Quality Council of Indiana - ASQ's CQE and CQA Certification exam materials

[angel]

Hello,
Reading this forum, I noticed that almost everyone has used the Primer and CD of the Quality Council of Indiana. I used the same main source, but I needed 10% more to pass the CQE exam. Does anybody know, if I have to buy the very expensive ASQ Primers and CD's for better preparation for CQE and CQA exams?

[Craig H.]

Originally Posted by angel

Hello,
Reading this forum, I noticed that almost everyone has used the Primer and CD of the Quality Council of Indiana. I used the same main source, but I needed 10% more to pass the CQE exam. Does anybody know, if I have to buy the very expensive ASQ Primers and CD's for better preparation for CQE and CQA exams?

angel, hi and welcome to the Cove!

What I did after my first attempt at the CQE was to sit down and try to remember which topics I had to "stretch" to answer. Then I went to texts like Juran's QC Handbook and selectively brushed up those areas. The main thing I used the primers for at this point was to review - I certainly didn't want to forget anything. This worked for me, and the second try felt much better when I was through, and even better than that when the certificate (now on my wall) came.

And, if I may add some advice, don't get discouraged. Getting this far is more than half of the battle, much more. Concentrate your efforts on the areas you were least comfortable with, and I am sure you will do much better your next try.

GOOD LUCK!!!!!

Craig H.

[Govind]

I used Quality Council of Indiana for all the Certifications I did. I was successful right at the first attempt. The reason is not just reviewing QCI, but also focused preparation of additional materials for every exam.

The main benefit of QCI is, that the reading material is provided in the same sequence as the Body of Knowledge. Example 1.A.1.a...etc.

This will help us ensure that we don't leave any portion of the BOK without reviewing before entering the exam. QCI-CD 1000 Questions is a good way to start as this will point out initial weakness and where to focus most. (I have always mentioned in other threads, approx 15% of the 1000 Questions are very ambiguous and difficult to agree with the answer). Just use those questions for practice and understand the width of BOK, attain speed in answering).

Craig H approach seem logical. If I may add, before getting into Juran and Montgomery, identify where to focus most (Your weakness areas).You may be lost looking at several hundred pages of these additional references.

Even you are working in areas that are in BOK, still a study of 75 to 100 hours minimum and few simulated exam is highly recommended before entering the exam. Good luck with your exam.

Tips: Preparation, Preparation, preparation...

Govind.

[Bill Pflanz]

Angel,

Welcome to the Cove.

Another helpful recommendation not mentioned by Craig or Govind is test preparation for the style of test. Did you miss out by 10% because you did not know a specific area or was it more that you missed the ambiguous questions across the entire BOK? ASQ provides detail on the former issue so that you can focus on your weak areas. If it it more the latter and the 10% is spread across multiple BOK areas than it may mean that you just need some more work on time management during the test and determining which is the best answer for some questions.

Many local ASQ sections offer refresher training for the tests that are as much about how to take the test as what to study. I have heard that the pass rate is about 50% on the first time but increases significantly to over 80% on the second try. Don't give up now. Keep posting questions if you want or do a search on CQE exams since others Covers have asked for help before.

Bill Pflanz

[ralphsulser]

Here is an answer I posted in another thread:
I can give you info on how I prepard for the CQE Dec. exam date.
I attended an intensive week long refreshercourse by Stat-A-Matrix at the end of Oct. Then studied on my own all through Nov. by reviewing materials, and giving myself pervious exams,, and toward the end enlisting my wife to ask me questions. I probably put in over 100 hours all together. I was told that 50% fail the exam the first time, and I wanted to make sure I passed.
The site for the exam in Canton, Oh was a school building which had the heat turned down for the weekend. The exam was on Saturday morning. I sat there answering questions, and my hands under my arm pits while reading the questions. I did pass the first time, and was glad to do it.

[angel]

Thank you all!
I analysed my points right after receiving the results. I was surprised to realize that my weakest part of the exam was the Management. The wording of the questions sounded diffrent to me from those on the QCI Primer. That's why I asked for a comparison with the ASQ Primer.
Now I am finding 2 reasons for my exam difficulties:
-a language problem- English is my second language, and if the question is tricky, I need more time to understand it;
-not enough reading the gurus.
Thank you again!

[Jennifer Kirley]

I used to use Quality Council of Indiana's materials, but when I compared them against those done by Pyzdek (Quality America, Tuscon Arizona) I never went back.

I hope the QCI materials have improved since I used them, because they still seem popular. I found the Primer too superficial. Besides, I thought the Primer was quite cumbersome to use in a testing situation, where we typically sit at small desks in a college classroom. The CD had several errors and several repeated questions. Who needs that?

[Jasker]

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