Passing the CSCS

The Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) exam is the gold standard in fitness certifications for athletes. It has arguably the highest failure rate for any strength coaching or personal training certification. Below is information based on my experience with this board exam, where I rank the difficulty of each section of the exam from 1-5 while considering other board exams I have taken in the past:

1-well below average

2 -below average

3-average

4-above average

5-well above average

I am a physical therapist and have taken board exams to become a PT (licensure exams), the orthopaedic certified specialist exam (OCS), the certified strength and conditioning specialist exam (CSCS), and the registered in musculoskeletal sonography (RMSK) exam. My background going into physical therapy was in exercise physiology so keep this in mind when I discuss the overall difficulty of this exam.

Material Volume

I would rank the material volume of the CSCS as 2 (below average) when compared to other board examinations that I have taken. Keep in mind that the CSCS probably would score as a 4 or 5 for someone who's main comparison is a CPT certification. The overall scope of the CSCS is very narrow compared to physical therapy boards, OCS certification, or RMSK certification because there is a very specific source the information comes from (the NSCA text). In this regard the CSCS is easier to study because you know exactly what you need to study.

Novelty of Exam Material

Overall I would rank this as a 1. As a PT with a exercise science degree I felt most of the information was review when I studied for this test. The CSCS is currently (until 2030) available to anyone with a bachelors degree even if this is not in exercise science. I think if you were going into this with a non-exercise background the novelty score would be much higher.

I read one of the older versions of Essentials of Strength and Conditioning back in 2012 but never took the test because I got into PT school and was busy with this. When I decided to pursue this certification in 2012 I took about a month to prepare for the test. This is much less time when compared to the OCS (1 year of studying) and the RMSK (2 years).

Complexity of Questions

I would rank this as a 3 (average). The majority of questions were very short and to the point (pretty much the opposite of the OCS). The one exception, and the major thing that caught me off guard, were some of the practical/applied benchmark and program design questions. None of the practice examinations that I had taken really captured the difficulty of these. They took a bit of analysis but they were still MUCH more straightforward when compared to the OCS, and were maybe equivalent to what I encountered on general PT boards. Some of the practice examination material that I had used (such as pocketprep) really was overly simple compared to the actual exam. Having only 3 options per question does make things easier compared to the standard 4 seen on other board exams.

Background Knowledge Required

I would rank this as a 2 (below average). A bachelor's degree is required to sit for the exam which is less background knowledge compared to the other board exams I have taken. I really do think this exam would REALLY bite though if someone tried to take it without a exercise science background. I think passing could still be done with appropriate prep but it would take time to prepare adequately.

Length of Exam

This exam allows 4 total hours which is average for most board exams. With this being said, I had plenty of time left over after both sections. This contrasts with the OCS where I used every minute of time during the exam. I had time left over after the RMSK and general PT boards. For this reason I would rank this as 3 (average).

Overall Difficulty

The average of the above sections is 2.2 (below average). I feel conflicted by this low score for several reasons, one being that the pass rate is extremely low -39% for both sections as of 2025. This is lower than any other physical therapy or fitness related board exam as far as I am aware. I also actually came closer to failing the practical/applied section than I have on any board examination! I only had 7 correct questions to spare, and from what I've gathered this is the section that gets most people. The scientific foundations portion was comparably very easy and felt like a review of a exercise science degree. I barely studied, however, when compared to the OCS and RMSK and probably would have had more room to spare on the practical/applied section if I had. I also (sheepishly) admit that I didn't read the second half of the text before sitting for the exam as I was busy with some life challenges at the time. I mostly used practice tests and the "Test Prep Books" flashcards in the weeks leading up to the exam. If I had to do it again I would try to familiarize myself with athletic standards by age and sport before sitting for the practical/applied section.

Good luck! I know I am biased, but I feel Specialized Clinician offers one of the most realistic mock examination currently available for the CSCS. Our prices are very competitive on a question by question basis compared to other available tests. If you are wanting to practice the exam and improve your chance of passing be sure to check out my full length practice exam (and additional 5 question sample quiz) here.