CSWP is Turning 20 at SOLIDWORKS World 2018 – Why You Won’t Want to Miss It!

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To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Certified SOLIDWORKS Professional exam (CSWP), we have something very special in the works, but you will only be able to be a part of it if you attend SOLDWORKS World 2018 in Los Angeles.

Way back in 1997, SOLIDWORKS wanted to create a way to verify the skills of its users, and a way to verify the quality of the training we were providing. So early in 1998 we launched the Certified SOLIDWORKS Professional (CSWP) Certification. While not the first certification we had developed, it was the first one that was available to our customers.

Many users (myself included) might remember having to go to a local Value Added Reseller’s office to take the exam, which could take up to eight hours to complete! It quickly grew, and before too long, it was the mark of excellence at any SOLIDWORKS World to have that ribbon attached to your badge, and to be one of the very select who got to attend the very private, but always discussed CSWP event on Monday night.

Now, almost 20 years later, the CSWP exam is still growing, currently with 46,000 certified users around the world! And while it’s the Certified SOLIDWORKS Expert (CSWE) ribbon and the CSWE party that owns SOLIDWORKS World each year, we felt this would be a good chance to do something special for the one that started it all.

At SOLIDWORKS World 2018 in Los Angeles, we’ll celebrate the 20th anniversary of CSWP with a few special things. Now why some of you may be hoping we’re bringing back the CSWP event, unfortunately that’s not something that we can easily pull off logistically. So here’s what we’re going to be doing.

We’ll be debuting the new version of the CSWP exam at SOLIDWORKS World 2018 on Sunday, February 4th. We’ll be conducting testing as we normally do, but the only exam available that day will be the CSWP exam. What if you’re already a CSWP? There is nothing keeping you from taking it again! Your original CSWP and pass date will always remain, and IF you pass the newest one, you’ll simply have another CSWP added to your account with a newer date.

  • For those who do pass, you will be awarded a special certificate signifying that you passed the 20th anniversary edition, and you’ll also receive a goodie bag of specially branded swag.
  • You’ll also receive a voucher to take the CSWE exam, including all of the advanced topic exams at a future date.

Now, here are a couple of things to keep in mind:

  • We only have 240 testing spots to fill, and to hold a testing spot, you need to register and pay your registration fee for SOLIDWORKS World 2018. Once those spots have been filled, there won’t be any more spots to be taken.
  • The testing spots are only open to customers who pay for a conference pass, so unfortunately Value Added Reseller employees and SOLDIWORKS/Dassault employees are not eligible of this special offer.

As you might imagine, these spots will fill up fast, and only 240 people will have a chance to even take this special version and attempt to earn the special gifts, so my suggestion would be to sign up and pay for your trip to SOLIDWORKS World 2018 as soon as registration opens!

I hope to see you at SOLIDWORKS World 2018 in Los Angeles.

Mike Puckett

Senior Manager, Worldwide Certification Program, SOLIDWORKS