1. Visit org/cma-certificationto apply. You will need to purchase the CMA entrance fee and IMA membership. The application process takes about 10 minutes.
2. Register for the exam. You can register for Part 1 and Part 2 in any order or register for both at the same time.
3. Prepare to complete certification requirements including submitting your education transcript and work experience. This can be done before or after passing the exam but is required as a final step to become certified

ICMA^® (Institute of Certified Management Accountants) is the certification affiliate of IMA. ICMA is responsible for developing, administering, and grading the CMA exam; establishing the policies and procedures for the CMA program; and for ensuring the program’s overall integrity. The ICMA Board of Regents is responsible for setting policies, and the ICMA staff is responsible for operations.

• Active membership in IMA (Institute of Management Accountants)
• A bachelor’s degree from an accredited college/university or a related professional certification
• Complete two continuous years of professional experience in management accounting or financial management. This requirement may be completed prior to or within seven years of passing the examination.
• Passing Parts 1 and 2 of the CMA exam.

For further details, please refer to the CMA Handbook

The CMA exams are computer-based and administered at hundreds of Prometric Test Centers worldwide. With three testing windows each year, you can sit for an exam at a time and place convenient for you.

If you are enrolled in the CMA program and are ready to sit for the exam, here are the steps:

1. Pick your testing window. Testing windows are offered in January/February, May/June, and September/October.
2. Register for the exam at imaonlinestore.com.
3. Receive your authorization number(s) along with further instructions.
4. Schedule your exam appointment(s) with Prometric, our testing partner, at prometric.com/ICMA.

Candidates take the CMA exam in person at a Prometric Test Center. In accordance with local customs, Prometric Test Centers are available throughout the U.S. and internationally. To locate a test center, please visit www.prometric.com/ICMA.

Exams are offered according to the following schedule:

• January and February
• May and June
• September and October

To schedule exam appointments, visit www.prometric.com/ICMA or call (800) 479-6370. To ensure your first choice of date, time, and location, it is best to schedule your appointment at least four weeks in advance. All exam appointments must be scheduled at least 72 hours in advance of the exam date. Once you are registered, you must take the exam part during your assigned testing session. If, for any reason, you are unable to schedule an exam appointment during the assigned testing window, you will need to pay another registration fee. Appointments cannot be rescheduled to another testing window.

No, you can take parts 1 and 2 in any order. You have the option of taking both together on the same day, although many members choose to separate their testing dates

Performance Reports are sent via e-mail from Prometric to all candidates who take an exam part. The performance reports are emailed approximately 14 days after exam results are posted to the candidate’s profile.
Candidates who do not pass the exam will receive a report that indicates their performance on each of the key topic areas in the multiple-choice section as well as their overall performance on the essay section of the exam.

Candidates must complete the CMA program within three years from the date of entry into the certification program. If both exam parts are not successfully completed within three years of entering the program, any passed part will expire, and the CMA entrance fee will need to be repaid.

You will lose any previous passed scores and will need to register for the exam again

On the IMA website, click “My Profile” and then “My Certifications.” There, you will find your exam status and transcript, information on your work experience and education, and more.

The minimum passing score is 360 for both parts of the exam. The exam score range is 0-500.

An exam part may be taken only once in a testing window. You can sit for as many testing windows as you need in your three-year period. All retakes require a new exam registration (not CMA entrance), along with payment of appropriate fees: $460 for professionals, $345 for Students/Academic members

Our U.S.-based certification is also available in Mandarin Chinese. The test can be taken in China in paper/pencil format (Chinese) or in computerized format (English). IMA offers an entire suite of products for a true Chinese learning experience, including Mandarin versions of exam preparation courses, member support from native-speaking staff, thought leadership, Strategic Finance magazine, and anything else offered on IMA’s main website.

To fulfill your educational requirements, please submit original transcripts (or notarized copies) electronically to CMAEducationDocuments@imanet.org. Please email all documents in PDF format and make sure to include your IMA membership number. If you have questions regarding your educational documents, please email CMAEducationDocuments@imanet.org.

To validate your work credential, you will need to fill out the online CMA Experience Requirement Form

For Professional Members:

• CMA Entrance Fee (nonrefundable) – $300*
• Exam Fee – $545 per part.

For Student/Academic Members:

• CMA Entrance Fee (nonrefundable) – $225*
• Exam Fee – $407 per part

• Cancelling your appointment with Prometric does not generate a refund or an automatic approved test window change. It only allows you to reschedule the appointment for a different date in the sametesting window. 
• If you cancel your appointment with Prometric less than five (5) days before your appointment, you will forfeit your exam fees with ICMA and you will need to purchase a new exam registration. If you cancel your exam within 5 to 45 days of the scheduled appointment date, Prometric will charge a cancellation fee. This fee cannot be waived. 
• To cancel or reschedule your appointment online, please have your confirmation number ready and visit prometric.com/ICMA. If you do not comply with the cancellation policy, you will be considered a “no show” and you will need to reregister with ICMA and repay the examination fee.

The CMA Entrance Fee is not refundable.

If you have not scheduled an appointment with Prometric, the examination fee is refundable within 30 days from the time you purchased the exam. A $25 processing fee will be deducted from the refund. We do not offer postponements of exam parts. You must sit in the testing window for which you purchased a registration.

To schedule an exam by phone, find the phone number for your region at www.prometric.com/ICMA. You will need:

ICMA offers special rates for college students

The CMA Scholarship opportunity can be offered to up to 10 students per school per year who are interested in pursuing CMA certification. This includes both undergraduate and graduate students in accredited accounting or business programs. Multiple faculty members can submit nominations, but the limit is 10 per school, per academic year

Many employers reimburse for the cost of the CMA program and IMA membership! Download our customizable letter that you can send to your supervisor explaining the value of the CMA

Performance reports are sent via email from Prometric to all candidates who fail an exam part. The performance reports are emailed approximately 14 days after exam results are posted to the candidate’s profile.

After you check your inbox, be sure to check your spam or junk folder when searching for Prometric’s email.

A copy of your transcript can be found by clicking here.

Note: You need to have passed both parts of the CMA exam and be an active IMA member to access your transcript.

Please check your Member Dashboard to see what requirements are pending.

To fulfill your educational requirement, please submit original transcripts (or notarized copies) electronically to cmaeducationdocuments@imanet.org. Please email all documents in PDF format and make sure to include your IMA membership number. If you have any questions regarding your educational documents, please email cmaeducationdocuments@imanet.org.

To validate your work experience, you will need to complete the CMA Experience Requirement form.

As a reminder, active IMA membership is required prior to certification.

Once your certificate number has been issued, you can begin using the CMA designation as part of your professional credentials. To check if your certificate number has been issued, please review the My Profile section of the IMA website. If you see the CMA designation after your name, your CMA certificate number has been issued.

Once you have completed both parts of the CMA exam, you will be required to report 30 hours of CPE on an annual basis and a minimum of two hours must be in the field of ethics. A copy of the CPE Requirements and Rules can be found here.