Examinations – England and Wales

IRPM Part I Examination

Affiliates of the Institute must have one year's current relevant experience in the leasehold property management sector in order to take the exam and must take it within two years of their Affiliation.

On passing this exam Affiliates will be upgraded to Associate (AIRPM) grade on receipt of the balance of the new subscription level. To achieve a pass 70 questions must be answered correctly with distinction at 90 correct answers.

This exam is organised and run by the Institute itself – a sample paper with the correct answers and a booking form are downloadable from the Examinations page on the members' area.

The exam is based on the contents of the Residential Block and Estate Management Introductory Open Learning Course 2007 (OLC) published by Asset Skills in a joint venture with ARHM (Association of Retirement Housing Managers), ARLA (Association of Residential Letting Agents), ARMA (Association of Residential Managing Agents), CIH (Chartered Institute of Housing), IRPM, NAEA (National Association of Estate Agents) and RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors). The OLC in turn is primarily based upon elements of the National Occupational Standards (NOS) approved by the government body, Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). The OLC is available from the Property Publications page on the Asset Skills website.

The exam takes one hour and consists of a 100 question multiple choice paper, each with 4 possible answers. The paper has 4 questions from the Introduction section, 6 from Glossary and 30 each from General Law, Leasehold Finance and Land and Buildings..

IRPM Part II Examination

Associates (AIRPM) of the Institute must have completed three years in the residential property management sector before they can sit this annual exam.

On passing the exam Associates will be upgraded to Member (MIRPM) grade on receipt of the balance of the new subscription level.

The IRPM has commissioned the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) to design and run this examination. The CIH is a nationally recognised Awarding Body for housing qualifications. In addition the CIH provides qualifications delivered by Universities and Colleges within the UK and overseas. This means the CIH has considerable experience and expertise in the design and delivery of qualifications to national quality assured standards. For further information and booking form visit The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) website.

As would be expected this examination is designed to test the knowledge and abilities of candidates to a much greater depth.

The exam will expect candidates to have a good grasp of (a) the core skills of the 'National Occupational Standards for Residential Block Management', (b) the structure and requirements of leases, (c) the expectations in recognised Codes of Practice and (d) the relevant legislation.

The qualification has been designed to be assessed at level 1 of an undergraduate programme ( level 4 of the National Qualifications Framework ). This would be at least the same level as an HNC year one or a NVQ level 4 qualification.

The National Occupational Standards can be viewed and/or downloaded from www.assetskills.org

See below for a summary of the NOS Units which are included in the syllabus.

Units of the national occupational standards applicable to the Part II examinations

This examination, which is run annually at various locations around the country, has been designed as an unseen written paper divided into two parts: Part A and Part B.

Part A will consist of 12 short questions to be completed in one hour. Candidates will be required to answer any 10 out of 12, with answers worth 4 marks per question. This part will make up 40% of the total marks available.

Part B will consist of 6 longer (essay style) questions, three of which are to be completed in one hour and thirty minutes. There will be 2 questions in each of 3 sections: Finance, Law and Management of Buildings. Candidates will be required to answer one question from each section. Each answer will be worth 20 marks with the total contribution to the overall mark of 60%. The pass mark for this examination is 60% with distinction at 80%. The Part II examination has been designed to be assessed at level 1 of an undergraduate programme. This would be the same level as an HNC year one or a NVQ level 4 qualification.

The series of one and two day training courses run by the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA) – some in conjunction with the Southampton Solent University - help to prepare candidates for the Part II Exam. For details of forthcoming courses visit the ARMA website - www.arma.org.uk

ARMA has compiled the first comprehensive reference source for everyone involved in the management of long leasehold residential property and members of the IRPM are entitled to a free copy. The Bibliography & Information Sources lists publications and where to obtain them, a schedule of organisations relevant to the sector, trade and technical magazines and newsletters as well as useful websites.

The Bibliography is available to download from the Reference sources page on the members' area of the website.

Where do I find out more about Part II?

The CIH has produced a Students Guide which incorporates the Examination Regulations. Both of these, along with an application form can be obtained by emailing the CIH at irpm@cih.org, by visiting www.cih.org or by phoning the CIH on 02476 851766.

Syllabus for the Part II Examination (Revised 2007).

For dates of forthcoming exams please visit our Diary Dates page.