CPS® - Certified Professional Secretary
CAP® - Certified Administrative Professional

The tests are given twice a year, first Friday (CAP®) and Saturday (CPS®) in May and November. The deadline to register for the tests are February 15 for May testing and August 15 for November testing.

The CPS® is an all day, three part exam given on Saturday. The three parts are:

Part 1 - Office Systems and Technology
Items: 150–165
Time: 2 Hours

• Computer Hardware, Systems, and Configuration--12%
• Document layout, design, and reproduction--16%
• Software--60%
• Managing Physical Resources--12%

Part 2 - Office Administration
Items: 150–165
Time: 2 Hours

• Records Management--28%
• Communication--72%

Part 3 - Management
Items: 150–165
Time: 2 Hours

• Human Resources--48%
• Accounting Procedures and Analysis--16%
• Time Management--12%
• Communication--24%

Certified Administrative Professional (CAP®)

The CAP® exam consists of all three parts listed for the CPS® and Part 4 - Advanced Organizational Management. The fourth part for the CAP® is given on Friday.

Part 4 - Advanced Organizational Management
Items: 150–165
Time: 3˝ Hours

• Organizational Planning--28%
• Advanced Administration--24%
• Team Skills--24%
• Advanced Communication--24%

For additional information, suggestions on studying, recommended reading, and/or a practice test, please see the Certification review guide (Adobe Reader Required).

Once you pass and recieve your CPS® and/or CAP® rating, it is necessary to recertify every five years in order to keep it. To recertify, you need to obtain 90 Continuing Education Credits (CEUs) from the following three categories:

1) Education/Experience
2) Leadership
3) Elective

Breakdown of CEUs and a list of how they are collected. (Adobe Reader Required) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last modified on December 21, 2007
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