These will again be held at Wurster Hall, UC Berkeley, over the course of five Saturdays: February 8, February 29, March 21, April 11, and May 2, 2020, from 10 AM to 3 PM, with a study group lunch at Noon for an hour.
To register, mail your check for $100, made out to Don Bradley, to 2995 Woodside Road, Suite 400, Woodside, California, 94062. The fee covers practice tests, CDs, and handouts. Check with your agency or firm to see if they will reimburse your costs.
You can also download National APA’s AICP Exam Guide here. It contains all the information you need to apply for and take the AICP Certification Exam.
APA will require documentation of your education and history of your professional planning work experience. Keywords are professional level planning experience, future oriented planning practice, work is in the public interest, and ethical values.
The test is broad, and most candidates say, difficult. The exam domains include: American city planning history, past and present urban and regional planning theories, planning and zoning nationally important court cases, professional planning document preparation, the plan implementation methods, and the AICP Code of Ethics and related issues.
Our workshops are an excellent way to start studying for the May 2020 exam. Those who attend receive hundreds of multiple choice practice test questions, with answers with rationales, plus study materials such as a summary of the classic planning texts and our unique “Tips on the AICP Exam.”
Donald W. Bradley, AICP, Ph.D., is a Professor of Psychology and Planning and a City of San Carlos planning commissioner. He has led the APA California–Northern Section AICP Exam Prep course for 30 years. Dr. Bradley served in the USAF as a planner and civil engineering officer, retiring as a colonel. He has taught at universities around the world, including (in the U.S.) UC Berkeley, Stanford, UC Davis, San Jose State, Michigan, and Michigan State. He received a “Special Recognition of Excellence” Award from Northern Section in 2009.