CompTIA
Authorized
Quality Curriculum
CAQC FAQs
What is the best way to study for a CompTIA certification?
How often do I need to re-submit training materials for
CAQC certification?
How will a CAQC certification benefit me?
Do I need to re-submit training materials if I localizethem in a different language?
How long does a CAQC review take and what does it cost?
How can I identify a CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum?
How does the CAQC program work?
Why did CompTIA develop the CAQC program?
What if the CompTIA logo is used? Does the CompTIA logo signify CAQC?
What types of training programs does CompTIA evaluate?
How does training material become CAQC certified?
What is the CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum (CAQC) program?
Who are the authorized reviewing companies I can use for CAQC program?
What kinds of training products may participate in the CAQC program?
What are the CAQC quality standards?
Can I repackage existing CAQC training content and continue to use the CAQC logo?
Can I submit training material that is still in development?
How do I determine which of my products to submit?
What is the best way to study for a CompTIA certification?
CompTIA makes it easy fo you to select the most appropriate
training and study aids with our CAQC program. CompTIA reviews
and analyzes available training programs and content through independent
third-party
experts, ensuring you that they contain what you need to prepare
for your CompTIA certification exam.
How often do I need to re-submit training materials for CAQC certification?
Once the use of the CAQC logo is granted for a specific product
and its edition, that specific edition may always bear the
logo. CAQC quality standards require the training product to provide
the date that the product
was submitted for review to ensure that customers can identify
current training products.
The need to re-submit materials occurs when CompTIA updates or changes its certification exams. This occurs roughly every 18 months, but can occur more often, depending upon changes in the subject areas of the certification exam in question. When an exam is updated, publishers need to submit their updated training material for CAQC review in order to use the CAQC logo.
How will a CAQC certification benefit me?
Your material will have increased visibility and become available
to a wider audience. It will also stand out from other training
materials that are not CAQC certified because of the growing public awareness
of
the CAQC program. Students and trainers look for the CAQC logo.
CompTIA requires CAQC materials for many of its training and related career efforts and directly recommends CAQC materials to customers by preferentially listing CAQC materials on our Web site, in our publications and informing our more than 11,000 members.
Do I need to re-submit training materials if I localize them in a different
language?
In general, if a particular training product is granted use
of the CAQC logo, that product may continue to bear the logo
even if localized, so long as any differences between the localized version
and the original
version submitted for review are confined solely to the needs
of the localization, and that the localization is of sufficient quality
to equal that of the
original version. A poor quality translation of a localized
product for example would not equal that of the original language.
If the product is localized and also undergoes significant changes in areas such as target audience, content, description or title, which are unrelated or not required by localization, then the product must be reviewed by an authorize reviewer.
If a current CompTIA terms glossary is available (visit the CompTIA Web site) for the certification training product in question, the use of terms as found in the glossary are required by the CAQC program. Use of the glossary terms helps ensure consistency in vocabulary in both the training material and the certification exam.
How long does a CAQC review take and what does it cost?
A typical 750 page A+ study guide takes approximately 3 weeks
to review.
Costs vary depending upon the quantity of the materials and review situation. Most are approximately a few thousand US dollars. Please contact an authorized reviewer for a price quote and review timeline estimate.
How can I identify a CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum?
The CAQC logo will appear on the training and marketing materials
of qualifying curriculums and training programs. All available
study aids and training programs are included on CompTIA's searchable
online database
to help you find the best program - authorized or not - to
help you prepare for your certification exam.
How does the CAQC program work?
If your material meets a series of quality standards, it can
qualify to bear the CAQC quality logo. An authorized third-party
inspects your courseware and determines if it meets the quality standards.
CAQC
content is required to be used in many CompTIA training environments.
To start the process,
(1) Download and complete the CAQC Application form here.
(2) Select an authorized reviewer and confirm price and review timelines
(3) Send material and payment to the reviewer
(4)Upon passing, your material will have the right to bear the CAQC logo, and be listed as Authorized CompTIA curriculum. If it does not pass, you may resubmit a newer version of the material for re-review.
Why did CompTIA develop the CAQC program?
Many companies sell training materials and programs that range
in quality from exceptional to poor. At CompTIA, we think that
you should have the best study materials available to help you prepare
for and successfully
complete your certification exam. The CompTIA CAQC and CLA
programs will help you make an informed decision about which training
materials to use.
What if the CompTIA logo is used? Does the CompTIA logo signify CAQC?
While any study aid or training program can use the CompTIA
corporate logo, only authorized programs can use the CompTIA
CAQC logos.
What types of training programs does CompTIA evaluate?
CompTIA programs evaluate materials and programs of all types,
including books, self-study guides, classroom training programs,
videos, computer-based training and other written and instructor-led
programs.
How does training material become CAQC certified?
Applicants must submit an initial CAQC application form to CompTIA.
One of several authorized reviewers analyzes the material to
determine if it maps closely enough with the CompTIA exam objectives to earn
the CAQC
certification. If the training material submitted meets the CAQC
standards, the applicant receives the CAQC logos for use on their authorized
training
and marketing materials.
What is the CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum (CAQC) program?
It is a voluntary quality review program for IT training material
that uses quality standards set by the IT industry. It helps
CompTIA place more awareness and attention on training materials that
meet industry-wide
quality standards so that customers and students experience
quality training and are better able to meet the skilled labor needs
of the IT industry.
In addition the CAQC program serves as a requirement for a
number CompTIA and IT industry-training programs.
Who are the authorized reviewing companies I can use for CAQC program?
Authorized Reviewing Companies (in alphabetical order):
Learning Designs Online Allen Bailey 1510 Jalna Avenue Mississauga, Ontario Canada, L5J 1S5 Phone: 905.823.3367 Find out about Learning Designs Online support for CAQC by e-mailing Learning Designs Online at abailey@learning-designs.com.
ProCert Labs Paul Hoffman 1259 North 100 East Orem, Utah 84057 USA Phone: 801.802.8774 Find out about ProCert Labs support for CAQC at www.procertlabs.com Or e-mail ProCert Labs at paulh@procertlabs.com.
All authorized reviewing companies
agree to:
Fair, unbiased and objective review by qualified experts
of the training products you submit
Nondisclosure
Reasonable speed and price
Provide reasonable requested status information
Abide by CompTIA program requirements required of all
authorized reviewing companies
Provide a pass/fail report for each training product
submitted for CAQC review. Failure reports will include the reasons
for CAQC rejection and the options available for a re-examination
of the products.
What kinds of training products may participate in the CAQC program?
All training material covering CompTIA or other certifications,
no matter the format, media, language, or type. This includes,
but is not limited to products such as: books, self-study, test preparation,
video,
computer-based training, and Instructor-led training kits.
The CAQC program applies to tangible curriculum products. It does NOT
apply to actual live
training delivery, such as live or near-live interaction with
an instructor.
What are the CAQC quality standards?
In general, training products must meet each of the following
standards:
(1) At least one example of content covering each and every objective of the relevant CompTIA certification exam. All Training Products must contain coverage of all current CompTIA exam objectives for the CompTIA certification, or certifications, as appropriate to the product’s title, description, or stated purpose, as defined by the product’s publisher or developer.
(2) The title or description of each training product must clearly -
Provide a description of the CompTIA certification(s) for which the training product was developed
State customer prerequisites, if any
Exist in a format and appearance that meets any applicable CompTIA rules and guidelines(3)Each training product must contain text approved or provided by CompTIA that describes what "CAQC Authorized" or "CAQC Quality" means, as well as information on how to contact CompTIA for quality or customer service concerns. In addition, text must include the CompTIA certification exam number the product was written for, or date of the CompTIA exam objectives that were current at the time the product was produced and submitted for review.
(4) Each training product must contain content designed to cover and provide support for two or more learning styles, such as visual, hands-on and reader. This is done by including content such as text, pictures, drawings, diagrams, labs or exercises.
(5) The content of each training product must include a interactive capability that challenges or judges the user's comprehension by including content such as quizzes, labs, exercises and review questions.
(6)Each training product must contain such disclaimers as may be required by CompTIA, in a format and appearance that meets CompTIA rules and guidelines.
(7)Each training product must abide by any and all CompTIA rules and guidelines related to the use of its logos, trade names and other intellectual property.
Can I repackage existing CAQC training content and continue to use the
CAQC logo?
At the time of the CAQC review, the developer or publisher
defines the type of product it is submitting for review. If
at a later time the developer or publisher wishes to use the content of
that product
for the basis of a different product, the different product
generally requires a review. An exception may be made when there is no
substantial change
in content coverage of objectives; description, title, target
audience, and instructional design all have no substantial changes.
For example, your company produces of a 500-page self-study manual that bears the CAQC logo. You decide to transform the content of the self-study manual and create 5 separate 100-page modules, each module sold separately. Each module generally could NOT bear the CAQC logo, as each module would have substantial differences in content when compared to the original 500-page self-study manual. If however, you transform the self-study manual into a study kit, with each study kit containing all 5 modules, the study kit itself might be authorized to continue to bear the CAQC logo, so long as no substantial change in coverage of objectives exists, and if no substantial differences in description, title, target audience, and instructional design exists between the study kit and the original study guide.
An authorized reviewer can provide additional information. CompTIA retains final authority in this matter and may require a review of different products or withdraw permission to use the quality logo
Can I submit training material that is still in development?
Yes, as long as the following conditions are met:
(a) You believe the material you do submit will pass the CAQC quality standards
(b) In good faith you state the materials will not significantly change between the review and their final form
(c)You provide a copy of the final form of the training materials to your authorized reviewer
The authorized reviewer may suggest a new review should the reviewer find significant differences in the final form of the materials, particularly if content objectives, product title, description, content, target audience and SKU appear significantly different. In this case the authorized reviewer may recommend to you and CompTIA that these final materials be re-submitted for an additional review in order to maintain use of the CAQC logo.
How do I determine which of my products to submit?
You determine which of your products to submit and identify
them on the CAQC application form. CAQC material is required
in several CompTIA training efforts - identify and submit products that
you want to
be available in these programs.
The CAQC logo is also an advantage in environments where product differentiation is important, where customers select products based on quality or trust or where you want to demonstrate adherence to industry quality standards.
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