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What's inside AICP Master

AICP Master is an independent study site for the AICP certification exam. It includes sourced study notes for all 9 AICP exam domains; scenario-based practice questions with short sourced explanations; timed 170-question mock exams weighted to the 2026 exam outline; live study sessions; a readiness score with progress tracking; and flashcards for key terms.

3 members have passed the AICP exam.

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Study notes
887
Practice questions
1,270
Mock exam question pool
1,513
Flashcards

How the content is built

Study notes are written from free, publicly available primary sources: statutes, the Code of Federal Regulations, court opinions, federal agency guides and the AICP Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. Every study note ends with the sources it was written from. Practice questions are written as planner scenarios: a situation, one clear question, four answer choices that include a near-miss option which is wrong for a specific reason, and a short explanation that names its public source.

Study notes by domain

Nine domains, in the order of the AICP outline, with the 2026 exam weight of each.

Domain 1: Research and Assessment Methods

9% of the 2026 exam, 29 study notes
Conducting Research & Acquiring Knowledge
  • Qualitative Research
  • Variable Types
  • Measurement Scales
  • Frequency Distribution
  • Central Tendency
  • Variability & Distributions
  • Sampling Methods & Sampling Frame
  • Survey Design & Question Types
  • Hypothesis Testing & Research Design
  • Regression, T-test & Z-test
  • Big Data, Metadata & Data Sources
  • AI & Algorithmic Bias
  • Analysis Methods
  • Oral Histories, Experiential Learning & Precedents
Spatial Analysis
  • GIS & Spatial Analysis
  • Map Interpretation
  • Land Measurement Systems
  • Map Scales & USGS Maps
  • Slope, FAR & Density Calculations
  • 3D Visualization, Modeling & Digital Twins
Data & Source Interpretation and Evaluation
  • Validity & Reliability
  • Data Quality
  • Implicit Bias & Equity in Data
Data Collection Strategies
  • Primary vs Secondary Data & Active vs Passive Collection
  • Privacy, Ethics & Equity in Data Collection
Community Involvement & Engagement
  • Public Participation & Arnstein's Ladder
  • Participatory Action Research, Focus Groups & Charrettes
  • Survey Design & Community Engagement Equity
  • Generational Cohorts

Domain 2: Fundamental Planning Knowledge

14% of the 2026 exam, 56 study notes
History of Planning
  • Planning History Timeline
  • Key Figures, Urban Models, and Planning Theory
  • Early Reform Movements
  • City Beautiful Movement
  • Garden City Movement
  • Successive Planning Movements
  • Radiant City and Broadacre City
  • New Urbanism & Contemporary Movements
  • Comprehensive Planning - Historical Development
  • Federal Land Policy
  • Natural, Social & Economic Systems
  • European Traditions & Influences
  • Eastern Traditions & Influences
  • Pre-Colonial Indigenous Planning
  • Diverse Influencers & Equity in Planning
Patterns of Human Settlement
  • Concentric Zone Model (Burgess 1925)
  • Sector Theory (Hoyt 1939)
  • Multiple Nuclei Model (Harris & Ullman 1945)
  • Central Place Theory (Christaller 1933)
  • Bid Rent Curve & Concentric Zone Connection
  • Model Comparison
  • Role of Transportation
  • Growth and Development Over Time
  • Effects of Discrimination
  • Climate and Settlement Patterns
  • Cultural Influences
Foundational Legal Principles
  • Constitutional Foundations of Planning Law
  • Zoning is Constitutional
  • What is a Taking?
  • Takings: Penn Central Test + Lucas + Loretto
  • Nollan + Dolan: Exactions and the Two-Part Test
  • Kelo, Berman & Eminent Domain Cases
  • First Amendment: Signs, Adult Uses & Religious Land Use
  • Exclusionary Zoning & Fair Housing
  • Growth Management Cases
  • Zoning Relief: Variances, Special Exceptions, Nonconforming Uses & Vested Rights
  • Statutory Basis: Police Power, Dillon's Rule & Home Rule
Planning Theory
  • Public Interest Theory & Pluralism
  • Rational Planning + Wicked Problems + Satisficing
  • Incremental Planning (Lindblom)
  • Mixed Scanning (Etzioni)
  • Advocacy Planning & Equity Planning
  • Transactive Planning (Friedmann)
  • Radical Planning
  • Communicative Planning + Habermas + Forester
  • Utopian Planning + Methodism + Tragedy of the Commons
  • Theory Comparison and Role of the Planner
Related Professions
  • Planning & Public Health
  • Related Professions Overview
Natural, Social and Economic Systems
  • Demographics & the US Census
  • Social Trends & Social Infrastructure
  • Sustainability & Resiliency
  • Ecology, Water & Climate
  • Core Values of Planning
  • How Technology Can Be Used to Advance Planning
  • Information Technology Tools

Domain 3: Communication and Interaction

11% of the 2026 exam, 17 study notes
  • Communication in Planning Practice
  • Accessible Electronic Media
  • Listening and Community Needs
  • Leadership in Planning Practice
  • Culturally Appropriate Communication
  • Organizational Structures and Functions
  • Outreach Evaluation and Implicit Bias
  • Evidence-Based Argument and Critical Thinking
  • Sensitive Political Situation Management
Social Justice and Citizen Participation
  • Arnstein's Ladder of Participation
  • Planning With Underserved Communities
  • Social Justice, IAP2, and Advocacy Planning
Consensus Building
  • Consensus Building Techniques
  • Getting to Yes, Satisficing, and Meeting Disruption
Outreach Strategies and Participation Techniques
  • Outreach Techniques - IAP2 Participation Tools by Tier
  • Outreach Techniques - Collaborate and Empower Tiers
  • Outreach Techniques - Survey Types and Sampling Methods

Domain 4: Plan and Policy Development

16% of the 2026 exam, 27 study notes
Preparing to Plan
  • Scoping and Community Readiness
  • Stakeholder and Community Identification
  • Understanding Context
The Planning Process
  • Sequential Steps in the Planning Process
  • Pre-Planning, Planning, and Post-Planning Stages
  • Monitoring, Assessment, and Plan Updating
Visioning
  • What Visioning Is and When to Use It
  • Steps in the Visioning Process (Oregon Model)
  • Vision Statement Components and Characteristics
  • Visioning Techniques
Scenario Planning and Strategic Planning
  • Scenario Planning - Definition, Steps, When to Use
  • Strategic Planning and SWOT vs. Comprehensive Plan
  • Visioning vs. Scenario Planning vs. Strategic Planning
Goals, Objectives, Policies, and Measures
  • Plan Hierarchy: Vision to Measure
  • How to Write and Identify Each Type
  • Interrelationships and Alignment
Formulating and Drafting Policies
  • Policy Analysis Methods
  • CBA, Fiscal Impact vs. Economic Impact Analysis
  • Equity, Economic, and Environmental Implications
Equity Framework in Planning
  • Equity Framework in Planning
Stakeholder Inclusion and Conflict Resolution
  • Stakeholder Inclusion and Conflict Resolution
Identifying and Evaluating Consequences
  • Identifying and Evaluating Consequences
State and Federal Laws Affecting Planning
  • State and Federal Laws Affecting Planning
Community Character and Form
  • Community Character and Form
Best Practices, Dynamic Planning, and Feasibility
  • Best Practices, Dynamic Planning, and Feasibility
Funding and Financing in Planning
  • Funding and Financing in Planning
Conversance with Related Disciplines
  • Conversance with Related Disciplines

Domain 5: Plan Implementation

14% of the 2026 exam, 30 study notes
What is Plan Implementation?
  • Plan implementation - definition, purpose, implementation gap, planner role
  • Plan implementation - implementation toolkit, four tool categories, matching tools to goals
  • Plan implementation - accountable implementation, action matrix, prioritization, accountability failures
  • Plan implementation - strategic partnerships, multi-project integration, sequencing, CDCs, P3s
Regulatory Tools - Zoning and Subdivision
  • Regulatory tools - zoning basics, purpose, what it regulates, who decides
  • Regulatory tools - types of zoning: Euclidean, form-based, inclusionary, overlay
  • Regulatory tools - PUDs, variances, conditional use permits, nonconforming uses, ADUs
  • Regulatory tools - subdivision regulations, plat process, performance bonds
  • Regulatory tools - exactions vs. impact fees, rational nexus, uses and restrictions
Capital Improvement Program (CIP)
  • Capital Improvement Program - definitions and budget types
  • Capital Improvement Program - what counts as a capital project
  • Capital Improvement Program - 7-step process from inventory to adoption
  • Capital Improvement Program - relationship to the comprehensive plan and annual budget
Budgeting Types
  • Budgeting types - line-item, program, performance, PPBS, ZBB definitions and advantages
  • Budgeting types - scenario application, choosing the right budget type
Funding and Financing Tools
  • Funding and financing - pay-as-you-go, GO bonds, revenue bonds, lease-purchase, grants
  • Funding and financing - TIF, special assessments, BIDs, CRAs
  • Funding and financing - enterprise zones, empowerment zones, tax abatement, clawback
  • Funding and financing - tax types, progressive, regressive, proportional, ad valorem
  • Funding and financing - fiscal impact analysis, cost-benefit, cost-revenue, CEA, GAM
  • Funding and financing - direct vs. indirect costs, fixed vs. variable costs, performance bonds
Procurement - RFQ, RFP, and Consultants
  • Procurement - RFQ vs. RFP definitions, key differences, Brooks Act
  • Procurement - when to use an RFQ, RFQ process, on-call rosters
  • Procurement - when to use an RFP, RFP process, pre-proposal conference
  • Procurement - consultant ethics, conflict of interest, scope creep, contract management
Consistency, Monitoring, and Evaluation
  • Consistency, monitoring, evaluation - consistency doctrine, vertical and horizontal consistency
  • Consistency, monitoring, evaluation - staff reports, purpose, elements, quasi-judicial vs legislative
  • Consistency, monitoring, evaluation - conformance vs. performance evaluation, four diagnostic combinations
  • Consistency, monitoring, evaluation - performance measures, KPIs, benchmarks, SMART criteria
  • Consistency, monitoring, evaluation - updating plans, plan amendments, triggers, types of updates

Domain 6: Administration and Management

7% of the 2026 exam, 10 study notes
Project or Program Management
  • Procurement and Contracts
  • Grants and Budgets
  • Managing a Planning Project
  • Project Management Tools: WBS, Gantt, CPM, PERT
Internal Organizational Management
  • Planning Agency Organization and Staff
  • Mission, Strategy and Managing Change
Management of External Relationships
  • Customers, Decision Makers and Staff Reports
  • Open Government, Records and Privacy
  • Mentoring and Motivating Staff
  • Performance Measures, Quality and Accountability

Domain 7: Leadership

6% of the 2026 exam, 12 study notes
  • Leadership in Plan Making and Participation
  • Ethical Aspects of Advocacy
  • Best Practices and Their Potential Applications
  • Accountability to the Profession and the Public Interest
  • Institutional Structures, Roles and Transparency
  • Complex Problem-Solving and Decision-Making
  • Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity in Practice
  • Coaching and Mentoring
  • Discerning and Promoting the Public Interest
  • Professional Development Expectations and Standards
  • Promoting the Value of Planning
  • Volunteering and Promoting Planning Organizations

Domain 8: Areas of Practice

13% of the 2026 exam, 13 study notes
Hazard Mitigation and Resiliency Planning
  • Definition, FEMA Role, and 4 Phases
  • Hazard Mitigation Plan, Key Legislation, and Post-Disaster Reconstruction
  • Flooding, Floodplains, Sea-Level Rise, Wildfire, and Hospital Planning
  • Hazard Mitigation in the Comprehensive Plan and Brownfields
Economic Development and Housing
  • Tax Increment Financing and Fiscal Impact Analysis
  • Economic Analyses, Zones, Revitalization Tools, and Law Cases
  • Housing Acts, Redlining, and Fair Housing
  • Affordable Housing Tools, Public Housing History, and Homelessness
Transportation, Environment, and All Other Areas
  • MPOs, TDM, TOD, LOS, Traffic Calming, and Complete Streets
  • NEPA, Water, Carrying Capacity, and EJ
  • Urban Design, New Urbanism, and Smart Growth
  • Historic Preservation, Health, Food, and Equity
  • Infrastructure, Parks, and Other Planning Types

Domain 9: AICP Code of Ethics

10% of the 2026 exam, 6 study notes
AICP Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct (2022)
  • Section A: Principles to Which We Aspire
  • Section B: Our Rules of Conduct
  • Section C: Advisory Opinions
  • Section D: Adjudication of Complaints of Misconduct
  • Section E: Discipline of Members
  • Key Definitions - Glossary to the AICP Code of Ethics

aicpmaster.com is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the American Planning Association (APA) or the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). AICP® is a registered trademark of APA. All content is built from free, publicly available sources, and each study note lists its sources.

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