CCBA, or Certification of Capability in Business Analysis, is one of the sought-after professional level-2-certification that is on offer from the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA). The prime motto of this certification is to provide business analysis practitioners with recognition related to business analysis-related skills and knowledge that can brighten their career prospects big time.
This article will guide you in understanding the entire certification process, eligibility criteria, and the necessary details or inputs required for the CCBA preparation.
CCBA Exam Structure
Before proceeding further, it is important to understand the exam format, which would give a better picture of the preparation goals. There are 6 segments to it:
Requirement Analysis and Design Definition Elicitation and Collaboration hold 32% and 20% of the overall score, respectively. Rest consists of Requirement of Lifecycle Management (18%), Business Analysis Planning and Monitoring (12%), Strategy Analysis (12%), and Solution Evaluation (6%). This segregation of the domains helps get the CCBA exam preparation blueprint in sync.
Now, a few important facts might come in handy at times. For example, this exam is taken online; hence, there is no need to visit any center. One can take the exam in the comfort of home provided a computer, webcam, microphone, and stable internet connection are there.
Regarding the fees, they are on the higher side but differ based on IIBA membership. For an IIBA member, the application fee comes to around $ 125 & the exam fee is $325. On the other hand, for any IIBA non-member, the exam cost increases to $450. However, there is no difference in the application fee. For such a crucial CCBA online exam involving a hefty cost, you must be well prepared.
- The Application process flow:
One may opt to get registered to be a member of the International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA). However, this step is optional, and the cost involved in the process is $125.
Or
One can feed in the details of the experiences and relevant hours in the IIBA portal and then pay the application fee of $125.
Once the application submission process is complete, an e-mail will be sent informing you regarding the status of the application: whether it is approved or in a pending state for some reason.
Then comes the scheduling of the exam; there is a 1-year span post the application is submitted in which one needs to take the exam. This exam consists of 150 multiple choice questions to be answered within 210 minutes. An important point to note here is that there could be a maximum of 3 attempts of the exam during the 1-year post the application process.
Eligibility Criteria
Every exam or certification has certain criteria to meet. In the case of this business management certification online, the following needs to be met:
- As far as work experience is concerned, a minimum of 3750 hours of effort is necessary for the field of business analysis aligned with the BABOK guidelines within the span of the last seven years. Again, it must be either a minimum of 900 hours in 2 of the 6 knowledge areas each or 500 hours in 4 out of the 6 knowledge areas.
- Additionally, concerning Business Analysis training, 21 PD (Professional Development) hours need to be completed over the last 4 years.
- Also, as a part of the guidelines, apart from the agreement to the code of conduct and terms and conditions, two references need to be provided.
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CCBA Exam Prep Class
- The preparation process and the elements covered in the process are two very important aspects. Usually, the preparatory topics will include an introductory segment on the CCBA Certification Process.
- Next will be BABOK V-3, containing the brief overview, business analysis process, Business analyst competencies, and required techniques.
- The next segment related to Planning & Monitoring will cover things like the planning and monitoring process for business analysis, guidelines on planning the stakeholder engagement and business analysis governance, and so on.
- After that, in the elicitation and collaboration, the focus would be on understanding how to prepare for and conduct elicitation. This segment will add knowledge about the ways to communicate information related to business analysis.
- The Life Cycle Management section will deal with Tracing, maintaining, prioritizing, assessing & approving the requirements.
- The next section will be related to Strategy analysis which involves analyzing the current state, defining the future state, assessing the risks involved, and defining the change strategy.
- In the next segment, the focus will be on understanding the requirements analysis and overview. This will be followed by the Solution Evaluation process, which talks about how to measure solution performance or analyze the performance measures. Finally, this section discusses the crucial aspects related to recommending actions to increase the solution value after assessing the solution limitation.
A quiz follows every segment related to the preparatory curriculum to check the understanding and recap. Any aspirant must take the right approach and path related to the preparation; Knowledgehut CCBA online could help guide one to easy success.
CCBA Practice Exams
Before any exam, attaining a few mock tests or practice exams helps a lot in getting on the vibe of the real-time scenario. The questions for CCBA exam preparation are usually planned in such a manner that helps one with the wholesome picture of the candidate's knowledge level. From the warm-up question to drilling down with scenario-based ones, followed by full-length simulation tests of full length, practice exams could prove to be a solid backbone for any aspirant of business management certification online.
In fact, in case of any knowledge gap, a detailed explanation of each answer can come to the rescue. Additionally, the dashboard showing the progress and performance keeps one aware of the preparatory stand.
Important Points to Consider During CCBA Certification Preparation
There are a few important points to remember during your preparation stage:
- Firstly, one must have a good hold over the BABOK Guide version 3. Understanding all the concepts is crucial to a better grasp of CCBA preparation. Secondly, the certification training must be taken very seriously and with a planned approach.
- Last but not least, there is no alternative to practice! One must take the mock test results and dashboard report to understand the chapter-wise knowledge gaps and act accordingly.
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CCBA Certification Preparation Guide to Pass the CCBA Exam
There is no hard and fast rule of success, but an effort in the right direction with perseverance can make a huge difference in the outcome. Preparation can be done online and offline based on feasibility. One has the option of live classes, study groups, and individual study to prepare for the CCBA online.
In case of doubts, getting that clarified from the mentor is essential during the preparatory stage as it gives clarity of understanding.
Certification-related sample questions are to be visited frequently during practice sessions.
Expert Tips to Follow While Preparing for CCBA Certification Exam
Here are a few tips that may prove helpful in successfully clearing the CCBA exam.
- Visiting IIBA questions for the FAQs alongside the certification-oriented sample questions
- Read and revise the BABOK Study guide version 3 frequently to ensure no gap in understanding.
- Preparation of own study note post completing any chapter on a real-time basis
- To have a study plan based on the percentage weight related to business analysis segments in the exam.
- One may opt for using the online flashcards, which will help with 1000 questions about BABOK and offer valuable guidelines.
- Studying in groups is important as there would be a lot of doubt-clearing instances, eventually boosting the confidence level.
- The importance of practice exams is immense, and you must take these tests very seriously.
- Need to go through various business analysis scenarios as there could be many scenario-based questions
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Conclusion
In a nutshell, with proper guidance and a plan in place, the preparation of CCBA becomes more fruitful, but there is no alternative to practice! So being a professional, finding the best training/coaching support like Knowledgehut CCBA online may be handy in this context.
