CCA-F exam guide

1. 1Join the Claude Partner Network. It's free, but it generally expects a company/organization email — personal addresses are often rejected. If you're an independent learner, this is the step to sort out first.
2. 2Schedule through Pearson VUE. Choose OnVUE online-proctored or a physical test center, pay the $125 fee, and pick a slot.
3. 3Prepare your environment (for OnVUE): a quiet room, a clear desk, a working webcam, and a stable connection. You'll complete a system check and room scan before starting.

CCA-F is reported on a scaled 100–1000 range, and you need 720 to pass. The scaling accounts for slight difficulty differences between exam forms, so a raw percentage doesn't map cleanly to the scaled number.

1. 1Week 1 — map the ground. Read the domain guides and skim the concepts. Take the readiness check to find your weakest domains.
2. 2Week 2 — drill the weak spots. Work the per-domain practice for the areas the readiness check flagged; re-read the guide sections you miss.
3. 3Week 3 — build judgment. Work the case studies and the confused-concepts material. Focus on why each distractor is wrong, not just the right answer.
4. 4Week 4 — simulate. Take the full mock exams under time pressure. Anything under 70% in a domain goes back to its guide.

• You have 120 minutes for 60 items — roughly two minutes each. Don't sink ten minutes into one question; flag and move on.
• Read the last sentence of the scenario carefully — a compliance, latency, or cost constraint buried there often flips the answer.
• When two options both work, pick the one that's simpler, more reversible, and scopes power more tightly.
• For “select all that apply” items, the count is stated and grading is all-or-nothing — don't over- or under-pick.

You earn a digital badge via Credly, valid for 12 months. Near expiry there's typically a renewal assessment; if it lapses, a full retake. Confirm renewal specifics on the official page.

A credential is a signal, not a substitute for building. CCA-F is worth pursuing if a role, team, or client values demonstrable Claude-architecture skill, or if the structured syllabus is a useful forcing function to round out weak areas. It won't, on its own, make you a better architect — the practice behind it will.