Created in collaboration with the SOLIDWORKS Certification team, the Official Guide to Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate Exams: CSWA, CSWA-SD, CSWA-S, CSWA-AM provides the most comprehensive coverage of SOLIDWORKS Associate exam related topics available. This book is tailored for those with 6-9 months SOLIDWORKS experience and basic knowledge of engineering fundamentals and practices.

A range of tutorials, tips, and over 250 examples and practice questions help you properly prepare for the exams. Chapters emphasize the most important information, without too much coverage of topics not on the exams. Aligned with each of the exams, the chapters explain implementation details of the four certification processes and what to expect when taking the exams, from exam and question layout to question types and grading procedure. For instructors, guides are available to manage exam credits and student accounts.

The importance of SOLIDWORKS certification cannot be overstated. Certification helps open doors to educational and career opportunities, get hired, and prepare for the demands of a job. Certification is a verifiable way to showcase students’ abilities and prove their skillset. With an obligatory waiting period of at least two weeks between exam attempts, it is advantageous for students to pass the CSWA, CSWA-SD, CSWA-S, CSWA-AM exams the first time around. The Official Guide to Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate Exams gets you from where you are today to the point that you can confidently pass the CSWA, CSWA-SD, CSWA-S and CSWA-AM exams at the outset, saving time and money, and giving you a springboard for your career.

CSWA Exam

The CSWA certification indicates a foundation in and apprentice knowledge of 3D CAD design and engineering practices and principles.

The intended audience for this section of the book is anyone trying to take and pass the CSWA exam with a minimum of 6 - 9 months of SOLIDWORKS experience and basic knowledge of engineering fundamentals and practices. SOLIDWORKS recommends that you review their SOLIDWORKS Tutorials on Parts, Assemblies and Drawings as a prerequisite and have at least 45 hours of classroom time learning SOLIDWORKS or using SOLIDWORKS with basic engineering design principles and practices.

CSWA-SD Exam

The Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate Sustainable Design (CSWA-SD) certification indicates a foundation in and apprentice knowledge of demonstrating an understanding in the principles of environmental assessment and sustainable design.

This section of the book is intended for anyone interested in sustainable design as well as life cycle assessment and trying to take and pass the CSWA-SD exam. Although no hands-on usage of SOLIDWORKS is required for the CSWA-SD certification exam, it is a good idea to review the SOLIDWORKS SustainablityXpress and SOLIDWORKS Sustainability tutorials inside of SOLIDWORKS to better understand the actual workflow. The CSWA-SD is based off the SOLIDWORKS Sustainable Design Guide that incorporates concepts including sustainability, environmental assessment and life cycle impact assessment.

CSWA-S Exam

The Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate Simulation (CSWA-S) certification indicates a foundation in and apprentice knowledge of the principles of stress analysis and the Finite Element Method (FEM).

The CSWA-S section of the book is for anyone trying to take and pass the CSWA-S with a minimum of 6 - 9 months of SOLIDWORKS experience and knowledge in the following areas: Engineering Mechanics - Statics, Strength of Materials, Finite Element Method/Finite Element Analysis Theory, Applied concepts in SOLIDWORKS Simulation: namely Static Analysis, Solid, Shell, and Beam elements, Connections and Applying loads and boundary conditions and interpreting results.

The purpose of this section in the book is NOT to educate a new or intermediate user on SOLIDWORKS Simulation, but to cover the types of questions, layout and what to expect when taking the CSWA-S exam.

CSWA-AM Exam

The Certified SOLIDWORKS Associate Additive Manufacturing (CSWA-AM) certification indicates a foundation in and apprentice knowledge of today’s 3D printing technology and market.

The intended audience for this section of the book is anyone trying to take and pass the CSWA-AM exam or anyone with an interest in Additive Manufacturing. The CSWA-AM exam is meant to be taken after the completion of the 10-part learning path located on MySOLIDWORKS.com.

The CSWA-AM exam fundamentally covers two 3D printing technologies: Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) and STereoLithography (SLA). There are a few questions on Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) technology and available software-based printing aids.