FAQ's
Q. What is my certification expiration date?
A. Recertification is required every three years on the anniversary of the date
of the most recent recertification (or original certification) date. Original certification
dates and expiration dates can be found on all program-issued credentials and certificates issued
after January 1, 2002. (Note: Credentials prior to 2002 did not include expiration dates.)
Certificants who are unsure of their status can look up their expiration date by consulting
the appropriate roster of active certificants; either the
Active Roster of CSQAs
or
the Active Roster of CSTEs
.
Q. What if I miss the certification expiration date?
A. Your recertification deadline is the expiration date of your certification. Because you might be involved in activities that could be claimed for CPE credit right up to your deadline date, recertification packages can be submitted up to 60 days after the deadline to qualify for timely recertification. However, activities after the deadline - even if during the 60 day grace period - may not be counted toward recertification. If you miss the cutoff for the grace period, your certification expires automatically.
Q. Do I have to earn 40 CPE's per year or can I spread them out over the 3 years?
A. There is no limit on the number of CPE credits you can earn in one year. There is a maximum number of credits you can earn in certain categories per year. For example, the maximum number of CPE credits that can be claimed in Category D, Professional Participation, is 20 per year. You can earn any combination of credits during the three years before your certifications expiration date as long as they total 120 credits.
What if I have both CSQA and CSTE certifications? Do I have to submit 120 CPE's for each certification?
A. You will need to submit separate Recertification Journals for each certification you hold by their respective expiration dates. If the activities qualify and the subject matter is within the parameters of the Common Body of Knowledge for both certifications, then CPE credit can be claimed for both certifications.We will not accept (See CSQA/CSTE submittal for backup).
Q. How will I be notified when my recertification package has been processed?
A. You will receive either: 1) Updated credentials showing your new expiration date, or 2) A rejection notice requiring you to correct errors and resubmit your materials. Do not contact Software Certifications to ask the status of your package. If you want to be sure the package has been received, send it via a controlled trackable shipper (e.g. US Mail - Certified Receipt, Federal Express, etc.)
When can I submit my Recertification materials?
A. Recertification materials can be submitted at any time after earning 120 CPE credits; but the choice of a date impacts your potential new recertification deadline. Recertification journals and payment will typically be submitted up to six months before, or two months after, your current recertification expiration date. If accepted, the recertification process will issue new credentials showing an additional three year term for certification from your original expiration date. However, if submitted more than six months in advance, a new expiration date will be calculated three years from the date of recertification. This means that the longest any certificant can go between recertifications is three and a half years (e.g. six months early plus the normal three years), ensuring that the value of recertification is never diluted by allowing too much time between recertification dates because of an early submission during one of the cycles.
Q. How do I know what activities I can claim for CPE credit?
A. This web site contains extensive information describing the recertification process
and associated forms. The forms require you to completely describe each activity,
including describing the specific CBOK category supported and the improvements in your
professional competency attained by participating in the activity. If an activity qualifies,
you'll know this as you complete the forms. If you struggle to complete the forms for an
activity (e.g. you can't rationalize the CBOK category, or you can't describe how an activity
enhanced your professional development),
then the activity should not be reported. Do NOT ask Software Certifications to prescreen
activities. Because your description and rationale are critical components of the
recertification process, it is not possible to say whether or not specific activities
would be acceptable without the full submission materials.
Q. What if some of my CPE credits are rejected?
A. Each individual item in your recertification package is evaluated separately.
It's possible that some of your items will be accepted while others are rejected.
If the accepted items still add up to the required 120 CPE hours, your package will be
accepted even though some of the items have been rejected. If the total accepted hours is less than
the required 120 CPE credit hours, your entire package is rejected and you will be notified
of the rejected items. Upon correction, the entire package needs to be resubmitted for
reevaluation. Because this takes time, certificants are urged to submit their recertification
packages early enough to support an extra iteration if they have doubts about the items they
are submitting. Also, submitting more than the required 120 CPE hours helps ensure that one
or two rejected items will not impact the actual recertification.
Q. What kind of courses qualify in Category A - Education?
A. To qualify for CPE credit, courses must be in support of one or more knowledge categories in the Common Body of Knowledge (CBOK) for the certification. The course must also be formal enough to be able to offer supporting documentation describing the course content and demonstrating that you actually attended and completed the course. The submission form requires a statement about why the course supports the CBOK and how attendance supported professional development. Just because a course covers some form of information technology (e.g. programming languages, development tools, etc.) doesn't mean that it will qualify for recertification credit. They must specifically address one or more CBOK skills related to the software quality profession. Courses that do NOT qualify include any that are too informal to be documented (e.g. many web-based learning modules fall in this category, see Category E - Self-Study) or that don't address the CBOK (e.g. many technology courses fall in this category).
Q. What happened to the old Presentations category?
A. Presentations are no longer a separate recertification category, but different types
of presentations can still be claimed under two of the revised categories.
These include: 1) Category C - Teaching for presentations made as training offerings
outside of work, or 2) Category D - Participation in Profession if the presentation was
offered as part of a formal committee activity or professional society meeting.
Q. My company is a QAI member. Can I claim that for CPE credit?
A. No. Recertification credit may only be claimed for Individual Memberships. However, the
conferences, courses, and federation activities in which you personally participate as a result
of that company membership may be claimed.
Q. Can I claim CPE credit for mentoring candidates for certification?
A. No. We do encourage mentoring as it is a part of the Code of Ethics but it
doesn't
necessarily increase your competence as a software quality professional and that is the criteria
of Continuing Professional Education
Q. Can I take an examination for recertification?
A. Yes. If you do not have 120 CPE credits to submit to fulfill your recertification requirements, instead of losing your certification you can prove you have maintained your skills by choosing the option of the Examination for Recertification. If you choose this option you must register to take the examination by your expiration date and you have one sitting to pass the examination. See Recertification for more information.
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