Autodesk Certification Exam

[kmarquis]

Has anyone taken the Autodesk Certification Exam? I was wondering how challenging it is and if it's had any positive impact on your career? Any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks!

[Brian Myers]

I found the certification to be fairly easy, mostly because I know (and have used) virtually every command in the software multiple times. If you have a good overall grasp of how it works you should do fine, otherwise I'd review each command (just run across the ribbon), learn what it does... you'll likely do fine.

As far as career advancement, certification is unlikely to do that. Thinking about it from an employer point of view: What does this provide me (the employer)? It means my employee has taken the time to learn the software... I'm proud of them. Of course it doesn't actually add another penny to my bottom line (and won't guarantee any extra job security by itself) but at least they want to better themselves and that is something employers would like to see in their employees (ambition to become better).

So why get certified?? I usually tell people just to do it for yourself. It's a good measuring tool to see if you actually understand the program as well as you think you do and if you fail, then there is on opportunity available for you to improve your skills, expand your thinking, and move a very tiny bit further along in your career.

[Alfredo Medina]

Yes, I tooked and passed both the Revit 2010 Associate Certification and the Revit 2010 Professional Certification. The Associate is a set of multiple choice questions, for which you have, I think, 1 hour to finish. The passing score is 83% if I remember correctly. The cost is $75. If you pass it, you are eligible to take the second one, the Professional Certification, which is a set of hands-on Revit challenges, for which you have 1 hour and 30 minutes. The cost of this one is $125.

Scores are given immediately after completion, and if you pass them, your name is added immediately to the database of certified associates and certified professionals, which is a public database, open to employers or anybody interested in verifying your certification. The address of the open database is: http://autodesk.starttest.com/ . If you fail the exams, I think you have to wait a certain time to be able to take them again, (and the money is not refunded). I think you are allowed to try 3 times in a year.

How challenging are they? I think they are both difficult. Some questions are tricky. I found the professional exam to be more difficult than the associate. Autodesk recommends taking the associate exam after some 100 hours of hands on experience upon completion of your basic training, and taking the professional exam after some 400 hours.

Does it have a positive impact on one's career? Well, in my case, I work as an online Revit Architecture instructor; therefore having my certifications adds credibility to my service and makes a positive first impression in my prospective clients. Plus, you are authorized to use the Associate or Professional Certification logo in your business cards, your stationery or your website. So, I would say, yes, go for it!

[cliff collins]

You might also take a look here:

http://forums.augi.com/showthread.php?t=115512

interesting discussion........

cheers

[twiceroadsfool]

I second Brian's thoughts. I took them for fun, since i was at AU and they let you take them free while you were there (well, they did that year anyway). My employer at the time didnt even know i took them, or passed them, or what they were.

Has it or will it make a difference in career? Im going to go on a limb and say i doubt it. Thats not to knock the certification itself, i applaud the attempt at setting a standard. I just think it takes a LOT to set a standard.

For one: Employers to start demanding it. Which will lead to the standards being set for what the STANDARDS are. Theyre decent tests. I didnt find them hard, by any means... but i wonder how functional they are. One asked you for the name of the parameter that controls mullion orientation angle in a Curtain System. Really? The name is what matters? Or is it knowing exactly where that parameter is and where to get at it? If the name itself is what matters, i question what happens when working with international consultants, like we currently are with a firm in South Korea.

I can screen capture instructions all day to help them out, showing them how to do things. Knowing the NAME of that parameter isnt helping anyone.

ARE's. Those are some tests. Theyre long. And you have to know some stuff to pass them. Am i advocating 7 exams and thousands of dollars to prove we "know revit?" Of course not.

But if its supposed to be a standard by which peoples jobs and/or careers actually change, i think it needs to be much longer and much more complex.

[nancy.mcclure]

Karen, certifications are a credential, no more, no less. While they may not translate to salary increase (hah!) or even job security, they ARE an indicator that you take a professional approach to learning the tools that are essential to your career.

In the current climate of so many designers/architects looking for work, certification can be a differentiator between someone who states they 'know Revit' and someone who has made a personal investment to document a proven metric of knowledge. As an employer, I would give a second look at someone with certification, even if it doesn't necessarily mean they know more than a more experienced user without it. It shows me that they strive towards goals and complete tasks. The architectural profession is an endless string of incremental tasks, and for young designers getting certified is one way of demonstrating that focus and skillset.

As for difficulty level - Associate level exams are multiple choice, which means nomenclature and terminology factor pretty highly in success rate. Professional level exams are hands-on in the program, which suits regular users more, but you have to pass the Assoc to qualify for the Professional.

[m-d]

http://www.daypo.net/revit-associate-certification-practice-exam.html

Try the pract test here. I passed both the 2010 exams and 85% of the associate exam questions were like these or close.

The prof exam is easy if you have been working in the software. Just tricky....

example: They will ask you to create a level offset 10'-0" from ground level and there will be 5 levels out there with variation names but ground level will be turned off in the view....so turn on offset 10' and you are good.

example: They ask you to give area of Room 100 and the Room Tags are set to read just the room names. You have to go to the properties of the room to find Room 100 to find its area or change the tags to find the room.

example: They ask for the door number of the 3rd door on the north side of the bldg but the North arrow is not on the view. You have to go to site view or other to find north then find the 3rd door's number.

Things like that.

The assoc. test is a multiple choice exactly like the link above. All input in the prof. exam is either a dimension or text. You are working in the program just to get the data then type the text/dim into the test. The test files are closed out and reset for the next guy.

[brendan.225840]

Interesting discussion, thought I'd add my $.02

I was intrigued by the Certification process at first but the more I looked into it, the less useful it seemed. Frankly, the test is so basic that someoen could pass the test and still not be able to work effectively on a BIM project at a firm.

The firm I work for is very small, so hiring people who have exaggerated on their resume is not an option and as a result, we administer a 20 minute Revit exam to anyone we hire. The test is amazingly basic yet we've had a very hard time finding applicants who can complete it in a reasonable amount of time, including one applicant who had AutoDesk Revit 2009 certification.

Since then I have written off the certification process as a well intentioned failure (at best) or nothing more than a money-making scheme by AutoDesk (during my more cynical moments). We don't look for certification on Word, Excel, AutoCAD, Sketchup or any other software, either someone can do the work or they can't. A sheet of paper from Autodesk isn't going to convince me of their competency, it isn't going to convince me to give them an interview and it isn't going to add an ounce of value to our business.

[STHRevit]

Interesting reply Brendan. Can I ask what your test consists of?
My company also has issues with interviewing people who tend to exaggerate their abilities and I am in the process of creating a test for this very purpose. I am curious as to what you have your interviewee's doing to prove their abilities.

Also, have you passed this feedback to Autodesk? Not sure it would make a difference, but you never know. Might just hit the right person on the right day..... :)

[eric.piotrowicz]

There are definitely a large number of people out there who are padding the resume in hopes of landing a job. While I don't agree with the practice I have seen well qualified people get turned down for jobs in favor of someone who looked better on paper.
That said, it could very well be that you have tested people who have padded their resume. It could be that the certification is too basic to be usable for evaluating skills. But another thought occurred to me. Personally I know quite a few people who have been unemployed for a year or more at this point. I have worked with them and can vouch for their skills but I would have to think that having not used the software for that long and being asked to take a skill test...well the results might not turn out too well. Testing applicants is fine but I wouldn't use it as the sole determining factor. Instead during the interview try to open up a dialog about Revit, favorite tools, things that seem glitchy, wishlist items, tips and tricks, etc. If the person can carry on a conversation about the software in detail I would say they might be rusty at the get go but it'll come back quickly. However, if they can't seem to talk much about the software I'd say they probably aren't the power user that their resume is attempting to portray.

[twiceroadsfool]

I agree with Eric. I know a few very GOOD people, in ARCHITECTURE, who are out of work right now. And i know some people who are very BAD at architecture, and additionally not all that good at Revit either, who are landing jobs in these tough times.

Its unfortunate.

Me personally? Id focus on the Architecture side of it. Very rarely have i met someone i couldnt teach Revit too. Id rather hire someone who knows Architecture.

[Alfredo Medina]

Since this thread is about Certification exams, I want to share this document I just received (see attached .pdf) about the new Revit Architecture 2011 Associate and Professional certification exams. This time the exams will include questions about some topics that were not included in the 2010 versions, such as: Design Options, Phases, Copy/monitor, and Worksharing.

[Dave Jones]

curtain wall mullion orientation parameter name in Korean :)

명. 각; 각도(수학); 관점, 견지; 측면, 국면; 앵글(사진)

동. 각지게 구부리거나 움직이다; 각도를 조절하다; 카메라의 각을 맞추다; 각지게 방향을 바꾸다; 각지게 가다; 갈고리로 낚시하다; 교활한 미끼를 이용하다

[travismv702230]

I got 2009 Professional Certification at AU 2008. I didn't go to AU last year so I don't have 2010 Certification. But, if want 2011 Professional Certification you need 2010 Professional Certification to skip the Associate test. I'm not spending the 150 or 125 bucks to get 2010 Professional Certification now when I'm already working in 2011. Plus, if I have a spare 150 lying around I'm sure AIA or NCARB or USGBC would grab it before this test would. that said, if anyone has a free coupon lying around somewhere... :)

[brendan.225840]

Interesting reply Brendan. Can I ask what your test consists of?
My company also has issues with interviewing people who tend to exaggerate their abilities and I am in the process of creating a test for this very purpose. I am curious as to what you have your interviewee's doing to prove their abilities.

Also, have you passed this feedback to Autodesk? Not sure it would make a difference, but you never know. Might just hit the right person on the right day..... :)

It's pretty straightforward. They start with the OOTB new document and have to draw four walls with floors at two levels (no roof), place 3 windows into the walls of three different sizes (all from the same family, so three different types) and the windows have to be customized to include a header that can be turned on or off. A simple schedule for the windows (type, size and Qty) finishes up the test. Not hard.

I can appreciate the concerns others have raised about getting rusty, I had them myself. The test predates my employment and I took it when I applied last September. When the interview was set up I was told that there would be a Revit test. Fortunately Autodesk's assistance program meant I could download the software to bone up and I checked out a Revit book from my local library as well. So while I can appreciate having some rust, there's little excuse for not at least kncking some of it off in the days beforehand. We anticipate the test to be done in 30 minutes, but if it takes longer, we know that's probably a matter of rust. To not be able to do half of the test at all, even after 45 minutes to an hour, is just not acceptable. During the actual interview afterwards we also talk about Revit experience, areas of particular expertise and areas where the applicant is weak (I was pretty weak on schedules when I started).

Re: twiceroadsfool's last post. I agree in concept, but small firms don't have the fiscal flexibility to spend a couple weeks training someone on software, especially someone who is set in the "CAD Mindset" and most especially during ****** economic times. An unemployed architect who doesn't know Revit should be spending some portion of their time learning Revit. I can't speak for elsewhere but the few job postings I've seen in my area for architects have all required Revit skills.

[twiceroadsfool]

Hey, i dont ENTIRELY disagree... I mean, if i had to pick between an architect who knew revit, and an architect who didnt, obviously ALL THINGS being equal, id take the one who knew Revit. But it does crack me up.Im obviously a die hard and avid supporter of Revit, but people are testing for Revit skills, and are they testing for architectural skills? :)

[nancy.mcclure]

I'm sure it depends upon what level in the food chain the current hiring is for.

Personally, I'd test for both basic and mid-level Revit skills combined with some indicator of architectural knowledge - such as making judgement calls on Loc Line settings of walls, responses to questions on creating custom parameters and 'should we model it... or legend it...?' type of issues. I want to know if people have critical thinking skills that indicate their knowledge of the design development and construction process as much as if they can modify a family. In fact, MORE than.

[marymir84345554]

Hi,
I have some sample questions of AutoCAD certification exam. Is there any body who can give me the answers? I failed the AutoCAD Associate certification exam last month and I am going to retake it. I appreciate it if somebody can help me.
Thanks,

[browns.joseph308864]

There's a great book for practice test study for Autodesk Revit 2013 you can find it on www.revitexamtrainer.com. The book is less than $20 for a limited time, has 540 practice questions. Great for Revit students and BIM Managers.

[JayCon]

I really like posts like this. There is some really good input and resources shared... I think it's important to brush up on your Revit skills and continually make every effort to improve your situation, and I think testing helps. Do you need another frame in your office? No, but it is a good ego booster, which I find most important when taking on a project.

I wouldn't necessarily bother paying out $200 to validate your body of work, especially considering I got my job with references, my portfolio, and constant nagging to see if they had a position open yet, but I would welcome testing to keep myself up with par. Even if I owned a firm, I may ask my employees to take the tests just to prevent the miscommunication that seems to go on when someone wants you to open your windows explorer and the dumb intern (me) opens of Internet Explorer