SC QUALITY GUILDCertified Quality Auditor (CQA)
The examination tests judgment, not recall. Only seven of sixty-seven topics are examined at the level of describe it.
The paper carries 165 questions in total: 150 that are scored and 15 unscored pretest items that do not count toward your result.
Of the sixty-seven topics in the Body of Knowledge, only seven are examined at the level of describe it. The rest ask you to apply a rule to a situation you have not seen, analyze a scenario and separate what matters from what does not, evaluate whether a proposal is adequate, or assemble a document that works.
Every topic is taught to the level it is tested at. A topic examined at evaluate gives explicit criteria for judging adequacy and then two versions of the same audit plan, corrective action or report — one that works and one that does not, with the difference named. A topic examined at create builds the artifact in full, alongside the deficient version and what each omission costs.
One organization runs end to end. Every worked example, audit plan, finding, corrective action and escalation memo is drawn from a single fictional manufacturer, its suppliers, its customer and its registrar. You see the same finding planned, evidenced, reported, disputed, corrected and — twice — reopened.
The Quality Auditor Primer is published, in two volumes. Volume 1 works the CQA Body of Knowledge section by section. Volume 2 is practice and worked solutions.
What the CQA examination covers
The Body of Knowledge divides into 5 sections. The question count is what each section is worth on the paper, which is not the same as how long it takes to learn.
| Section | Topic | Questions |
|---|---|---|
| I | Auditing Fundamentals Audit types by object, scope, delivery and party. Purpose and scope. Criteria and how to cite them. Roles, ethics, credibility and liability. | 37 |
| II | Audit Process Preparation, auditor selection, working papers and tracing. Opening meeting, evidence, classification, closing. Reporting, corrective action and closure. | 45 |
| III | Auditor Competencies Auditor and lead auditor characteristics. Resource management, conflict, communication, interviewing technique and team dynamics. | 30 |
| IV | Audit Program Management and Business Applications Management support, staffing, competence and metrics. Internal and supplier programs. Risk, management review, records and the cost of quality. | 23 |
| V | Quality Tools and Techniques The basic tools, Six Sigma and lean. Statistics, variation, capability, outliers and sampling. Change control, verification, validation and risk tools. | 15 |
Section by section
I — Auditing Fundamentals 37 QUESTIONS
Audit types on four independent axes — what is examined, how the scope is bounded, how it is delivered, and on whose behalf. The primer replaces a dozen memorized terms with four questions, and shows why each delivery method places a ceiling on what the audit can conclude.
II — Audit Process 45 QUESTIONS
The largest section and the spine of the credential. Preparation, working papers, tracing, evidence, classification, reporting, corrective action and closure — with one organization followed end to end so the same finding is planned, evidenced, disputed, corrected and twice reopened.
III — Auditor Competencies 30 QUESTIONS
Interviewing, conflict, communication and the auditor's own failure modes. The expert auditor's characteristic risk is auditing against how they would do it rather than against what the auditee is required to do, and the primer names it directly.
IV — Audit Program Management and Business Applications 23 QUESTIONS
Programs, not audits. Risk-based scheduling, competence, metrics and records. The primer argues that recurrence of closed findings is the only measure that tests whether the program changes anything; completion rates measure activity.
V — Quality Tools and Techniques 15 QUESTIONS
The quality tools taught from the auditor's chair. Not how to build a Pareto chart, but how to judge whether the chart in front of you supports the conclusion attached to it — and what to do about the answer.
Questions from the free practice test
Every item carries the reasoning, not just the answer, and none of them appears in any book. The CQA self-assessment covers every requirement in the Body of Knowledge: choose a 20-question random sample, a quick check at half the exam's length, a full exam at its real length and section mix, or work on your weak spots.
A company audits its own machining cell against its documented procedures. What kind of audit is this?
- Second party
- Third party
- Extrinsic
- First party
A first-party audit is conducted by an organization on itself. Second party means a customer auditing a supplier; third party means an independent registrar or certification body. The distinction is on whose behalf it is conducted, not what is examined or how formally it is run.
The primary purpose of reviewing documentation before an on-site audit is to:
- Establish the criteria and plan where to look on site
- Verify that every document held is at current revision
- Identify nonconformities before arriving at the site
- Reduce the time the team has to spend on site
The desk review establishes what the organization has committed to, which is what the on-site evidence will be compared against. Reduced time on site is a consequence rather than the purpose, and documentation review alone rarely establishes a nonconformity because it shows intent rather than practice.
The most important characteristic of an effective auditor is:
- Speed
- Technical expertise in the process audited
- Objectivity
- Seniority
Objectivity is what makes an audit worth anything, because the conclusion has to be traceable to evidence rather than to the auditor. Technical expertise helps and can be supplied by a team member; an audit conducted by an expert who is not objective produces conclusions nobody can rely on.
The practice test is free and needs no account. The CQA test is a full self-assessment covering all 67 requirements in the current Body of Knowledge, with the reasoning on every answer, a score for every requirement and your progress over time. Or work through the primer week by week in the free twelve-week self study, with a check after every reading.
Common questions
What is the Certified Quality Auditor (CQA)?
An ASQ certification for professionals who plan, perform and report audits of quality systems and processes. It covers audit fundamentals, the audit process, auditor competencies, the audit program and quality tools, as laid out in the Body of Knowledge above.
Is CQA the same as a critical quality attribute?
No. In pharmaceutical development CQA also stands for critical quality attribute: a property of a product that must stay within limits to ensure its quality. This page is about the Certified Quality Auditor exam.
What are the requirements to sit the CQA exam?
ASQ asks for several years of work experience in the areas of the Body of Knowledge, part of which a degree can replace. Check ASQ's current requirements before you apply, because they are revised from time to time.
How should I prepare for the CQA?
Take the practice test to find your weak sections, then work through them with the primer. The Quality Auditor course teaches every lesson with Q-Bot, and the self-study plan sets the reading at your own pace.