Certified Software Test Professional Associate Level (CSTP-A)

Objectives of CSTP - Associate Level Certification

1. Help individuals gain a better understanding of the test terminology and concepts
2. Help improve communication among members of the test team
3. Provide test professionals with techniques to work with incomplete requirements
4. Help test professionals to have a better understanding of the test process
5. Help test professionals to be able to test even with no requirement or with poor requirements
6. Teach test professionals how to break down requirements to scenarios for better testing
7. Help test professionals to be able to perform more effective regression testing
8. Teach test professionals a systematic process for both positive and negative testing
9. Teach test professionals better ways to document their test design
10. Help test professionals gain a better understanding of the different levels of testing
11. Help test professional collaborate with developers to close the gap between requirements and code to have better test coverage
12. Help test professionals track test execution progress

Who Should Pursue the CSTP - Associate Level Certification?

1. Anyone new to the testing area. This includes individual in roles such as testers, test analysts, developers, test engineers, test consultants, user acceptance testers, and test managers.
2. Experienced testers using ad hoc methods and informal ways to test
3. Individuals whose test experience is narrowly focused (does not have a life cycle view)
4. Anyone who wishes to become a better test professional or advance his/her professional standing in testing
5. Anyone who wants a basic understanding of software testing, such as project managers, quality managers, software development managers, business analysts, and IT directors.

CSTP - Associate Level Certification Requirements

Formal Education Requirements: Three days of training that cover areas 1 & 2 of the Body of Knowledge (BOK)

CSTP-A Training Options Written Exam:

Candidates are required to complete a written exam with a level of performance no less than 80%. For courses conducted by IIST, a candidate is allowed to retake the exam for a second time without having to attend the course again. There is a $100 fee for retakes unless you attended the online course. If 80% performance is not achieved on a second attempt, the candidate must retake the course or take another course covering the same BOK area. If the course failed was taken online you will get access to the online course and a retake exam for $100. If the course was taken on-site or at public training and is available online you can get access to both the online course and retake exam for half the original price of the online course.

Job Experience Requirements: None

Graduation:Upon satisfying the formal education requirements, a candidate shall submit an application to the IIST Chairperson for the certification to be granted. An application for graduation must be submitted within five years from the date the earliest course was completed. The application must be accompanied by payment of the $50 non- refundable graduation fee. This fee covers the cost associated with record-keeping, processing, grading exams, and the certificate that will be emailed to you in PDF format.

CSTP Associate Level Re-Certification Requirements

The CSTP - Associate Level Certification will expire 3 years after it is granted. As a result, all CSTP - A Certified participants must complete the recertification requirements before that time. The re-certification requirements are three days of training to cover any topic in software testing within three years. Days of training may be used to satisfy the requirements of a higher level certification. All training requires attending an exam in each course and achieving 80% performance. Courses taken for the CSTP-A recertification may applied towards CSTP-P or CSTP-M.