Certification Process

There are four phases in the certification process:

• 1. Eligibility
• 2. Application
• 3. Candidacy
• 4. Examination

To become a Certified Construction Manager (CCM), you must have a requisite amount of experience and/or education. The eligibility requirements are outlined below:

DO YOU QUALIFY?

Before completing an application, make sure you meet the requirements of the certification program by completing the Qualifications Matrix. This is the same matrix that is required of all applicants to complete in the application package.

QUALIFICATIONS MATRIX

(print to fill out)

This matrix represents the functions/roles of a Construction Manager during project phases as defined by CMAA in its publication CM Standards of Practice. The bracketed areas represent the MINIMUM qualifying experience for the 48 month CM experience. This is cumulative experience; you do not need 48 months in each area. In order to enroll in the program, you MUST have experience in the bracketed areas. If you do not have the requisite experience, please do not submit an application at this time.

There are 30 possible experience areas; for each function/role and phase ask yourself the following question:

Did the decisions that you were empowered to make directly impact the successful completion of the project and were you directly responsible in charge of construction management services and for protecting the interests of the project/owner?

If you can answer "yes "to both parts of the question, then place an "X" in the area; if you answer "no" then do not place an "X". To qualify for the program, you MUST be able to answer "yes" to all of the required areas as marked by the brackets. If you cannot answer "yes" to the required areas, then do not submit an application at this time. You will be asked to verify this experience in the project attachments in the application.

This phase of the process consists of:

• 1. Completing all information required in the application.
• 2. Documenting your 48-month project experience.

For this part of the process, you need to complete the application including documenting your project experience and contacting your references. The application and project documentation is sent to this office. Upon receiving an application, all references will be contacted by CMCI and given a form to complete. These forms must be sent back to CMCI in a sealed envelope with their signature over the seal. (You may want to prepare your references by sending them a pre-paid, addressed envelope to be sent directly to CMCI). Use the checklist in the application as a guideline for what is required.

Once your application is complete (all information and references), it is forwarded to the Certification Board of Governors (BOG) for review and evaluation. The Institute will notify you of this date. The BOG will make its recommendation to either advance to candidacy or deny candidacy. This review process generally takes 30-45 days.

Once you are advanced to candidacy, you are eligible to take the Certification Exam. The exam is on demand now, you will pick one location and three dates that will fit your schedule best and we will do our best to accomodate your request.  The initial fee to take the CCM exam is $275, re-take fees are $100. See Guidelines for Finding an Exam Site.The exam tests:

• General knowledge of design and construction through experience in the industry.
• Material in CMAA's Capstone and CM Standards of Practice.

Based on the results of the 2004 CM industry survey, the CMCI Board of Governors has modified the quantity of the CM certification exam questions to incorporate the following breakdown in percentages.

Project Management 20%
Cost Management 18%
Time Management 18%
Contract Administration 18%
Quality Management 10%
Professional Practice 8%
Safety & Risk Management 8%

Study material:

The CM Core Competencies provides a general outline of the subject matter on which the exam has been developed and includes an attached bibliography containing publications to purchase. If you are interested in obtaining CMAA publications to assist with your preparation, you may purchase the CM Standards of Practice Study Kit through CMAA. For any specific questions about any of the publications listed, Click Here.

Exam format:The exam is five hours in length and taken in one sitting. The exam itself is four hours and fifty minutes with a ten minute survey at the end. Candidates may leave when finished. In most cases, results are immediately delivered.Questions are multiple-choice. Some require mathematic calculations.

Passing score: The passing score varies among the test forms. The passing score is developed by a modified Angoff Method. As a guideline, passing scores range from 70-78%.

Exam re-takes: If you do not pass the exam the first time, you may re-take the exam up to two more times. There is a $100 fee associated with each re-take. No candidate will be allowed to take the exam more than three times. Re-takes will not be scheduled within 30 days of having taken the exam.

EXAM SCHEDULE: To view an updated CMCI exam schedule, please go to "Finding an Exam Site".

Email: certification@cmaanet.org if you have questions. You may also find the answers to your questions in our FAQ.