DM Hall has announced that its 2020/21 cohort have passed the final professional hurdle of their training with ‘flying colours’ despite the pandemic-related challenges of the past 12 months.
All six of the firm’s young stars sat the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC), which qualifies them as members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).
This is despite facing periods of working from home and unable to shadow their mentors and colleagues.
With another tranche of hopefuls due to sit their assessment in the autumn, DM Hall said it is likely to be a ‘record’ year for fresh talent in the business.
Ian Woods, commercial partner across the West of Scotland offices, said, “The firm is committed to diversity and opportunity for all and are delighted that of the six successful candidates, four of these were female, adding to the growing ranks of female professionals within the business. This is a splendid achievement by these young people, who are already adding value and bringing new ideas to the office.
“It also vindicates the firm’s encouragement of staff who want to further their professional careers through non-traditional routes, which can take you as far and as fast as the more usual entry route to the profession.”
The six surveyors who qualified this time are: Alex Graham, who works in the Edinburgh residential department; Vanessa Harris, who works in the Cumbernauld residential office; Oliver Lawson, who is with the commercial agency in Edinburgh; Margaret McDowell, who is with the Hamilton residential branch; Leanne Saunders, who is a surveyor in the Dunfermline residential office; and Hannah Sime, who is a residential surveyor working from the Kirkcaldy and St. Andrew’s offices.
John McHugh, managing partner of DM Hall, added, “There is pleasure across the firm at the success of these hard-working, and high-achieving young professionals, who have overcome the difficulties arising from an extraordinary year. Their achievement and their acceptance into the professional body illustrates once again that non-standard ways of entry can allow young surveyors to absorb the standards, ethics and ethos of the firm at the same time as they are progressing their careers.
“They are the future of the profession and everyone in the firm will be joining in their celebrations in the knowledge that the future could not be in better hands.”
