National Knowledge Exam™

The National Knowledge Exam® (NKE) assesses one’s understanding of the CPHR Competency Framework as they relate to academic knowledge. Academic knowledge refers to basic facts, policies, practices, methods, legislation, etc. It is information that can be written into procedures and transferred fairly accurately during the learning process. Examples of academic knowledge include: the rights and responsibilities of management and labour during union organizing and negotiation processes; the various methods of training and developing staff; and human rights, employment equity and pay equity legislation.

More details about NKE content and structure can be found on the CPHR website.

NKE EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENT STARTING 2021

As of January 2021, anyone wishing to write the NKE will be required to complete the nine foundational HR courses offered by CPHRNB in partnership with Captus Press Inc. Individuals who have not graduated from a CPHR Canada member association’s Post-Secondary Institution (PSI) Accreditation Program, or have not covered the courses in an equivalent program, and wish to write the NKE will be required to enroll in the nine accredited HR courses.

Until January 2021, you can apply to write the NKE in June or Fall of 2019-2020 without taking any courses. Read the full announcement.

November Exam Dates

Starting in the Fall of 2019, the National Knowledge Exam (NKE) will be moving to computer-based testing (CBT). Following suit with other provinces, CPHRNB’s transition from paper to computers will give members security, efficiency and convenience when writing the NKE and aligns the Association with industry best practice.

CPHR Canada has partnered with Yardstick to offer members its exam delivery software, Measure: a user-friendly and intuitive exam delivery platform that is used by a wide variety of certification and licensure bodies in Canada, the United States, and globally.

Starting with the Fall 2019 NKE, writers will have flexibility to pick one of the following timeslots to write the exam – Thursday, October 31 at 9 a.m. or 1 p.m. or Friday, November 1 at 9 a.m. or 1 p.m.

However, while we will do our best to accommodate your date and time request, there are no guarantees. You will receive confirmation mid October on your exam schedule.

With Measure, exam writers will have access to numerous tools that will aid them in writing the exam while reducing anxiety. This includes:

the option to bookmark and revisit questions;
a “notes” feature for members to write and make reference to throughout the exam;
a question navigator to easily jump back and forth between questions;
a time remaining clock with optional reminders at specific intervals (e.g. 5 minutes remaining);
a language toggle (for French speakers);
accessibility features such as font size increase/decrease;
a thumbnail presentation of images with magnification feature;
a “Submit with unanswered question” check;
a restrictive copy/paste functionality; and
question count (e.g. ‘Question 1 of 8’).

Measure provides accessibility for all exam writers and creates efficiencies in answering questions in a completely secured environment.

Special Accommodation

If an exam writer requires special accommodation for the exam, they must indicate it during the online registration process. Supporting documentation outlining the accommodation required must also be submitted to CPHRNB in order to allow the Association to make the arrangements. Only original, physician supported, documentation will be accepted. Supporting documentation must also be received by the exam registration deadline. Contact us to make arrangements.

Out of Province on the Day of the Exam

If you must be out of your home province however in another province that hosts the NKE exam on the day of the exam, you must advise CPHRNB when you register for the exam (indicate in the exam location field) as out of province writing may be possible. Please note that Ontario does not host the NKE exam so out of province writing cannot be arranged in that province. Contact us to make arrangements.

The NKE registration fees will be as follows:

Exam Fee: $400 + GST
Yardstick Seat Fee: $125 + GST

The new Yardstick Seat fee will be applicable members who deferred in June to November testing.

The deadline to register for the fall exam is September 3, 2019.

Learning Resources

Your Updated National Knowledge Exam (NKE) Prep Course from Captus

The only online prep course that includes: interactive tutoring in a discussion board with our leading content expert; 28 hours of multimedia lecture presentations with review quizzes; a diagnostic test and four practice exams. Both broad and in-depth coverage of the Competency Framework are provided with lots of feedback.

See here for more info

Cancellation and Deferral Policy

Cancellations

Exam fees are refundable for first time registrants (exam fee has not been deferred to a future exam write) if requested more than 43 business days prior to the exam. The exam fee is non-refundable if a writer cancels their registration after the registration deadline (43 business days prior to the exam date) or wishes to cancel following a previous deferral. Extenuating circumstances will be taken into consideration.

Deferrals

Once registering to write the NKE, exam registrants may defer to the next sitting of the exam up to five (5) business days prior to the exam. A deferral fee of $100 +GST will be charged each time a writer defers.

NOTE: all deferrals received 10 business days or less from the exam will forfeit their $125.00 seat fee. If you have questions, please send an email to admin@cphrnb.ca

Limits on number of NKE attempts

Candidates who are unsuccessful passing the NKE three times will be required to wait one full year prior to attempting the NKE for a fourth and final time. A fifth attempt may be permitted following a review process by the appropriate provincial HR association. During the break period between the third and fourth attempts, candidates are encouraged to take a NKE preparation course and/or review the material which their NKE results indicate require more study.

Exam Results

Exam results are emailed approximately eight weeks after each exam session.

Click here to find out more about exam scoring

NKE Score Verification Policy

Candidates who do not successfully pass the NKE have the right to request a manual score verification. Candidates must submit requests to their provincial association within 20 business days after the results have been sent out. The cost for the manual score verification is $65 and payment must be received at the time the request is made.

Recognition as a CPHR Candidate

Members who have passed the National Knowledge Exam and have not yet completed the Validation of Professional Work Experience (VPWE) will be granted the ability to use “CPHR Candidate” as a professional title. Previously, candidates were referred to as such, but were not permitted the use of an official title.

The CPHR™ is valued by the employment community and the ability to be officially recognized as a CPHR Candidate will provide you with additional recognition. You may use this title in resumes, business cards, emails, Linked-In or any other public profiles.