Husband and wife are among successful entrants
47 Landscape Institute licentiates successfully completed the Pathway to Chartership in the November exams this year.
A total of 59 candidates sat the exam, carried out in London and Manchester over three days last month. The success rate sits at 80%, which is the same as the May 2014 exam success rate.
The Pathway 2.0 syllabus was used during the exams for the second time this year. The new, revised syllabus was introduced late last year, and was carried out for the first time in May. The syllabus is intended to simplify the approach whilst maintaining standards. Chris Sheridan, head of education and membership, says that the pass rate is a demonstration of a successful Pathway process.
'I would say that’s a clear demonstration of how supportive the Pathway system is, when you compare it to other professional bodies’ routes to chartership,' he said;. 'The RIBA Part 3 exams achieve around 80%. The RCIS pass rate to become chartered is around 64-66%, while the RTPI’s route is 35-40%. The investment of time by members in supporting the development of new CMLI clearly pays off. A big thank you to all those involved!
'All the volunteers – the mentors, supervisors and examiners – want the candidate to pass. For those who don’t pass the exams, we appreciate the decision can be difficult to accept. Candidates naturally feel deflated, and can question the value of becoming chartered. However, our examiners ensure as much feedback as possible is given to the candidate; whether it is advice to help conquer nerves, or areas of the syllabus where the candidate should strengthen their knowledge. We hope candidates reflect on this feedback and re-sit as a stronger candidate.'
A full list of all successful candidates and their mentors is available on our Pathway to Chartership Submissions and Exams page.
Double triumph for married couple
A husband and wife both succeeded in the exam this November.
Jonathan Assorto-McIlwaine and his wife, Angela Assorto-McIlwaine, are both project landscape architects at fabrik, Alton.
In the time between enrolling on the Pathway in 2011 and 2009 respectively and the exam this November, the pair have had two children, studied the Pathway syllabus, and carried out their own study group sessions.
'I decided to become chartered so I could be taken seriously within the industry,'Jonathan said. 'It was useful to both be studying to become chartered. We had our own little P2C group within the house. There was quite a lot of pressure to pass as well, which was good in a way. Thankfully we both passed.'
The pair often studied the syllabus together at home, testing each other on various topics. 'To study, we held Q + A sessions together, and discussed our different views on each topic,' said Jonathan. 'We come from different backgrounds – mine is a construction background and Angela has worked mainly on landscape and visual impact assessments, which was useful as if you didn’t quite understand something unfamiliar, the other would explain.
'fabrik has a great track record mentoring new candidates on the pathway. We both experienced this first hand having been mentored by our fellow colleagues. As well as receiving support and assistance from senior members of fabrik, we were able to get professional direction from a family member in the landscape architecture profession.'
The Pathway to Chartership syllabus has helped Jonathan in ways he hadn’t anticipated, he says.
'The code of conduct has made me think about things differently. Becoming chartered is about ultimate responsibility in my day to day activities. I fully appreciate this now having completed the process. Environmental legislation was also quite an eye opener.'
Jonathan and Angela both gained their chartership in the November exams this year. The next step for Jonathan is to apply what he has learnt to his day-to-day duties.
'Now I’m chartered,' he said, 'it's about putting it into practice. I’m going to develop my skills as I develop within the profession.'
