NCMA · Certified Professional Contracts Manager

CPCM Readiness File

81
CPE of 120
Accuracy
0
Open deficiencies

Coverage by competency

Bar = accuracy · Right column = attempted

Green once you're above 80% on a domain. Red below 60% — that's where the next session goes.

Next action

Auto

Start anywhere — nothing attempted yet.

CPE runway

120 required to apply
81 / 120
39 hours remaining68%

All 120 must be banked before you submit the application. Once approved, you get one year and three attempts.

Reset

Destructive

Question bank

Deficiency log

Every question you've missed

A deficiency clears when you answer it correctly. Miss it again and it stays open.

CPE ledger

120 hours · last 10 years count
ActivityCategoryHours

Your 81 hours are seeded as a single baseline row. Replace it with itemized entries as you dig up the certificates — NCMA audits a percentage of applications, and reconstructing documentation later is painful.

Counts as CPE

Fastest 39
  • Publishing an article on contract management — this is the dual-purpose route you flagged
  • Instructing or formally teaching contract management topics
  • Writing exam questions for NCMA
  • Formal mentoring in a structured program
  • Courses, webinars, seminars, workshops
  • Structured portions of staff meetings
  • College credit outside your degree requirement

Does not count

Don't waste the effort
  • Informal on-the-job training
  • Basic courses in areas where you're already expert
  • Sales-oriented product demonstrations
  • Programs aimed at the general public
  • Committee membership in a professional org
  • The same learning event counted twice for one certification

Conversion: 1 CEU or CPU = 10 CPE. 1 CLE, CLP, or PDU = 1 CPE.

The numbers

Verify on ncmahq.org before you commit
120
CPE hours to apply
5 yrs
Experience required
$225
Application (member)
$135
Exam fee (US/CA)
1 yr / 3
Eligibility / attempts
Kryterion
Test provider
15 days
Application review
CMBOK 7
Sole source material

The exam may be taken at a Kryterion center or online. Recertification runs on a five-year cycle and now requires 100 CPE for cycles ending 2026 onward — worth knowing before you're standing on the other side of it.

Sequence to certification

Where you are: step 1