Reference Material

• All exams are open book and all questions have multiple choice answers. Each CQE candidate is to bring his or her own materials. No sharing of reference materials is allowed.

• Open book means that textbooks, tables, calculators, and review course material are allowed. A collection of personally generated materials or notes from training or refresher courses may be used. Laptop computers are not allowed. A dictionary is highly recommended.

• Previously published examinations or any collection of questions and answers that approximate an examination are not permitted. The questions, problems and answers in QReview are separated from the basic material to comply with this requirement.

Preparing For the Exam

• Start studying immediately. Review all course notes and work out as many extra problems as time allows.

• Plan a reading program and allocate time to read all course material plus your own references.

• Group study is encouraged. Clarification of course homework problems and certain quality topics may be enhanced by group discussions.

Taking the Exam

• Bring only familiar material to the exam, otherwise, you may waste valuable time searching (Mark key pages and tables).

• Answer as many questions as you can (preferably all of them). You are graded on the percent of the total questions answered correctly.

• The examination consists of 160 multiple choice questions over a five-hour time limit. On average, you have 1.875 minutes per question. If you find yourself stuck on a question, go to the next one and come back to it when you are finished.

• Read the questions and problems very carefully. Some of the questions may be worded to bypass casual glances.

• If you are in doubt as to the correct answer, eliminate the obvious wrong answers first, then guess.

What If You Do Not Pass

• Plan to retake the examination. You can do it in six months.

• There is no stigma to not passing. The mere fact that you prepared for and took the exam has enhanced your own knowledge and skill in the quality profession.