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CIMA® Exams

Take your CIMA® exams at your convenience!


View Exam Details

You can take your CIMA® exam(s) at your convenience any time 90 days after your registration in the CIMA® program is confirmed. You can schedule a CIMA® exam in advance from your myCIMA dashboard. Digitally-proctored online CIMA® exams can be taken from anywhere individually by candidates once their computer systems are duly vetted as exam-ready by the CIMA® exam team.

Note: Offline exams are conducted twice a year in select global locations. If your country qualifies for offline, pen-and-paper exams, please check your myCIMA dashboard for information on exam dates and venues.

CIMA® Exams – At-a-Glance

  • Mandated Number of Exams
  • Common Mode of Exam*
  • Exam Timing
  • Duration of Exam
  • Number of Questions
  • Type of Exam Questions
  • Exam success trend
  • Exam Registration
  • Exam Scheduling
  • Exam Results
  • Exam Structure
Standard Route
  • Two; Level 1 & Level 2 CIMA® Level 1 exam must be passed first before candidates can register for CIMA® Level 2
  • Online, remote-proctored, on-demand
  • Can be taken anytime 90 days after the date of CIMA® registration.
  • Level 1 Exam: 4 hours
    Level 2 Exam: 4 hours
  • Level 1 Exam: 150 questions
    Level 2 Exam: 150 questions
  • MCQs with 4 answer options with one correct answer.
  • Level 1 Exam: 52.2% examinees pass annually
    Level 2 Exam: 74.4% examinees pass annually
  • From the myCIMA dashboard
  • From the myCIMA dashboard
  • 15 days after the exam
  • View here
Professional Pathway
  • One; single, unified Pathway exam
  • Online, remote-proctored, on-demand
  • Can be taken anytime 90 days after the date of CIMA® registration.
  • Pathway Exam: 4 hours
  • Pathway Exam: 150 questions

  • MCQs with 4 answer options with one correct answer
  • 71% examinees pass annually

  • From the myCIMA dashboard
  • From the myCIMA dashboard
  • 15 days after the exam
  • View here

*Offline pen & paper exams are also held in some locations twice a year. Check the CIMA® website and the myCIMA candidate dashboard for details

Registrations for all Offline CIMA® Exams in February 2022 and May 2022 for all locations are closed now. Applicants are strongly encouraged to plan for taking their CIMA® exams online.

Standard Route Exam

Candidates must qualify the Standard CIMA Level 1 and Standard CIMA® Level 2 exams. Level 1 exam is of 4 hours, carries 150 multiple choice questions covering the 10 modules in CIMA® Level 1. The Level 2 exam is of also of 4 hours, carries 150 multiple choice questions and covers the 10 modules in CIMA® Level 2. Please expand the boxes below to read the Standard route exam coverage.

Professional Pathway Exam

Candidates are required to qualify only one, unified Professional Pathway Exam of 4 hours carrying 150 multiple choice questions. This exam covers 13 knowledge areas – 6 from Level 1, and 7 from Level 2. Please click the boxes below to read the Professional Pathway exam coverage.

Read about Exam Study Planning in the CIMA® Program Candidate Guide

Taking Offline, Pen & Paper CIMA® Exams

  • Check the Country-wise Offline Exam information here. If you are already registered in CIMA®, please reach your myCIMA dashboard for more detailed information on exam dates and venues in your country. You will require to register for and schedule your offline exam from the dashboard as well.
  • Once you have registered for one of the Offline exam dates in your country, you will be authorized to take the exam from the assigned exam center on the date you have selected at a pre-decided time.
  • You have to reach the exam venue using your own mode of transport at least an hour before the scheduled start time of the exam, and follow the instructions of the Proctors on duty.
  • You will require to carry a photo identity proof on you to obtain authorization for entering the exam center and taking the CIMA® exam.
  • After obtaining the authorization, you will sign into the examinee log and take the seat reserved for you.
  • You get a printed exam pack containing 75 questions with multiple answer options, of which you will require to choose the correct one.
  • You have to complete your exam in 3 hours without any formal break.
  • Once you have completed your exam, you must submit the exam pack back to the Proctor on duty and sign again on the examinee log. This will be the proof that you have completed the exam and submitted the exam pack.
  • If you decide to drop out of the exam due to any reason after spending some time on your seat, you must submit the exam pack to the Proctor before leaving the exam center. Not submitting the exam pack is a criminal offence, and there are severe consequences.
  • Check for exam-related updates on your dashboard regularly.

To check the complete details for both Online and Offline exam mode, please visit the CIMA® Examinations section of the Candidate Guide

Taking Online CIMA® Exams

Follow these simple steps to plan and take your CIMA® exam(s).

  • Check and confirm from your myCIMA dashboard if the exam window is open for you. Your exam window will automatically open 90 calendar days after the date of completion of registration in CIMA®. You will also be sent an email once the exam window opens up for you. Once your exam window opens, you can follow the steps stated below.
  • Log into your myCIMA Account.
  • Click the Manage CIMA® Exam button on your myCIMA dashboard to schedule your exam(s).
  • Once you have selected the exam window, you can schedule your exam after choosing from the date and time slots available.
  • You will receive the exam-schedule confirmation email.

Important to Remember!

  • Candidates will be able to schedule their exam only within the slots available.
  • If you want to change the date/ time of an already scheduled CIMA® exam, you must do it before the exam Rescheduling Deadline mentioned on your myCIMA dashboard.
  • If you are a Standard Route candidate, you will require to qualify the Standard CIMA® Level 1 exam before you schedule the Standard CIMA® Level 2 exam.
  • You can cancel your scheduled CIMA® Exam(s) only before the exam Cancelation Deadline mentioned on your myCIMA dashboard. The re-sit attempts for each exam may be charged in accordance to the policy, if you have already exhausted your free re-sits.
  • The analysis and result-report will arrive within 15 days of your exam date.
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Taking CIMA® Exams

CIMA® exam system is rigorous and securely controlled, ensuring reliability of assessment and candidate-convenience. Conforming to the most rigorous Question and Test Interoperability (QTI) norms aligned to leading edge Portable Custom Interaction Best Practices, CIMA® exams in most countries are delivered online, with digital proctoring. In some countries, offline exams are also conducted in the pen-and-paper mode. CIMA® online exams can be taken anytime at any location after scheduling them the myCIMA dashboard. Offline exams can be taken in some countries during the two windows opened every year in the months of February and August. Details are shared on the candidate dashboards.


Read more on CIMA® Exams in the CIMA® Program Candidate Guide

Save your exam appointment confirmation

Once your exam date is scheduled, you’ll receive a confirmation email with registration information. Make sure to store this information in a safe place.

PLEASE NOTE:

  • That the payment once made is non-refundable and non-transferable.
  • That some spam filters may unintentionally block or forward electronic communications from CIMA Institute to junk folders. The applicant is requested to add the following email addresses to the personal address book or to the safe senders list in the registered email account to avoid missing any important updates from CIMA Institute.

Passing Trends & Threshold Scores

On an annual average, more than half of CIMA® examinees have been passing their exams in the first attempt in the last ten years. More than 95% of CIMA® exams are conducted on-demand, online on the most stringent of the global online assessment standards.

Find Your CIMA® Result Here

A typical CIMA® exam result card includes a mention of "pass" or "fail" decision and a summary of module-level performance in the CIMA® exams candidates have taken. The CIMA® exam result cards are released within two weeks of the conduct of exam events. The CIMA Exam Results Interpreter available on the MyCIMA dashboard guides candidates in comprehending their results reports. CIMA® candidates who are unable to pass their exam must analyze their exam result card to guide their studies and to re-take the exam at a later date. Candidates can take as much time as they need before registering for the next exam.

  • CIMA Exam Passing Trends +

    Below are the CIMA Program Level 1, Level 2 and Pathway exam pass trends in the last ten years. The figures are the annual mean percentage pass rates of CIMA® candidates taking exams through the years.

  • CIMA Exam Results Declaration +

    The results for all CIMA® exams are available within 15 days of the exam date. Individual candidate results are never are never released to a third party and communicated only to the candidates. At times, lists of passing candidates are shared with professional associations for membership purposes.

    Detailed exam scores and responses to exam questions are measurement information and part of a candidate's test record, both of which are owned solely by the CIMA Institute. This information is not given to candidates. After a candidate A’s exam event ends, the CIMA Institute conducts a thorough analysis of exam questions/ candidate performance in CIMA® exams taken by all CIMA® candidates in the 3 months preceding the date on the which candidate A took her CIMA® exam. This is done to identify the Threshold Passing Score (TPS) for the candidate A that represents benchmark-level knowledge in the subject matter. Rigorous quality control processes and data quality review steps are completed to ensure results are presented accurately to all tested candidates.

  • CIMA Exam Threshold Passing Score +

    After the conduct of each exam event (individual, on-demand, or offline, group assessment), a CIMA® system sets the threshold passing score (TPS) for each level. This approach ensures fairness to candidates taking CIMA® exams across time and space, as the difficulty of each exam is considered when setting the TPS. The CIMA Institute never releases or shares the TPS or individual candidate scores to candidates or to any other party at any point under any condition.

    The process for setting the TPS has been updated on October 20, 2021 to continue ensuring fair treatment of all candidates while reflecting the high standards of CIMA® charter-holders worldwide. The TPS setting process strives to maintain consistency over time in methodology and continuity in results while allowing for flexibility based on evolving circumstances. The CIMA® Institute engages the best possible expertise and deploys best testing practices, in addition to counting on the wisdom and judgment of independent experts in the CIMA® exam committee. The CIMA Institute is especially particular about maintaining the integrity and confidentiality of CIMA® exam system and candidate information.

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