Quality Inspector Certification CQI

Requirements

Here are the requirements and exam specifics for a Certified Quality Inspector.

Education and/or Experience

Work experience must be in a full-time, paid role. Paid intern, co-op or any other course work cannot be applied toward the work experience requirement.

• Two years of on-the-job experience in mechanical inspection or a related field OR successful completion of an *ASQ-approved accredited technical/apprenticeship training course
• A high-school diploma or GED or an additional three years of related on-the-job experience is necessary.

Degrees or diplomas from educational institutions outside the United States must be equivalent to degrees from U.S. educational institutions.

*Requires pre-approval -please contact Cert@asq.org for more details

Expectations

Here are the minimum expectations of a Certified Quality Inspector.

• Must know basic quality terms, definitions and concepts.
• Must know basic statistical terms and techniques, how to plot data and how to recognize out-of-control conditions.
• Must know the definition of plan-do-check-act (PDCA) and understand the team concept.
• Must understand types of measurement, measurement terminology and the different types of measurement scales.
• Must know the difference between accuracy and precision and be able to select the appropriate measuring tools and techniques.
• Must know how to measure using surface plate layouts.
• Must be able to identify/recognize inspection errors and initiate resolution.
• Must have basic calibration knowledge.
• Must be able to read and interpret blueprints and know definitions of critical, major and minor characteristics.
• Must have a general knowledge of ASME Y14.5M, working knowledge of geometric dimensioning and tolerancing (GD&T), and must understand the x, y, z coordinate system.
• Must be able to use inspection planning tools and perform a product audit; determine sample size for lots; pull random samples.
• Must have knowledge of testing methods.
• Must be able to identify and report nonconforming material.
• Must understand traceability (product, material and calibration).
• Must have a strong knowledge of basic mathematical operations and perform measurement conversions; be able to solve for x; add and subtract degrees, minutes, and seconds.

Prepare for the exam

Choose an exam date

ASQ designed these resources to help you get ready to take the exam. Have you already reviewed these items? If so, you're ready to choose an exam date below.

Review a list of references that provide the basis for the exam questions. These items give you a better idea of the material covered in the exam.

Take an interactive sample exam to receive additional feedback on the questions that appear in the sample exam. Print out the paper-and-pencil sample exam (PDF, 855 KB) to see the actual test format, including instructions and test questions from past exams.

ASQ offers books and training opportunities to help you prepare.

Training

• Certified Quality Inspector Certification Preparation
• Certified Quality Inspector Question Bank
• Quality Tools

Need more training options? ASQ Sections and ASQ Forums/Divisions offer more training opportunities.

Books

• The Certified Quality Inspector Handbook
• Glossary and Tables for Statistical Quality Control, Fourth Edition
• How to Choose the Proper Sample Size
• Juran's Quality Handbook, Sixth Edition
• The Metrology Handbook, Second Edition
• Quality Audits for Improved Performance, Third Edition
• Managing the Metrology System, Third Edition
• Integrating Inspection Management into Your Quality Improvement System
• Search for more ASQ books

Examination

Each certification candidate is required to pass an examination that consists of multiple choice questions that measure comprehension of the Body of Knowledge.

Computer Delivered - The CQI examination is a one-part, 110-question, four-and-a-half-hour exam and is offered in English only. 100 questions are scored and 10 are unscored.

Paper and Pencil - The CQI examination is a one-part, 100-question, four-hour exam and is offered in English only.

All examinations are open book with the exception of the constructed response (essay) portion of the CMQ/OE exam. Each participant must bring his or her own reference materials. Use of reference materials and calculators is explained in the FAQs.