To qualify for candidacy, each applicant must:

• Currently hold an active CSQA Certification
• Be working in the field covered by the certification designation
• Have the experience (described under the Real World Experience section) to demonstrate mastery of the skills identified in the current Software Testing Common Body of Knowledge
• Be prepared to submit documentation that supports your real-world experience in the software quality field (described under the Real World Experience section)
• Be prepared to take the required manager’s level examination
• Meet one of the following three prerequisites:
  1. A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college-level institution plus a minimum of four years experience in the software quality assurance field, or
  2. An associate degree plus a minimum of six years of experience in the software quality assurance field, or
  3. Eight years of experience in the software quality assurance field.

Depending upon a compliance sample selected according to program criteria, the applicant may be required to provide detailed education and/or employment documentation supporting the prerequisite option selected on the application. If selected for verification, the applicant must supply the documentation to the program. Applicants who fail to provide the requested documentation will not be allowed to sit for the exam or, if the exam has been taken and passed, may be subject to de-certification.

A completed Certification Candidacy Application must be submitted through the Customer Portal for entrance to Software Certifications as a candidate for any particular certification. It should be submitted by individuals who:

1. Are working, or have worked at any time within the prior 18 months, in the field covered by the certification designation
2. Have significant experience and breadth of knowledge to have mastered the basics of the entire Software Quality Common Body of Knowledge
3. Have reviewed the Software Quality Common Body of Knowledge

The initial application fee is as follows:

• $600.00 (includes PDF version of the Software Quality CBOK). All fee paid in USD (see Payment Policy)
  Fees in this program are non-refundable or non-transferable

Once your Profile satisfies the Prerequisites for the CMSQ candidacy the candidate must then submit their Real-World Experience Documentation as mentioned below. After the Real World documentation has been received / approved by the Software Certification board the candidate will be fully accepted into the program allowing then to schedule their examination (see Examination section below).

Candidates for certification who rely only on limited experience/education or too few/specific study materials typically do not successfully obtain certification.  Do not apply unless you feel confident that your work/education activities and past experience have prepared you for the examination. Applicants already holding a certification from Software Certifications must submit a new application when deciding to pursue an additional certification.

Once a new application is accepted and approved, the Candidacy begins the date the application fee was processed. The candidate then has 12 months from the date the application fee was processed to take their initial exam. If after the 12-month period the candidate has yet to take the initial exam their candidacy will expire. The candidate must then reapply for candidacy and pay the current application fee to begin the process again.

If the initial exam is taken inside that 12-month period, a second or third sitting, if required, must be completed within 24 months from the date the original application fee was processed. After the 24-month period has elapsed their candidacy will expire. The candidate must then reapply for candidacy and pay the current application fee to begin the process again.

1. Quality Planning
2. Define, deploy and improve work processes
3. Measurement
4. Organizational Development (teams and management)
5. Communication (leadership and behavioral skills)
6. Risk Management

The documentation for each of the three categories selected must be submitted to the Software Certifications division using the Real-World Experience Documentation Checklist.

Software Certifications
2101 Park Center Drive
Suite 200
Orlando, FL 32835-7614
Attn: Review Board - Real World Experience

This checklist ties specific skills defined in the Guide to the CSQA Common Body of Knowledge to the six categories listed above. If a candidate decides that one of these items is not applicable for their “experience” documentation, an explanation of why that item is not applicable must be included with the submitted documentation. If the documentation in a category or categories is found to be insufficient to meet the acceptance criteria, a candidate will be given feedback on the deficiencies and allowed one opportunity to resubmit corrected documentation.