A fine balance - qualifying as a surveyor while working from home The work, life and study balancing act of completing the RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) Assessment of Professional Competence (APC) exams is something all surveyors have experienced. However, come the 23rd March 2020 a new working, living and studying model was confirmed as Scotland was declared ‘locked down’, and working from home was the instruction for the foreseeable future.
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s a final year graduate, with five months to the submission date, the initial reaction was that COVID-19 would have blown over and life would be back to ‘normal’ by APC submission time. Fast forward six months and we now understand the naivety of those early lockdown predictions. These six months of working from home have presented a range of challenges and also benefits which have affected the way in which we work, live and study. The initially striking realisation was the free time created when my 30minute commute twice daily was removed from my day. In an instant, I had an additional five hours a week, time that I could spend focussing on APC prep, granted some days more
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efficiently than others. This reduced my carbon footprint, alongside the financial benefit of spending little to no money on fuel. So on first reflection, working from home was going to be super, and a huge help to completing my APC. Many of us APC graduates headed home to parents’ houses when deemed safe to do so, quickly reassuming the family dynamic of years gone by. Home comforts included a ready supply of home baking which would be placed beside me quietly if on a Teams call, much to the dismay of my colleagues on the other end of the call! Lunchtime runs became part of my working day, as I did not need to worry about changing back into workwear for the office. A burst of
fresh air that benefitted my afternoon of work, something not always possible in the office environment. It is often stated that working from home provides a quieter and more focused work environment, certainly for us graduates this I think is true. Setting out your plan for the day, and getting your head down to focus is much easier when there are no distractions or colleagues popping in to discuss new jobs or updates. As a result, I could set my mind to one task, and complete it efficiently and thoroughly. This proved to be beneficial on days when a deadline is fast approaching and I found my productivity pick up as a result. As the months ticked over, the disadvantages of working from
