The CSPA Exams

There are two types of exams: the CSPA Core Exam™, and CSPA Quizzes.

The CSPA Core Exam™ is a scheduled, proctored, and graded exam. The multiple choice and coding sections are autograded, while open-ended responses are human-graded. CSPA Quizzes are not proctored, and are autograded or potentially not graded. Quizzes are usually sent out by an employer to a potential job candidate.

CSPA Core Exam™

The CSPA Core Exam™ is a general software test that covers broad-based knowledge of seven topic areas.

It is a career-readiness exam intended assess both foundational computer science knowledge, as well as practical skills and experience in modern computing technology.

Insight into the former gives us an understanding of how adaptable and quickly the candidate is able to learn, as well as their ability to solve problems. Assessing the latter ensures the candidate is able to contribute to specific work environments with limited ramp-up time.

View sample exam View sample score report

Section	Format	Duration	Topics	Scaled Points
A	Multiple Choice 50-70 questions	85 minutes	FE, OPS, ARCH, DB, and SEC	100 to 400
B	Essay and Coding 2-5 questions	1-2 hours	Various, including front-end and/or back-end web	100 to 400
C	Short Code Answer 3 questions	3 hours	CORE	200 to 800
Total		5-6 hours		400 to 1600

CSPA Quizzes

CSPA Quizzes are not proctored, and are autograded or potentially not graded. Quizzes are usually sent out by an employer to a potential job candidate.

Generalist Web Developer B

The Generalist Web quiz is suitable for junior and mid-level candidates who plan to work in a typical HTTP-based web tech stack.

High scoring candidates:

Have a core understanding of SQL
Have a strong understanding of HTTP fundamentals
Understand how the Browser makes network requests, with and without JavaScript
Understand JavaScript fundamentals
Have a core understanding of the DOM and CSS selectors.

Section	Format	Duration
Section A	SQL 6 questions	30 minutes
Section B	RESTful HTTP Applications 8 questions	30 minutes
Section C	JavaScript & The Browser 7 questions	1 hour 30 minutes
Total Break Time	Breaks can be taken between sections	2 hrs
Total		2 hrs 30 mins

Algorithms & Data Structures

The Algorithms & Data Structures tests a candidate's ability to traverse and analyze complex data structures.

Candidates are asked to implement functions or classes that demonstrate their ability to process and manipulate data.

Skills tested:

functional programming
recursion
traversing nested arrays
stateful traversal

Candidates have two hours to complete the two questions, with an optional 30 minute break in between. They can use any one of our supported languages, and are graded on the number of test cases they pass.

Section	Format	Duration
Question 1	Coding 1 question	1 hour
Question 2	Coding 1 question	1 hour
Total Break Time	Breaks can be taken between sections	30 mins
Total		2 hrs

Front-End React JS

This Front-End React JS quiz is suitable for junior and mid-level web front-end candidates. High scoring candidates:

are able to write vanilla HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
have some experience building React apps
are familiar with using and building React components
have strong coding fundamentals for algorithms and data structures

Section	Format	Duration
HTML and CSS	Multiple Choice 10 questions	15 minutes
React Framework	Mixed 7 questions	15 minutes
JavaScript Coding	Short Coding 3 questions	1 hour 30 minutes
Total Break Time	Breaks can be taken between sections	30 mins
Total		2 hrs

Generalist Web Developer

The Generalist Web quiz is suitable for junior and mid-level candidates who plan to work in a linux-based web tech stack. It covers the web stack from back-end down to ops and single machine architecture. The multiple choice section is predominantly knowledge- and experience-based, while the final section tests their ability to code in a language they are comfortable with.