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Phase 5 · Write and submit

Making your application

What goes in, in what order, and the administrative details that hold applications up.

Who this is for:Candidates at any stage

The application is one PDF. Assembling it is a project in itself, and most of the delays are administrative rather than technical.

Assembling the applicationEleven items to bring together, in roughly the order they need to be done, ending with everything combined into a single PDF of no more than 15 megabytes.IN ROUGHLY THIS ORDER1Educational base confirmedCertified copies if ICE does not already hold them2IPD completion evidenceAllow eight weeks for ICE to register a Training Agreement3Sponsors confirmedBoth statements uploaded before you upload yours4Fee paidNon-refundable, and paid before you upload5Application formCurrent version, every section, one expertise and one employment type6Two-page CVProgression, roles, responsibilities, scale and value7ReportUp to 5,000 words of body text, with a signed cover page8Appendices3 sides of A3, 12 sides of A4, hyperlinked both ways9CPD recordsA development action plan plus your personal development record10Individual requirementsStated on the form, with evidence, when you apply11Combined into one PDF15 MB maximum, printable, readable in black and white

What the application must contain

Institution of Civil Engineers

  • A completed review application form.
  • Evidence of educational qualifications — if you are a non-member, or ICE does not already hold them.
  • Evidence of IPD completion.
  • A two-page CV.
  • A Professional Review report with appendices.
  • CPD records.
  • Evidence of individual requirements, if applicable.
  • The application fee must be paid before you upload, and it is non-refundable.
  • The application must be a single PDF no greater than 15 MB. Convert documents to PDF electronically rather than scanning where possible, use an appropriate font size — ICE gives Arial 11 as an example — and make sure the PDF is printable and can be read in black and white.
Application file size
15MB, one PDFA single PDF. Convert documents to PDF electronically rather than scanning where you can, and check it reads in black and white.
CV length
2pagesOutside the report word count.
Professional Review report length
5000words of body textBody text only. Contents pages, tables of figures, lists of abbreviations, appendices, the CV and CPD records are outside the count.
Appendices — A3 sides
3sides of A3
Appendices — A4 sides
12sides of A4CPD records sit outside this limit.

From Incorporated and Chartered Professional Review Guidance, Institution of Civil Engineers.

Where it goes

Civil engineering candidates submit through the Professional Reviews upload portal. Infrastructure engineering candidates send the application by email to ICE's infrastructure address. Both routes are given in the current Professional Review Guidance, along with the telephone number for portal problems.

Before you upload, you must confirm that both your sponsors have submitted their statement of support, and that every item on ICE's own application checklist is included. That confirmation is your responsibility, not your sponsors'.

What happens after you upload

  1. Immediately

    An automated on-screen response confirms the upload

    If you do not see it, contact the Professional Reviews team rather than assuming.

  2. Within 10 working days

    ICE checks your application for completeness and acknowledges it

    If something is missing you have 48 hours to provide it, and processing stops until it arrives. This is why the checklist matters.

  3. After acknowledgement

    Your name is published on the ICE website for at least 28 days

    In accordance with Admission Procedure 3.

  4. About 4 weeks before the review

    Your notification letter arrives

    It gives the date and time, the names of your reviewers, and the timing of your Communication Task. Check immediately for any conflict of interest and tell ICE if there is one. Never contact a reviewer directly.

  5. Before the review

    Your reviewers pre-assess your report

    If they agree it is not of a satisfactory standard, your review is deferred, you are told why and what to do, and the review is rearranged once you have addressed the comments.

Details on the form that matter more than they look

Expertise and employment type. You select one from each list. ICE uses these to match you with reviewers, so an inaccurate selection can put you in front of someone whose background does not fit your work.

Infrastructure engineering description. Infrastructure candidates also select an engineering description and provide a brief summary of their report, again to help ICE match reviewers.

Individual requirements. These must be stated when you apply, with any supporting evidence, not raised later. See reasonable adjustments.

Unspent convictions. ICE's admission rules deal with this specifically. If you have an unspent conviction relating to a serious criminal offence, there is a criminal convictions form which must also be signed by your sponsors and submitted with your application; a member of staff will then contact you directly and in confidence.

Publication of your name. There is a tick box. If you tick it and you are successful, your name is published on the ICE website five days after your result is issued, and subsequently appears on the New Civil Engineer website.

Related pages and tools

Read the official guidance