The CAD exam built by the firm that places architects & designers.
The CFAeX Knowledge Assessment measures Revit, AutoCAD, and AutoCAD Architecture proficiency against real project work — not a feature checklist. From CFA, the original architecture staffing firm, since 1984.
Three paths.
Get certified, free
Prove your skills and get presented to hiring firms as pre-vetted. Free for talent in the CFA network. →
Take an exam
An exam benchmarked against real work and recognized by the firms hiring — Revit, AutoCAD, AutoCAD Architecture. →
Assess your team
Custom assessments on your firm’s own standards, firm-wide and multi-office — plus vetted-trainer referrals. →
CFA’s own CAD proficiency exams.
The CFAeX Knowledge Assessment is CFA’s own set of objective, leveled CAD exams — Revit, AutoCAD, and AutoCAD Architecture, on the current 2025/2026 releases. Screenshot-based, multiple-choice, auto-graded, no software to install.
It exists for one reason: résumés and self-ratings don’t tell you who can actually do the work. CFAeX does — and because it’s issued by an architecture staffing firm, a CFAeX result means something to the people hiring.
Generic exams test what the software can do. CFAeX tests what the work should be.
The placement loop. CFA is a 40-year NYC architecture staffing firm. Certify with CFAeX and you don’t just earn a badge — you get seen by the firms actually hiring. No exam vendor places architects & designers.
The calibration. Every question reflects real project work, because CFA has reviewed thousands of real CAD portfolios — actual buildings and interiors — across four decades. No exam vendor has reviewed the work.
The real-world section. Any candidate can memorize where a button is. Nearly a quarter of every CFAeX exam tests CAD management — following a firm’s layer and line-weight standards, sharing a model with a team, several drafters working one drawing, picking up redmarks. Can this person open your standards manual and produce sheets that plot right, without a babysitter? That’s the difference between a hire that works and one that doesn’t — and it’s exactly what the badge certifies.
CFAeX, briefly
Is CFAeX an Autodesk certification?
No. CFAeX is CFA’s own credential — built by a former Autodesk Authorized Training Center, authored by an Autodesk Certified Instructor, and not sanctioned by Autodesk or Certiport. What makes it count is who issues it: the staffing firm that architecture firms actually hire through.
What does CFAeX cost?
Free for talent in the CFA network. Retail exams are $279 per release for Revit, $229 for AutoCAD, and $249 for AutoCAD Architecture, and every seat includes two attempts with your best score kept. The price reflects what the credential opens: not a paper certificate, but a foot in the door at the firms that hire through us, the staffing firm that has placed architects and designers since 1984. Custom firm assessments are scoped per engagement.
How do the exams work?
Thirty questions in 45 minutes — screenshot-based, multiple choice, auto-graded online, nothing to install. Score 70% to certify; 80% and 90% earn the Advanced and Distinction levels. Every seat includes two attempts, and we keep your best score.
Which software and releases are covered?
Autodesk Revit, AutoCAD, and AutoCAD Architecture — current 2025 and 2026 releases.
The pedigree behind the exam.
We are not sanctioned by Autodesk, Inc. or Certiport. We are not an Authorized Autodesk Training Center, Reseller, or Partner. AutoCAD® and Revit® are registered trademarks of Autodesk, Inc. CFAeX certifications are issued by Consulting for Architects, Inc. and are CFA’s own credential.