The Certified Data Management Professional (CDMP) certification is a renowned exam offered by the Data Management Association. An international body for data practitioners.

I took my CMP exam last week and I was very pleased to achieve the certification at first try albeit not achieving the score I aimed for.
The CDMP certification has 3 levels; the Associate scoring at least 60%, the Practitioner scoring at least 70% and the Master achieving at least 80%

I scored 69% – 1% shy of 70%.

Whilst i am very pleased with this result, my target goal for the exam was a minimum of 80% with the aim of securing a master certification on the foundation exam which is required to proceed to the specialist exams in modelling and data quality. These are certifications which I plan to achieve in 2025.

However I studied using the old second edition of the DAMA-DMBOK book. The DAMA DMBOK is the the prescribed book for the exam. It is the syllabus and also the Bible for every data management professional. It contains everything you need to know to understand the core exam requirements and answer the questions that are presented in the exam.

The CDMP covers all areas of data management. Most data practitioners work in specialist areas. They rarely work across all disciplines covered within the data management capabilities. This is due to the varying number of skills required. The DAMA-DMBOK provides in-depth core knowledge and skills required to succeed in the respective data management areas. Knowledge of all data management capabilities is required to achieve a CDMP certification.

The CDMP exam is also excellent to obtain grounded knowledge required for aspiring CDOs who are required to have established knowledge in all data management areas.

In preparation for the exam, I relied on the older version based on the assumption that there will be very little significant differences between the second edition and the Revised Second edition.

Having also worked in various data management capabilities for over a decade, i believed this would certainly be sufficient to secure the desired grade.

This was an incorrect assumption.

I studied the DAMA DMBOK 2nd Edition a few times and attempted the practice questions attaining 100% each practise. I was confident that I had enough knowledge and skills to secure the desired grade.

At the beginning of the exam, I realized very quickly that I should have studied using the Revised Edition. There were a number of reasons why I stuck to studying the original 2nd Edition. These reasons included being sent the old version when I ordered the revised edition.

After the exam, I was disappointed that I could not proceed to the next stage of my exam and certification and quickly decided to purchase the Revised edition directly from the publisher. Received and pictured below

I am now studying for the CDMP exam again in order to secure my desired grade.

The CDMP exams serve as a mechanism to ensure methods I employ in my data management deliverables conform with industry standard. It is not a tick box exercise to obtain a badge but an essential part of Continuous Professional Development which enables delivery of client requirements using tried and tested methodologies.

If you are looking to sit the CDMP exams, it is important that the latest edition of the DAMA-DMBOK 2nd Edition(Revised) is used depending on when you intend to sit the exams.

There is currently work going on to release a third edition which will incorporate sections covering AI and it is very important to stay up to date and use the prescribed version of the book to avoid making the same mistake I have made.