- The Exam at a Glance
- Definition vs. Design: Getting the Name Straight
- The 17 Challenge Areas on One Page
- Dimensioning Facts: Reference, Size, Location, Auto
- Views, MidPlane and Intersection Geometry
- Tolerance, Notes and Flag Notes
- Copy Scheme, Patterns and 3D PDF
- Logistics Card: Fee, Software, Retakes
- A CSWP-MBD-Specific Review Order
- What You Should Not Memorize
- Frequently Asked Questions
- The exam is hands-on: 90 minutes, 75% minimum passing grade, and it cannot be paused once started.
- The issuer lists 17 challenge areas, from Reference Dimensions to Defining PMI, and publishes no weights for them.
- The fee is US$49 for one North American attempt; retakes need 14 days and a new CSWP-MBD credit.
- Annotation Views and 3D Views are different tools; confusing them is a classic PMI mistake.
The Exam at a Glance
This is the one-page version of the Certified SOLIDWORKS Professional Model Based Design credential. The issuer, SOLIDWORKS (Dassault Systemes), markets it as SOLIDWORKS MBD Professional and describes it as covering Model Based Definition tools. It is not a multiple-choice trivia test. The issuer describes hands-on MBD challenges: you open model files, add product and manufacturing information (PMI) inside SOLIDWORKS, and answer based on what you built.
| Item | What the issuer publishes |
|---|---|
| Format | Hands-on MBD challenges |
| Duration | 90 minutes |
| Minimum passing grade | 75% |
| Question total | Not published on the official exam page |
| Delivery | SOLIDWORKS through Tangix/VirtualTester (Web Client) |
| Fee | US$49 for one North American attempt, excluding software and training |
| Minimum software | SOLIDWORKS 2016 or later with the necessary MBD functionality |
| Pausing | Not allowed |
| Retake | At least 14 days later, with a new CSWP-MBD credit |
| Validity | Per the issuer's 2020 Certification Program Q&A, customer and student certifications do not expire |
For deeper treatment of any single row, see the CSWP-MBD certification cost breakdown, the passing score explainer, and the requirements and eligibility guide.
Definition vs. Design: Getting the Name Straight
The credential title reads "Model Based Design," while the issuer's own descriptive text refers to Model Based Definition tools. This is a wording difference, not a second exam. The skill underneath is the same: attaching dimensions, tolerances, notes and views directly to the 3D model so that the model, rather than a 2D drawing, carries the manufacturing intent.
If you are new to the terminology, the short explainers What Is CSWP-MBD? and What Does CSWP-MBD Stand For? cover the naming. For a broader orientation to the credential, start with the CSWP-MBD certification overview.
The 17 Challenge Areas on One Page
The issuer lists 17 distinct functionality areas where the exam includes hands-on challenges. They are unweighted: do not assume equal weighting, and do not trust any site that assigns percentages to them. The order below follows the issuer's first-occurrence order.
- Reference Dimensions
- MidPlane
- Size Dimensions
- Annotation Views
- Intersection Geometry
- 3D PDF Tools
- DimXpert
- Auto Dimension
- Tolerance Style
- Notes
- Tolerance Status
- Flag Note Bank
- Location Dimensions
- 3D Views
- Copy Scheme
- Pattern Feature
- Defining PMI
The issuer's source lists 18 bullets because Annotation Views appears twice; it counts once here. The full per-area walkthrough lives in the complete guide to all 17 content areas. The sections below compress each cluster into must-know facts.
Dimensioning Facts: Reference, Size, Location, Auto
Reference Dimensions
Reference dimensions are informational: they report a value without driving or constraining the geometry.
- Know how they differ from driving dimensions in a PMI context.
- Be ready to identify when a reference dimension is appropriate on a model that already carries toleranced dimensions.
Size Dimensions and Location Dimensions
These two areas test whether you can classify what a dimension describes. A size dimension defines the extent or form of a feature, such as a hole diameter or slot width. A location dimension defines where a feature sits relative to another feature or datum.
- DimXpert applies size and location schemes to features; expect to choose and apply them yourself.
- Check that a feature is fully defined: a feature with a size but no location is incomplete PMI.
Auto Dimension
Auto Dimension generates dimensions across a part from a chosen scheme. The skill the exam rewards is not pressing the button but judging the output.
- Know the scheme options and what each produces.
- Verify that auto-generated results cover every required feature before you trust them.
DimXpert
DimXpert is the toolset that carries most of the dimensioning and tolerancing work in this exam. Practice it until the command flow is automatic, because the clock is 90 minutes and the session cannot be paused. The training overview explains how the issuer's course framing maps onto these tools.
Views, MidPlane and Intersection Geometry
Annotation Views
- Know that annotations belong to a view plane and that moving an annotation to a different view changes where it appears.
- Be able to create, rename and assign annotations to the correct view.
3D Views
- Know how to capture a view so that it stores orientation and display state.
- Understand why a captured view matters when the model is published to a 3D PDF.
MidPlane and Intersection Geometry
These two areas concern derived geometry that DimXpert-style PMI can reference. A MidPlane represents the median plane between two parallel faces, which is how you tolerance a feature symmetric about its center. Intersection geometry references the intersection of faces, useful when no single face captures the intended point or axis.
- Recognize when a symmetric feature calls for a MidPlane rather than a face-to-face size.
- Practice creating and then dimensioning to the derived geometry.
Tolerance, Notes and Flag Notes
Tolerance Style
Tolerance style governs how tolerances are expressed and applied to dimensions, such as bilateral, limit or other display conventions. The task is usually to apply a specified style consistently across features.
Tolerance Status
Tolerance status reports how completely the model's features are toleranced. Treat it as a checking tool: after you finish annotating, review the status to find features that remain under-defined, then fix them. Using it as a final audit before you submit is a habit worth building.
Notes and Flag Note Bank
- Notes carry text-based requirements that no dimension can express, and they attach to the model in PMI.
- Flag notes mark a specific feature or location with a callout; the Flag Note Bank is the stored library you draw reusable notes from.
- Practice inserting a stored note, attaching it to the right entity, and confirming it displays in the correct view.
Because several of these areas depend on one another, candidates sometimes ask how hard the exam really is. The honest answer depends on whether the DimXpert workflow is automatic for you, not on memorizing definitions.
Copy Scheme, Patterns and 3D PDF
Copy Scheme
Copy Scheme reuses an existing dimensioning scheme on another feature so you don't re-annotate it by hand. It saves time under a 90-minute clock, but only if you check that the target feature is truly equivalent to the source.
Pattern Feature
Patterned features raise a specific PMI question: how is the pattern itself dimensioned versus how are its instances? Know how the pattern definition and its member features interact so annotations don't get duplicated or dropped.
3D PDF Tools
The model-to-3D-PDF workflow publishes the annotated model, along with its captured 3D views, into a shareable file. The reason it belongs with the PMI areas: whatever you did not define in views and annotations will not appear in the output. Understand the order of operations: finish PMI, capture views, then publish.
Defining PMI
This is the umbrella skill: deciding what product and manufacturing information a model needs and expressing it with the tools above. Every other area feeds it.
Logistics Card: Fee, Software, Retakes
- Cost: US$49 for one North American attempt, excluding software and training. Eligible schools can also provide MBD exam access under the Academic Certification program.
- Software: SOLIDWORKS 2016 or later, with working MBD functionality and Internet access.
- Client: current instructions use the VirtualTester Web Client; where legacy TesterPRO setup references conflict, the current browser-client instructions take precedence.
- Prerequisites: the general Professional-exam FAQ requires no prior certification. SOLIDWORKS MBD training and the Learning Path are recommended, not mandatory.
- Retake rule: wait at least 14 days and purchase a new CSWP-MBD credit.
- No pausing: close other tasks and test your setup before you begin.
A CSWP-MBD-Specific Review Order
Because the 17 areas are unweighted, sequence them by dependency rather than by perceived importance. One plan that follows how the tools build on each other:
Foundations: views and basic dimensions
- Annotation Views and 3D Views, practiced side by side to lock in the difference.
- Reference Dimensions, Size Dimensions and Location Dimensions on simple prismatic parts.
DimXpert and automation
- DimXpert schemes, Auto Dimension and Copy Scheme.
- MidPlane and Intersection Geometry on symmetric and angled features.
Tolerance, notes and patterns
- Tolerance Style and Tolerance Status, using status as an audit step.
- Notes, Flag Note Bank and Pattern Feature PMI.
Publish and simulate
- Model-to-3D-PDF with captured views.
- Timed 90-minute runs on your own annotated parts, with no pausing.
For a fuller plan, the CSWP-MBD study guide expands on this sequencing, and the CSWP-MBD practice test site offers question practice to complement your hands-on time.
What You Should Not Memorize
- Domain percentages. None are published by the issuer. Third-party allocations are not authoritative.
- A question count. The official page does not publish one, and uploaded "sample exam" files on third-party sites are not verification of the live exam.
- Pass rates. Published population pass rates were not verified. The 75% figure is a passing grade, not a pass rate. See what the data shows for a careful treatment.
- Salary figures. Treat pay claims separately from demonstrated skill. Employers value proven PMI and manufacturing-documentation ability; the salary guide and CSWP-MBD jobs pages discuss how that plays out, and the ROI analysis weighs it against cost.
Key Takeaway
Your best cheat sheet is muscle memory in SOLIDWORKS. Build a few of your own annotated practice parts that touch all 17 areas, then rehearse them under the 90-minute limit until the 75% target feels routine.
The official sample ZIP is linked from the issuer's exam page. This guide did not retrieve its contents, so make your own call after opening it yourself, and do not rely on third-party re-uploads as a substitute. For a quick refresher on the name itself, see CSWP-MBD meaning, and bookmark this cheat sheet for the night before your attempt. Practice questions are available at the main practice test site.
Frequently Asked Questions
The issuer describes a 90-minute exam with a 75% minimum passing grade. The exam is hands-on and cannot be paused once started.
The official exam page does not publish a question total, so any specific number you see elsewhere should be treated as unverified. Focus instead on the 17 issuer-listed challenge areas.
The fee is US$49 for one North American attempt, excluding software and training. A retake requires waiting at least 14 days and purchasing a new CSWP-MBD credit.
The general Professional-exam FAQ requires no prior certification. SOLIDWORKS MBD training and the Learning Path are recommended preparation, but course prerequisites are not exam admission requirements.
According to the issuer's 2020 Certification Program Q&A, customer and student certifications do not expire. Confirm current policy on the issuer's certification pages before relying on it.