Claim CPE for studying for other certifications

[kmittal82]

Hello Community

I know this question has been asked however I can't find an exact answer for my query

I am currently studying for the CCSP, and have devoted well more than 50 hours cross various training materials. I have not however yet taken the exam, and plan to do so early next year.

In the meantime, I understand that I can claim credits for self study, however I'm not sure about how many I can claim? Most posts suggest a maximum of 30 hours can be claimed, however I did see one post which say 40 CPEs can be claimed as well.

Is there an upper limit on the amount of CPEs that can be claimed for self study in pursuit of another certification?

Thanks

Kunal

[kmittal82]

Oh, one more thing - do I have to pass the intended exam in order to be able to claim credits?

[AndreaMoore]

The official handbook, which should answer your CPE credit related questions, can be viewed here: https://www.isc2.org/-/media/ISC2/Certifications/CPE/CPE---Handbook.ashx

If you have further specific questions, you can reach out to the member support team at https://www.isc2.org/Contact-Us 

[gidyn]

Seeing how often this question comes up, it may be helpful to add a couple of sentences to the handbook, beyond the brief reference in the introduction.

[kmittal82]

Thanks all, in the handbook I found the following on Page 9

Self-study related to research for a project or preparing for a certification examination

On Page 14, I found the following

Maximum number of CPE per entry should not exceed 40

A combination of these suggests that credits can be claimed for studying for a certification (no requirement to pass the exam), however only a maximum of 40 credits can be claimed

If I have spend 50 hours then studying for my certification, can I claim it in 2 separate entries? (e.g. 40 CPE for entry 1 and 10 CPE for entry 2)?

[gidyn]

You should be able to enter some of the materials individually, e.g. 5 CPE per book.

[Budoka]

I hate to resurrect a bit of a dated thread but I find this particular issue very frustrating and it would be nice if ISC2 could offer clearer instructions re: How we should submit such CPE's in this particular instance. Referring members to the CPE Guidelines is only useful if the guidelines are clear, and honestly, in this case, they aren't at all.

To wit:

I am in much the same boat as other posters on this thread I am in multiples of 40 CPE max submission for study for another cert. So I can do multiple submissions? Fine, No problem, But WHAT category are we supposed to submit under.  Professional Development which one would think is the closest relevant category has no sub-category that would be appropriate to use. The Education category is the same. There is no encompassing category that would cover "Self-study related to research for a project or preparing for a certification examination". The most relevant sub-category under Education-Book, Magazine, Whitepaper the number of CPE's one could claim don't even come remotely close to the number of HOURS spent studying for additional certifications.

Because of this lack of clarity I have refrained from submitting CPE's for study for other certifications. Mostly because I have tons of other activities for which I can easily submit CPE's and support if audited. But I just completed the "preparation of a certification examination" which took considerable time and it drives me nuts that there is no easy way to submit for it.

Is it just me that is not understanding?

@AndreaMooreis there any way we members can get clearer guidance on this?

[AndreaMoore]

@Budoka 

I reached out on your behalf and received this response: 

Members who have studied to obtain an additional professional certification and are awarded that certification can claim up to 40 CPE credits for the preparation or self-study work they did to achieve that certification. If the additional certification is related to the domains of members’ (ISC)2 credential, they would earn 40 Group A credits. If the additional certification is not related to the domains of members’ (ISC)2 credential, they would earn 40 Group B credits. CPE credits associated with obtaining additional professional certifications are awarded for the time they spent in preparation for obtaining the additional credential but not for achieving the certification.

If you need additional assistance, please contact membersupport@isc2.org. 

I hope this helps!

~Andrea

[kmittal82]

Hello Andrea

Many thanks for reaching out to get the information.

Am I right in then concluding that the study time towards a (Qualifying) cert does contribute towards CPEs, regardless of whether or not the exam was cleared or not?

For instance, if I spend 40 hours studying for say CCSP but I don't clear the exam, I assume the credits can still be earnt for studying.

[Budoka]

@AndreaMoore 

First, let me say "Thank You". You are always responsive to questions posted here AND you always proactively assist us. It is much appreciated and quite honestly why I usually tag you on anything substantive. LOL

That is the clarification that I believe everyone was looking for. As I read it, "up to 40 CPE credits" means that we can only claim a maximum of 40 credits even if the time spent exceeds it? Either way, it is good enough for me just because now we have an answer.

I will send an email inquiring under which sub-category in the CPE Portal we should submit. That still isn't entirely clear to me. I will report back here when I have an answer.

I would also respectfully submit that ISC2 make that information clearer in the next revision of the CPE Guidelines.

Best,

TL