SOLIDWORKS Certification Program Q&A
The SOLIDWORKS Certification program has been in existence since 1998 when we first introduced the CSWP exam – Certified SOLIDWORKS Professional. Today, it is a worldwide-recognized certification program used as an industry benchmark to measure your knowledge and competency with SOLIDWORKS software. It consists of over 20 exams available to users and students around the globe. In this blog, we answer the most frequently asked questions about the SOLIDWORKS Certification Program.
Q: What is the value of being SOLIDWORKS Certified?
A: If you are looking for a job, being SOLIDWORKS certified helps you stand out from the crowd and improves your chances of getting in the door, and getting that job interview. If you are already employed, it is a great way to demonstrate your willingness to learn more, to be more productive at your job, and showcase your skillset. For students, SOLIDWORKS Certification proves their skills, and makes them more marketable once they graduate.
Q: I am a student, how can I get certified?
A: If your school is a part of the Academic Certification Provider Program, you may be able to take some exams for free. The school needs to be on active subscription and have the minimum of 60 SOLIDWORKS licenses, which varies per region. If your school is not an Academic Certification Provider, you can purchase a student edition of SOLIDWORKS at solidworks.com/StudentStore. The student edition comes with a one-year term license, and certification vouchers for CSWA and CSWP. You also get free access to my.solidworks.com. New this year – you receive one year of free access to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
Q: Do certificates expire?
A: No, there is no official expiration date for SOLIDWORKS certificates for customers and students. However, updated versions of the exams become available as the software gets upgraded.
Q: How and where can I take a certification exam?
A: You can purchase any exam you’d like to take via our web store on solidworks.com/certification. All you need is a PC-based computer with internet connection, SOLIDWORKS software (2017 or newer) and an exam voucher purchased online. If you are a student, you can get a free certification voucher from your school, if the school is an Academic Certification Provider, on active subscription, and meets minimum license requirements. Every year, we host a certification day at our annual 3DEXPERIENCE World event, where hundreds of users also have an ability to take exams.
Q: How much does a certification exam cost?
A: The price varies depending on which exam you would like to take. All the pricing is available in our web store.
Q: How can I take a certification exam for free?
A: Stay tuned for social promotions on our social media channels – Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and our blog. You can also follow our certification program manager @MikePuckett on Twitter to stay up to date. By attending conferences like 3DEXPERIENCE World, and other partner events like Solid Professor Virtual Summit, you can get CSWA and CSWP vouchers in your digital swag bag. Sometimes we also run promotions at SOLIDWORKS user groups. Being actively engaged with our community is where opportunities for free exams come from. If you are a customer on active subscription, for every seat of SOLIDWORKS you can receive vouchers for some of our certification exams. Vouchers can be created twice a year – from January 1st through June 30th and then from July 1st through December 31st. Once created, the vouchers remain valid for 180 from the date of creation. So if you have 20 seats of SOLIDWORKS, you can get up to 40 redemptions in a year. Learn more at solidworks.com/SubscriptionExamOffer. Finally, if you are a student, you may get a free certification from your school.
Q: How to best prepare for taking an exam? What preparation resources are available?
A: We have training courses for every exam except expert on my.solidworks.com. Solid Professor is our partner who also has a lot of content on SOLIDWORKS Certifications. We are starting to collaborate with some YouTube creators for approved certification exam prep content.
Q: How many attempts do I have to re-take the exam if I failed it the first time? Is there a waiting period before I can re-take the exam?
A: The number of attempts to re-take an exam is not limited. However, there is a 14-day waiting period before you can re-take an exam after a failed attempt for all of our exams except for the Expert level. There is a 90-day waiting period for Expert-level exams.
Q: Are there prerequisites for taking any of the exams?
A: There are no prerequisites for taking any of the Associate or Professional level exams. For Mechanical Design Expert (CSWE-MD) you need to pass CSWP, as well as a number of Advanced Professional level exams. For the Simulation Expert (CSWE-SIM) You also need to pass some additional exams. Please visit the website for current details.
Watch the replay of the SOLIDWORKS Live event about our certification program to get more information:
To learn more about our certification program and browse the exam catalog, please visit solidworks.com/certification. If you have already taken an exam and need to print out a certificate, please visit 3dexperience.virtualtester.com