During your final assessment interview, you are given no more than 10 minutes to present your case study project. The assessors are very strict on this and condensing a 3,000 word case study into a 10 minute presentation is not easy. Over the last 9 years of coaching APC Candidates, the following advice has helped around 90% of my colleague pass their APC first time. So during this post I’ll explain how you can structure your Case Study Presentation to include the key pieces of information it needs without being at risk of overrunning on time.
Please use the video link below to access the successful Case Study Presentation Example.
After reviewing this example, please read on to learn more about how and when you are expected to present during the final assessment interview along with some essential tips on how to perfect the visualisation and formatting of your slides.
When Will You Be Asked To Present And For How Long?
The RICS is now undertaking all Final Assessment Interviews online via Microsoft teams. The RICS guidance note recommends dialling into the virtual lobby around 5-10 minutes before your final assessment start time. When your interview starts there will be a series of checks with all participants to ensure you can all see each other and that your audio is working correctly. There will also be a conflict of interest check to ensure you do not have an existing relationship with the interview panel and a health check to ensure you are fit and well to undertake the interview. When this is complete the interview will then start with a brief introduction by the chairperson lasting around 3-4 minutes. After the chairperson explains the format of the interview you will then be invited to start your case study presentation by using the screen share function within Microsoft teams. The presentation time is strictly limited to a maximum of 10 minutes. Please note that you are allowed to use cue cards for your presentation but you are not permitted to read from a script.
How Will The Presentation Be Delivered?
The RICS provides guidance on using Microsoft teams so it’s really worth reading this and familiarising yourself with the software prior to your interview. Below is a quick summary of this guidance note which recommends the following:-
- Join the virtual meeting lobby 5-10 minutes before the start time.
- Make sure you are in a quiet location where you will not be disturbed.
- Use a comfortable seat, desk, laptop and have a pen, paper and water ready.
- There should be no distractions in your background or in your view.
- Aim to have a natural light source next to you such as a window and try to avoid sitting with a window behind you. If needed you can use a desk lamp to prevent any screen glare.
- Be sure to close all other applications during your interview.
- Try to ensure that other people within your household stop using the internet connection to reduce the chance of any bandwidth issues.
- You will need to provide a 360-degree view of the room to ensure you have no unfair advantage, you may be asked to repeat this at any time.
- The RICS do provide practice sessions to familiarise yourself with the software so it’s really worth dialling into this if you aren’t familiar with Microsoft Teams.
- For audio you are recommended to use a headset to free up your hands and to negate any background noise.
- Outfit recommendations are to wear formal business attire.
- If you lose connection during your interview due to technical issues, the chair person will record these.
- If there are more than 10 minutes’ worth of technical issues, the chair person may terminate the interview which will be rearranged at the earliest opportunity.
- Ensure you have access to your email and phone in case the RICS need to contact you.
Microsoft Teams software can be downloaded prior to your interview or used within your web browser without downloading the software. If accessing via your web browser you will need to enter your name and select the audio and camera buttons before entering your interview.
It’s also worth having your presentation loaded up in PowerPoint format so this is ready to share on screen. When the initial checks have been undertaken and you are invited to start your presentation, you can click on screen share, load up your PowerPoint and confirm that you are ready to start. The chairperson will confirm the official start and begin recording the timing of your presentation. Remember that you are given only 10 minutes to present, this is a strict time limit so always aim to finish your presentation slightly early rather than over run.
How To Structure The Presentation?
With the strict time limit in place, condensing your 3,000 word case study down into a 10 minute presentation is not easy so we’ll now provide some advice on which parts of your case study you can look to present and how long you should spend on each section. Before we explain the presentation structure, I think it’s worth quickly explaining how your case study should be structured so this is in line with the RICS guidance.
In summary the guidance note advises to keep your case study structure to the following headings:-
- Introduction – this is an introduction of both yourself, your role and a brief technical description of the project.
- Key Issue 1 – will include a description of the issue you encountered.
- The Options summary – will explain the options you considered.
- Solution to Key Issue 1 – will explain the recommendation and chosen option you selected and why this was thought to offer the best advice to your client.
- Key Issue 2 – this format will repeat with the issue, options and solution as shown above.
- Your Conclusion will include a description of the outcome of the solutions and your achievements.
- A reflective Analysis must also be included. This is a critique and reflection of your own performance, talk about what you learned and what you could do differently.
For your presentation, I would look to replicate the very same structure as your case study so this is in a familiar format to the assessors. Now I should say that there are no strict rules on which aspect of your case study you should present. This is just what worked for me and what has worked for 90% of the colleagues I have coached across the last 9 years.
You may want to be more creative than this but I am a big advocate of keeping your presentation to a very similar structure to your case study and this is so the presentation is familiar to the assessors and easy for them to follow, you don’t want to confuse them by deviating away from this too much.
How Long To Spend On Each Section?
With regards to the timings you should spend on each section, I would look to allocate the 10 minutes as follows.
Introduction
I would spend approximately 2 minutes on your introduction and during this time I would recommend providing a brief introduction of yourself, a brief introduction of the project with a technical description referencing key project particulars such as the project name, client (if you have permission to do so), location, value, programme, form of contract used and other project particulars you feel are relevant. I would also explain your role and your key responsibilities during the project.
Key Issue 1 Explanation
With the next section of your presentation being on key issue 1 I would give a good explanation of this and really set the scene of why this was important to rectify but spend no more than 1 minute on this area with the explanation being kept fairly brief.
Key Issue 1 Options Considered
The following section should explain the options you considered and also an explanation of why these were not suitable or considered as the best option. Again I would stick to keeping this section fairly brief and only reference key information. Try to spend no more than 1 minute on this section. Remember that the detail will likely come out during the questioning so reference key points only. Whilst you’re going through your presentation, if you have graphics or photos – try to talk the assessors through these and make the slides engaging and interesting.
Key Issue 1 Solution
Within this section you should explain the solution that was taken and why this was considered to be the best option. Again, keep this fairly brief and keep to your timings, I would recommend spending no longer than 1 minute on this section. You don’t need to give lots of details at this stage as this will likely come out in the questioning.
Key Issue 2 (Repeat of Key Issue 1)
When you have covered off key issue 1, the options and solution you should be around half way through your presentation – for key issue 2 – I would repeat the exact same structure and timings for the second key issue lasting a total of 3 minutes. If you have included 3 key issues within your case study – I really would recommend only presenting on two of these as you will find this a challenge to cover all 3 issues within the 10 minutes allocated.
Conclusion & Outcome (2 minutes)
To close your presentation I would recommend spending 2 minutes on the conclusion and outcome section. For the first minute, I would aim to talk about the results and outcomes of the solutions you proposed and how this benefitted the project and was thought to be in the clients’ best interests. Here you really want to reference your achievements and how the advice you provided resulted in a positive outcome for the client and the project. For the second and last minute of your presentation, I’d recommend to close by talking briefly in a reflective manner about your performance, what you learned and what you may have done differently next time.
Show that you are committed to improving going forward and try to include a degree of modesty and lessons you have learned. When complete and hopefully by this point you have utilised most of the 10 minutes as possible – you can bring the presentation to a close. Your last slide of your presentation should make this clear by including a company logo or end slide.
Formatting and Visualisation of Slides
We’ll now look to provide some guidance to serve as a check list for the format and visualisation of your slides. I think this is a very important area that can get overlooked by candidates and it’s something that if done right, can really take your presentation to the next level and make an excellent impression on the assessors.
I’m a big advocate of paying close attention to the visualisation and format of your slides as the inclusion of graphics and photos will allow you to talk the assessors through these and build rappor by making it super engaging for them.
In terms of the number of slides to include, I would personally recommend a minimum of 8 slides as you want to include the key pieces of content but no more than 12 slides due to the time limit in place.
The key slides will include:-
- Front Cover.
- Introduction.
- Key Issue 1 – Options & Solution.
- Key Issue 2 – Options & Solution.
- Conclusion.
- Back Cover.
- Plus any graphics or photos you wish to include.
Here we’ll take a look at some example formatting of the slides to highlight key do’s and dont’s.
Slide Format Recommendations
- Text should be kept Large and Clear (Arial size 35 for text but keep text to a minimum for headings).
- Font colour should be dark blue or black, keep the presentation format professional.
- There should be no clutter on any of the slides.
- Keep the format simple and easy to follow.
- You should be talking the assessors through the slides.
- The assessors shouldn’t have to do much reading.
- There should be photos and graphics provided.
- Ensure photos are a consistent size.
- Text should be minimal.
- The format should be kept professional with clear text.
Slide Format Issues To Avoid
- Try to avoid including in excess of 12 slides within your presentation.
- Avoid using inconsistent formats and fonts.
- Images should be kept to a consistent size.
- Avoid having the font size too small or any clutter on the slides.
- All slides should be titled.
- The end of your presentation should be clearly marked out.
How To Prepare For the RICS APC Presentation?
Over the last 9 years of coaching APC candidates I try to recommend that they undertake the following preparation prior to presenting at the Final Assessment Interview. This advice has helped around 90% of my colleagues to pass their APC first time:-
- Practice a minimum of 15 times or at least until you know the presentation word for word. Remember that you need to be able to recite the presentation and this should appear professional and seamless to the assessors. You are allowed to use cue cards however reading from a script is not permitted.
- Practice your presentation for a member of your family or a friend who is a lay person. The content and structure of your presentation should be easy enough for them to follow. Ask for feedback on the format and content of the presentation.
- Try to sit 2-3 mock interviews and take the opportunity to give your presentation to colleagues and fellow chartered surveyors if possible. Again ask for feedback on the format and content along with a list of potential questions they had. You can use this list of questions as a revision aid for your final assessment.
- Practice maintaining good eye contact when rehearsing the presentation and show the assessors that this is your passion by speaking in an engaging manner, try to avoid monotone delivery where possible.
- Try to include photos and graphics within your slides and be sure to talk the assessors through this content. This is a great chance to build rapour with the assessors by making it engaging for them.
RICS APC Presentation Example Template
Please click here to access the RICS APC Presentation Template in PowerPoint format. This can be used as a basis to structure and format your own presentation.
RICS APC Q&A STUDY GUIDES NOW AVAILBLE
