After publishing my 5th book, “Valuable Jobs in the Future” I`ve decided to take my very first credential from ICF. Because teenagers and parents who read my book, wanted to have coaching sessions and mentoring programs from me. It took me 18 months to receive an email from ICF. I am ready to take the CKA exam. Until I am ready to take an exam, I`ve completed requirement as:
- Business Coaching Diploma Course from PwC Mongolia (Because of COVID lockdown all session of the course happened online)
- Varied number of mentor coaching hours
- 100 coaching hours logged (paid and pro-bono)
- Coach recording/transcribed (My favorite part)
- Summited some materials and fee
Let`s dive deep into the exam now. Overview of the Coach Knowledge Assessment:
- 155 Questions
- 3 hours’ time limit (complete in one sitting)
- Questions can be marked to check back later
- Score is given upon completion
- At least a 70% mark must be awarded to pass
- Congratulations email was sent by ICF next week
- Certificate and Level (ACC) badge was shared via email for the next ten business days.
After I upload my recording part I must wait 16-18 months due to the queuing, I think it is because of too many candidates to apply for the credential during COVID lockdown. While I was traveling to Paris, I received an email that accepted my Performance Evaluation with feedback and comments. I was looking forward to that news. Those feedback and comments helped me a lot when I prepared for the exam.
Before applying for the credential, I became a member of ICF. Various useful information I have read on ICF website and received emails of some webinars as well. So better to be a member while you are applying into it.
What made me worried the most was I have no idea what the exam looks like. Luckily there are sample exam questions on ICF website and other blogs and websites. Almost every website I have checked and tried the sample questions. Another thing that made me anxious was the language barrier. What if time will not be enough, what if I can not understand the question clearly, what if I misunderstand the core meaning of the questions….
CKA all questions have multiple choices. All the preparations thorough study of the ICF ethics, core competencies and coaching fundamentals.
When the day to take the exam, I did follow:
- I have chosen Saturday morning, because nobody will disturb me about work-related situations.
- I took the exam at my office to use a fast and stable internet resource to avoid technical issues.
- I Prepared some water and snacks near me.
- Marked some questions for review. I finished all the questions 45 minutes ago and I had enough time to review many of the questions, which I was confused about.
During the preparation for the exam, I was avoiding to memorize any definitions. Because I do not know what kind of questions will show up, it might make me more nervous.
So the best suggestion from me is PREPARATION! Read the materials, standards, statements, code of ethics. Everything is on them, also your coaching experience can help to have many points.
I wish you all the best for your CKA!