CBAP exam tips

By Philip.vonSaldern, CBAP, August 5, 2011

Preparing for the exam:

1. When your application is approved you will have one year in which to write the exam. If you do not pass the first time, you must wait 3 months to rewrite and, if that 3 months exceeds the allotted year you would have to submit a new application and accompanying fees. Therefore, it is best to write the exam within six months of being approved to allow wait and processing time if you need to schedule a second exam Also see: CBAP Application Template.xls by Harshal Dalal (Business Analysis - Group Files) 2. In preparing for the exam, my two main references were the BABOK v2.0 and CBAP Certified Business Analysis Professional Exam Guide by Phillips, Joseph. The book was indispensible and included a section on preparing a study plan and a CD with a practice exam and other study materials. Please note that the practice exam is more difficult than the actual exam and that the questions are not actual exam questions, rather, they are examples of the type of reasoning challenged in the exam. 3. Other useful resources are: IIBA Certification FAQs CBAP Exam Sample Questions (10 question example distributed by several online sources) CGIForge - BABOK v2 Quick Guides (especially Chapter 9 summary)

Writing the exam:

1. There are 150 questions to be answered in 210 minutes allowing you 1.4 minutes (84 seconds) per question so don't get bogged down, answer what you know quickly and mark any uncertainties for review. I marked 50 of the questions for review and I only had ten minutes of time left after re-visiting those questions. 2. Look for semantic clues in the questions, this usually reduces the number of possibilities and the process of elimination increases your probability of being correct. 3. Answer every question. An unanswered question is incorrect and, with four options to every question, a guess has a 25% possibility of being correct. 4. For multiple choice exams, it is recommended practice to change your answer when reviewing questions only if you are absolutely certain of the correct answer. If there is any lingering doubt, stick with your first answer, you have better odds of being right. 5. Stuff to memorize (freebies): RACI (definition) POLDAT (definition) MOSCOW (definition) Zachman Framework (definition) Inputs, Tasks and Outputs of each KA in the BABOK