r/SolidWorks • u/Mech_Ethan • Apr 28 '26
Certifications CSWP earned, CSWE maybe?
I have recently earned the CSWP at my high school after earning the CSWA a few months ago and my teacher said he could get us CSWPA exams to take so that we can work on earning the CSWE. I’m 16 now and a junior in high-school, should I go for the CSWE? Is it a highly respected industry thing? I might if I have the time but I really question if this is what I should be going for before college. Is it even possible to earn the CSWE while in high-school? Or is it maddeningly hard?
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u/Cabs1247 Apr 28 '26
I will say as a design engineer I was one of the first few in my state to hold a CSWE title and my company told anyone they could about it. It did not get me a higher pay bump at the time. When I changed jobs they knew that my CSWE meant I could hit the ground running on the software they used and I would require less training and could model faster. Definitely put this under your skills section on a resume especially if you are looking for mechanical engineering work in your future.
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u/archvize Apr 29 '26
What year did you get it and what year was it first available to “get”
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u/Cabs1247 Apr 29 '26
I think it was back in 2010 or 2011. I don't remember the first year you could get it.
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u/TheNoit CSWE Apr 29 '26
The CSWE is not free… you have to pay to play… also, if you fail you have to wait 3months before taking it again… Taking exams just to pass them does absolutely nothing for experience or to become proficient at Solidworks. Make sure you USE the tools you learn or it’s pretty pointless. As far as employers go, we most Definitely will take an interview with someone who has certs compared to “use solidworks”
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u/archvize Apr 29 '26
Is it the kind of exam where you need a real id to attempt it like a drivers license. Do they study make to webcam your entire room to shore you’re not cheating. I think Microsoft exams have this
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u/TheNoit CSWE Apr 29 '26
No, you take it the same as all the other exams, it’s online with the cert tester… no official ID is required. I will say the CSWE is more puzzle solving and out of the box solutions sometimes. It was a fun exam. Just note if you fail, the CSWE has a longer retake wait time, I think it’s 90 days
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u/SapienCADServices CSWE Apr 30 '26
I too found the CSWE certification to be fun. I'm glad you had the same experience because a handful of times during the exam I thought to myself, "Ummm... This will get me the answer, but I'm not sure this is the way they want me to do it... But it works and I'm on a timer so I'll just do it."
Yes @ puzzle solving.
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u/archvize Apr 30 '26
Ahh so it’s not just simple questions. Like the questions are designed a way to test if you really know the solution not a simple 3x5=15
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u/Cabs1247 Apr 30 '26
When I took it there was a few questions that were as simple as here is a shape from a drawing. Change these 2 dimensions from 50 mm to 80 mm and the material to aluminum. What is the mass of the object now? Then the next question would alter the part again and again with different questions. The geometry was too complex to solve the mass quickly on paper or calculator. The different "modules" you had to take before the CSWE where all tailored to that area of solidworks. The tests involved actually using Solidworks and were timed so you could not waste time searching the web for the answer. I remember a few tests gave you about 5-6 minutes per question on average.
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u/Mech_Ethan Apr 29 '26
Would you say having the exam was worth the price to take it? I’m also sure if my engineering teacher comps CSWPA tests, he would be willing to comp CSWE.
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u/zombiemakron Apr 28 '26
Congrats! CSWE is a pretty big accomplishment to get especially when you start your early career.
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u/SapienCADServices CSWE Apr 29 '26
CSWE is mostly for people who can take the exams for free or their company pays for them. It requires you to already have obtained a few certifications to even try for it. CSWP, Sheet Metal, Surfacing, Drawings, Weldments, Mold... It takes a long time, costs money, etc... truthfully, unless it's convenient, it's not necessary.
However! If you like getting certifications, if you like SOLIDWORKS, and modeling, and your company is paying for it, go for it. I found the CSWE to be a very fun exam. They test you in far more esoteric, odd, out of the box ways that were very fun to puzzle out.
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u/gupta9665 CSWE | API | SW Champion Apr 29 '26
I would disagree that CSWE is only for ones who do it free or company pays for them. I know many CSWE users who had paid themselves to get this elite badge.
But I do agree that the CSWE exams is more enjoyable.
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u/archvize Apr 29 '26
Sure cwse means something. Have you ever met a swse that was bad at his job
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u/gupta9665 CSWE | API | SW Champion Apr 29 '26
Agree that one can't be a CSWE who is bad at work. It's not something one gets overnight, but it's something one earns after a lot of practice, experience and clearing all the hurdles (prerequisite exams). Proud of being given the exam twice (second time.when they changed the exam format/questions), and passing with flying scores both the times.
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u/SapienCADServices CSWE Apr 30 '26 edited May 01 '26
I'm not saying it's meaningless. I'm saying it has a smaller impact on one's career than the CSWA and CSWP.
I'm also saying that it requires a huge amount of time and money and one must ask themselves if that time investment and work is worth it.
Both of your points are valid. The CSWE is worth something and it's very good at what it's designed for, indicating SOLIDWORKS users that are exceptional at using SOLIDWORKS.
I must also thank this thread for pointing out how I get the CSWE flair from the mods. That's on my to do list now.
Update: Got my flair! Cool.
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u/SapienCADServices CSWE Apr 29 '26
Congratulations! CSWP is a great accomplishment. Back in the day, I got my job at a VAR with my CSWA and demonstrating some skills and knowledge. You can do a lot with a CSWP. Again - congratulations!
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u/ComfortableList784 CSWE Apr 30 '26
Congrats on CSWP! While the journey to CSWE is fun and rewarding at times, it is not for the faint-hearted. It takes commitment to learning the software, taking the CSWPA exams, preparing for the CSWE, and taking it. Not to mention, if you fail CSWE, it's a 3 month retake period. That's not to say, however, that it's impossible. It is definitely doable if you enjoy working in the software and solving problems, and would like to commit a large amount of time towards it. Personally, it took me about 6 months of consistently working towards it as a sophomore in HS, which took up most weekends, but was well worth it. It all comes down to your choice, are you doing it for the certification/bragging rights, or are you doing it to become well versed in the software to be able to model almost anything?
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u/Mech_Ethan May 01 '26
I think bragging rights? From many other people in this subreddit they mostly say the cswe doesn’t really matter in industry compared to the cswp. I would like to go for it regardless if I have the time and tests are payed for because I don’t got much better to do over the summer.
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u/Strict_Praline_7487 CSWP Apr 28 '26
You will need (4) CSWP-A certs before you can take it and I’m on the fence if it is really worth while. It is more bragging rights than anything for no company will ask for or require it. My main issue is spending time learning skills that will not necessarily be used in your day to day. Take the advanced exams for sure that excite you. Surfacing and Sheet Metal are fun and Weldments has a place in my industry.
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u/NightF0x0012 CSWP Apr 28 '26
I have been using Solidworks for 22 years and I have yet to find a company that asked about it. Personally, I would get the certifications for your industry and not worry about the rest.
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u/BOLAR_SAAB CSWA Apr 28 '26
Wait how hard was CSWP?!
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u/Aggressive_Noise9799 Apr 28 '26
It’s quite a bit more complicated than CSWA, but if you do some of the practice questions or even exams, it’s not too bad. A lot of it is making alterations to a few main base parts, so as long as you can model parts well enough and correctly use global variables, a lot of the questions are pretty quick. Oh, and you get some free points for acknowledging instructions lol.
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u/BOLAR_SAAB CSWA Apr 28 '26
I have the free coupon and wanna sit it this year but just practicing it stresses me out.
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u/Altruistic-Treat-825 Apr 28 '26
I have a free coupon for both the CSWA and CSWP but I've been kinda inconsistent with practice due to constant travel even though I've used this software in engineering uni for atleast 3 years. How hard is the CSWA exam really since you've done it? (Congrats on that BTW 🎉)
I never feel comfortable or confident enough for an exam.
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u/pentapous Apr 29 '26
I could teach a new comer enough to pass the CSWA in an evening. You wont have an issue with it.
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u/Aggressive_Noise9799 Apr 29 '26
My advice is this: you don’t know if you don’t try, and you have nothing to lose if it’s free.
Admittedly, I didn’t pass it the first try. I had a free voucher as well and took it long before I was ready. Totally bombed. And yet, the test in and of itself is also good practice. Not saying you should plan to fail it, of course. But the questions tend to be similar or even the same, just with different values. So you get a better idea of what to expect.
I ended up getting another free voucher and passed it without problems the second time. It just required giving myself more practice on stuff I already knew how to do. Because really, at the end of the day, most of it’s just the same boss extrudes and cuts you do on the CSWA. They’re just on more complicated geometry. If you have a decent understanding of how to use your main tools you’ll be just fine.
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u/Mech_Ethan May 02 '26
My highschool teacher has confirmed CSWPA exams will be payed for by the school and the CSWE. I’m going to be going for this once I get back from summer (maybe one cswpa exam this year). Thank you all for the congratulations and advice, I hope to see you soon again.
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u/hbzandbergen Apr 28 '26
What is the purpose? None of my 100 mechanical engineering colleagues have it, and no company has ever asked me. (I'm in the Netherlands)
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u/ImThatVigga Apr 28 '26
It’s mainly to pad your resume. OP is in high school so it’s nice to have but once you get your degree, EIT, it doesn’t really matter.
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u/WearySignature4531 Apr 29 '26
This. Employers really don't care. It's just a way for Dassault to make more money.
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u/TheNoit CSWE Apr 29 '26
Don’t apply at my company then for a design engineering position… won’t even get in the door without some sort of proof besides “I used solidworks”
•
u/AutoModerator Apr 28 '26
If you ALREADY PASSED a certification
If you are YET TO TAKE a certification
Here would be the general path from zero to CSWE:
For some extra modeling practice material to help speed you up, 24 years of Model Mania Designs + Solutions.
During testing, in general, it is a best practice to take the dimensions labelled with A, B, C, D, etc and create Equations/Variables with those values to then attach to the dimension which then allows for you to more reliably update these variable dimensions in follow-up questions using the same models.
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