National Strength and Conditioning Association - Certified Personal Trainer NSCA-CPT Certification


About the Exam

The exam is 3 hours long and divided into 2 formats, multiple-choice and Video.

This exam is administered by the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

There are 4 components of the Multiple Choice section as follows:

Assessment and Consultation: includes appraisal of general health, initial interview, review of medical history, fitness evaluation, weight and nutrition.

Fitness Program Planning: design, adaptation, setting goals and special populations.

Techniques: free weights, machines, including cardiovascular, and non-machine exercise

Video Tape Section
The Video tape segment has thirty-five questions on techniques, fitness testing protocols and functional anatomy.


Component % # Questions
Consultation & Assessment 20 28
Program Planning 35 49
Technique 35 49
Safety, Legal and Emergency 10 14

 


Study Tips and Strategy for the NSCA Exam.


The NSCA Exam is a 'Content Driven' exam, which tests how much you know, rather than your skill at solving puzzles.   Study Tips for content driven exams

This defines your study strategy. The best way to study for a Content Driven exam is to memorize as much as you can! Here are some tips on how to memorize.

Half of the test is multiple choice questions. These can be very tricky unless you know a few tricks, which can increase your score dramatically. Learn more >>>


NSCA Study Guide

Our comprehensive NSCA-CPT Study guide is not only a comprehensive review of CSCS content, but covers key exam success secrets such as:

  • Time is Your Biggest Enemy
  • Guessing doesn't have to be Guesswork
  • Test Yourself First
  • Study Smart, Not Hard
  • Prepare instead of Procrastinating



    • You benefit from our original research in this tough test. Learn weaknesses in the NSCA-CPT and Exam success strategies to increase your score.

    Learn more about the NSCA-CPT Study Guide



    Flash Card Study System

    The best way to study for a Content Driven exam is to memorize as much as possible and know the exam material inside out.

    Repetition is the key and nothing beats flash cards for memorizing and learning course material fast and thoroughly.

    Our full time staff of exam experts and researchers have gone through ALL the material and refined, distilled and reduced everything down to 250+ concepts that you absolutely must know to ACE this tough test.

    Learn more about the Flash Cards Study System




    The Test Preparation web site is a service to visitors interested in the NSCA-CPT and is not affiliated in any way with the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).

    NSCA official site for the NSCA-CPT exam