Student Resource: FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

Below you will find a list of the most frequently asked questions and some answers. If you have a question you think others might be interested in then please send it to us for posting on this portal.

Configuration Management Training Foundation


CMTF Portal

Student Portal

Daily Training Schedule

  • Room opens at 7:30 am
  • Morning refreshments setup comes by 7:45 am
  • Registration starts by 8:00 am
  • Class begins at 8:30 am
  • Morning break by 10:00 am
  • Lunch typically 11:30 to 12:30, 12:00 to 1:00 pm some locations
  • Afternoon break by 2:00 pm
  • Course ends by 3:30-4:00 pm

Certification test preparation typically starts by 3:15 pm and can take up to 45 minutes or longer. Show up by 8:00 am to get a seat by the front, or back, depending upon your preference. A professor once told me, “The mind can only absorb as much as the rear can endure.” I found this very true, especially when one is sitting in a hotel conference room chair. So we take enough breaks to provide a little relief with this condition.

Benefits Of Public Training

Public training offers some benefits over On-Site training as follows:

  • Students get away from work and can focus on learning
  • Interaction with professionals from other industries
  • Chance to combine training trips with other activities
  • Typically less travel time to and from class
  • Provides a chance to hear how other organizations do things
  • Good networking opportunities
  • May be a chance to leave bad weather behind for a short time
  • Can bring friends and family to vacation while you study for exam! lol

Benefits Of On-Site Training

On-Site training offers some benefits over Public training as follows:

  • On-Site may be the only options with shrinking travel dollars
  • Staff remains on-site and can check up on work
  • Substantial costs savings for on-site training
  • Time during class to address specific organizations issues
  • Chance to give whole organization a common understanding of the topic
  • Workshops and material can be tailored to your needs
  • Course content and course length can be tailored to your needs and budget
  • Management can drop in when they get back from their "meeting" in the Caribbean, Hawaii or India

On-Site Training

Your organization is responsible for providing the training facilities. This includes the training room, audio visual equipment, white board, and a flip chart. The actual room where the training will be conducted should be large enough to accommodate the negotiated number of attendees. CMTF will provide all training material, handouts, and the expert speaker. Certification examinations must be requested in advance to allow for the appropriate time for administering the test.

Course tailoring must be discussed before the schedule training date.

Why Get Certified

Some organization require CM certification of their employees and anyone working as the single point of contact for all matters concerning Configuration Management. We are still waiting for college degrees in Configuration Management. So in this job market certification is becoming a discriminater.

If you are going to sit through the training you might as well come out of it with something.

Certification Exam Results

It takes about two weeks for your exam to be graded. A score of 75 percent is required to pass.

Your Certificate will be mailed to you automatically. If it does not come within four weeks you should contact us. If you change your name you should contact us to have a new Certificate created.

Certification Exam Retesting

Should you fail an exam the first retrest is free. A letter will go out to the address you provided notifying you of the need to retest. The letter will also contain helpful information on areas to study based an analysis of your exam.

Just contact us and schedule a retest. The test will be mailed to your location and must be proctored in accordance with our requirements.

University Sponsors

At this time CMTF does not seek nor approve of University sponsorship of Configuration Management training programs. Why? These very same Universities do not offer a single degree in Configuration Management. Check their curriculum and you will find studies and degrees in subjects as obscure as Zombie Studies (University of Baltimore), David Beckham (Staffordshire University), Politicizing Beyonce (Rutgers University), Simpsons and Philosophy (Berkeley), Arguing with Judge Judy (Berkeley), Harry Potter and The Age Of Illusion (Durham University), The Robin Hood Studies (Nottingham University), Star Trek (Georgetown University in Washington), Fat Studies (GW), Ufology (Melbourne University), The Phallus (Occidental College where our President attended), Surfing Studies, Queer Musicology (UCLA), Learning from YouTube (Pitzer College), Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame (University of South-Carolina Columbia), The Art of Walking (Centre College), The Hunger Games (American University), How to win a Beauty Pageant (Oberlin College), Gossip (Cornell), Street-Fighting Mathematics (MIT), The Game of Thrones (University of Virginia), Tree Climbing (Cornell University), Ice Cream Short Course (Penn State), The Joy of Garbage (Santa Clara University), The Musicality of Mae West (UCLA), Maple Syrup (Alfred University in New York) ... just to mention what I could find in five minutes of searching. Now a course on using Google would be appropriate!

Universities will take money for putting their stamp on a CM certificate program that they feel is not on the same level as the above mentioned courses. Shame on them. It reminds me of the oldest profession in the world.

There is a company that uses the term "masters" in one of their training programs. But that is just a marketing strategy and has nothing to do with a Masters Degree (wish I had thought of it first). Years ago there was a single AA degree for CM. But that program no longer exists. When Universities start to rate CM at least as high as studies into "Maple Syrup" then we will seek out thier approval of our training program. Until then I will continue to just shake my head in disgust.

I have lectured at Georgetown University and for Caltech and other universities. I was also recognized in a Washington Post article on CM as an expert in my field, having taught more CM courses than any other SME. My credentials and integrity are not in question, I know what I am talking about. But let me clarify, in no way are these comments meant to belittle anyone, any institution, or any study or degree. I would just like to see CM recognized for what it is, a key process wihtout which the universe and life itself would not exist ... from the way stars and planets form to the development of a single cell into a living human being. CM is like the laws a physics, clearly observable. I am still hopeful that before I retire CM will get the recognition it deserves with academia. At the very least there are innumerable degrees where the recipient would benefit from taking several core CM course. Even a course on Underwater Basket Weaving (Reed College of Portland and the University of San Diego) entails some knowlege of Configuration Management!

Course Registration Confirmation

A course registration confirmation usually takes less than 24 hours. If you do not receive confirmation withing 24-48 hours please contact us immediately.

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