Frequently Asked Questions

The CAP program is the premier global professional certifications for analytics practitioners. Those who meet CAP's high standards and pass the rigorous exam distinguish themselves and create greater opportunities for career enhancement. For organizations seeking to enhance their ability to transform data into valuable insights and actions, CAP provides a trusted means to identify, recruit and retain top analytics talent.

Certification can advance your career by setting you apart from the competition, enabling you to derive personal satisfaction from accomplishing a key career goal, helping to improve your overall job performance by setting you on a course for continual professional development, and recognizing the investment you have made in your career.

All CAP certification exams are based on their exam blueprints which correspond with the INFORMS Analytics Framework. This framework was developed and validated by subject matter experts and practitioners. There are seven areas of responsibility: business problem (question) framing, analytics problem framing, data, methodology (approach) framing, analytics/model development, deployment, and analytics solution lifecycle management. See the Exam Resources page to download the exam blueprint of the certification exam you will be taking.

All CAP exams are allotted three hours of exam time. This does NOT include the time to connect and launch the exam. We recommend leaving yourself enough time to complete the check-in process, security checks and allow extra time just in case of issues with connecting to your proctor and/or exam. For those at testing centers we recommend you block 4 hours in your schedule. For those taking the exam remotely we recommend you block 4-5 hours in your schedule.

Because all 3 levels of CAP exams are based on analytics practice, there are no required courses. Start by reviewing the appropriate CAP level exam blueprint and the INFORMS Analytics Glossary. There are optional CAP Prep class offered by INFORMS which can help you prepare for the exam. The Candidate Handbooks list several reference books that may be useful in examination preparation. There is a free, downloadable CAP study guide.

Yes. In the Study Guide there are 23 sample questions with rationale for both the correct and incorrect answers. These questions will not appear on any actual CAP examination; they are intended to inform you of the type of questions you will find on the exam. They should not be used as a self-assessment; performance on these questions does not indicate performance on the exam.

No. No books or notes of any kind may be used for any level of CAP exams.

No. All 3 exam levels are software and vendor neutral and assess only the analytics process contained in the exam blueprints.

Soft skills are those less technical skills that are essential for successful analytics practice. They include partnering with business clients, framing problems with stakeholders, working in project teams, interviewing subject matter experts, eliciting information from groups, communicating results to decision makers and creating value for the employer or client.

All 3 exam levels are offered in English.

We comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and will arrange special accommodations for those who require them. Complete the special accommodation form to make exam arrangements.

Candidates may reschedule through the exam vendor’s site at 48 hours prior to the scheduled exam date and time. Candidates doing so will have their exam rescheduled at no additional cost. Candidates fail to reschedule/cancel 48 hours prior to their exam appointment, or miss their exam time forfeit their exam attempt and exam fees.

Refunds less a $100 processing fee are available prior to the candidate's eligibility expiration and within 90 days of exam payment. Candidates that cancel their exams less than 48 hours before their exam appointment will not receive a refund.

Applicants, candidates, or certificate holders wishing to appeal a decision must submit written documentation within 30 days of the receipt of the written decision by INFORMS. The written documentation should specify the grounds on which the appeal is based. A nonrefundable fee of $125 drawn on a U.S. bank in U.S. dollars must be submitted with the letter of appeal.

An Appeals Panel will be appointed consisting of one current member of the INFORMS Board of Directors and one current or former member of the INFORMS ACB. None of these individuals shall have had any affiliation (business, professional, or personal) with the individual filing the appeal. The appeals panel members will conduct their work and render a written recommendation to the ACB within 60 business days of their appointment. The ACB will finalize a resolution via a vote to accept, reject, or modify the recommendation of the panel.

Appeals regarding required compliance with existing and published testing standards or program requirements are not accepted. The appeals panel may recommend to uphold the INFORMS decision, grant the appeal requested by the appellant, or refer the matter back to the INFORMS ACB for reconsideration. A written copy of the ACB's appeals panel decision shall be sent to the appellant. Successful appellants shall be refunded their appeals fee.

Individuals who wish to file an appeal may send a written letter of complaint to: INFORMS Attn: Certification Manager 5521 Research Park Drive, Suite 200, Catonsville, MD 21228 email: [email protected]

Certificants are required to comply with all existing and future rules, regulations, and administrative ethical standards for certification established by INFORMS. Certificants are responsible for demonstrating compliance, and failure to do so may lead to disciplinary actions, including but not limited to the denial of eligibility, non-renewal of a certification, revocation of certification, probation or suspension, issuance of a letter of censure, or issuance of a written reprimand. Individuals may report alleged violations of the INFORMS Code of Ethics and other grounds for potential disciplinary actions noted below in writing to INFORMS. Written documentation should include the identity of the individual involved in the alleged misconduct and the nature of the misconduct described in as much detail as possible, and the signature of the individual filing the complaint.

INFORMS has the authority to initiate disciplinary action without receiving a complaint or notification of inappropriate conduct. INFORMS also reserves the right to pursue any and all civil and legal remedies available under the law.

Grounds for disciplinary action include, but are not limited to, the following list:

• Unauthorized possession or distribution of INFORMS examination or testing materials.
• Obtaining or attempting to obtain certification or renewal by any fraudulent means.
• Engaging in, authorizing, or aiding or abetting fraud, deceit, misrepresentation of materials facts, provision of false or forged evidence, or bribery in connection with any application for a certificate or registration.
• Conviction of any felony involving moral turpitude.
• Violation of the CAP Code of Ethics.
• Conviction of any other criminal offense which reasonably calls into question the certificants ability to provide professional analytics services.
• False statements made in any initial or renewal application materials.
• Use of expired credentials or false or unauthorized use of any INFORMS credentials.
• Unauthorized use of any registered trademark of INFORMS.

Individuals who wish to report a possible certification violation may send a written letter of complaint to: INFORMS Attn: Certification Manager 5521 Research Park Drive, Suite 200, Catonsville, MD 21228 email: [email protected]

Detailed registration instructions here.

To get started earning your Certified Analytics Professional credential, create your CAP account in our CAP Dashboard (Prolydian). Then complete and submit your Application for CAP/aCAP along with the $55 application fee. Approved candidates will be notified about their eligibility to take the CAP exam.

Within seven business days after you submit your application you’ll be notified.

As part of the application you will identify a current or a previous employer or coworker to confirm your skills. An email will be sent to that person with links to the soft skills confirmation site. Notification that the email has been sent will go to you. Self-employed consultants may request a soft skills confirmation statement from a recent client.

INFORMS offers exam discounts for candidates residing in developing countries. Please see the list of qualifying countries.

INFORMS offers exam discounts for candidates residing in developing countries. Please see the list of qualifying countries.

INFORMS offers exam discounts for candidates residing in developing countries. Please see the list of qualifying countries.

The certification exam is offered on a continual basis at computer-based testing centers throughout the world or online via an online-proctored experience.

Exams must be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance. Exam appointments are on a first-come first-serve basis. We recommend not waiting until the end of your eligibility period to schedule or you may risk not having any exam appointments available.

CAP-Expert Exams ONLY

1. Log into your Prolydian profile.
2. Pay for the CAP-Expert Exam Fee application within your Prolydian profile under My Applications.
3. You will receive an "Authroization to Test" email instructing you how to schedule your exam.
4. Schedule the exam at a convenient time for you within your eligibility period.

All 3 levels of CAP exams consist of 100 scored four-option, multiple-choice questions. There are also additional unscored questions that INFORMS is testing for use on future exam forms.

INFORMS uses a criterion-referenced methodology for determining the passing score for its exams. There is no grading on a curve, and candidates are not competing with each other. The specific methodology used is modified Bookmark procedure (Lewis, et. al., 1996, 1999) supported by a modified Hofstee (1983) procedure. INFORMS recruites subject matter experts (SMEs) to serve as judges for the purpose of setting a cut score for newly built exam forms. Each candidate will receive an official digital score report within 48 hours after completing the exam. This will be the only official score report provided. Examination scores are confidential. INFORMS will not disclose examination scores to anyone unless INFORMS is required by court order or subpoena. Unless otherwise requested, INFORMS will publish the names of all individuals who have passed the examination and who maintain current certification status.

Exam retake policies are based on the certification level. Please consult your certification’s candidate handbook for details on exam retake eligibility.

The CAP-Expert certification is valid for three years at which time certificants must recertify to maintain their certification. The aCAP certification is good for three years. Those who have passed the aCAP exam are eligible to apply to transition to CAP-Expert certification after one full year as an aCAP. INFORMS encourages those eligible to transition to do so before their 3-year certification period ends.

All CAP-Expert certificants are required to recertify by submitting a minimum of 30 Professional Development Units (PDUs) over their three-year certification period. The PDUs must be achieved in at least 3 of the 5 categories including: formal professional education courses, self-directed learning, creating new analytics knowledge or content, volunteer service, and analytics professional work experience. In general, one hour of activity equals one PDU. There are various thresholds and limits for PDUs in the various categories. See the CAP Candidate Handbook or Maintaining Certification page for more information.

Both CAP-Essentials and CAP-Pro certifications have a (5) year certification cycle.

CAP-Essentials and CAP-Pro certificants may recertify every (5) five years via retesting. Certificants may wish to upgrade their certification by testing for the next level of CAP certification.