Coming from someone with four years of Facebook advertising experience, the Facebook Blueprint Certification is not easy. It’s described as “rigorous” on the Blueprint website. But if you can conquer it, you will have a huge leg up on the competition and the ability to leverage the only official Facebook certification as a selling point for new employers or clients.
For anyone who’s become certified for another platform like Bing, AdWords, or Google Analytics, you know the tests can be challenging, but all-in-all very passable. In my opinion, the Facebook exam is the most challenging exam among other networks. Therefore, it’s important to be more prepared than you think you need to be.
Basic requirements for passing the Facebook Blueprint Certification:
- In order to become fully certified, you must pass the Core Competencies exam & either the Buying Professional OR Planning Professional.
- There is a $150 testing fee for each exam (valid for 1 year).
- Facebook recommends at least 6 months of Facebook Ad experience before attempting to take the exam.
- The exam will last 75 minutes and has between 50 and 60 questions.
- You need to receive a score of 700 or more to pass
- If necessary, you may retake the exam after 30 days.
It can be nerve wracking to prepare for an exam with so many requirements, but there’s no need to be scared. I’m here to help! I’ve laid out some pretty basic tips for nailing your Facebook certification exams.
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Take Advantage of Online Study Materials
Study more than you think you need to study, and read through each of the study guides provided for the test you are planning to take.
Facebook has very specific ways they want you to do things, even though these are not necessarily what you would do for a client. When it comes to passing each test, what you would actually do for a client has no merit. What Facebook considers best practices matters more. This is why, even if you’re a social media marketing expert, you need to familiarize yourself with the provided study materials to ensure you understand Facebook’s expectations.
Study Guides for each course can be found here:
You can also take a practice exam here. The practice test is not the best, as it’s only 10-15 questions long and the questions themselves are a bit shorter than they are on the actual test, but still something worth looking at.
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Read Each Question Carefully & Pace Yourself
The majority of questions read like bad math stories from elementary school…
“Cindy has four apples, Mike takes two and then eats one. How many apples does Steve have?”
It’s very important to read the questions critically, as there may be a hidden tidbit inside the question that can change your answer. More often than not, a lot of the information in the story part of the question is unnecessary and just there to test your analytical skills.
I recommended reading the end of each question first, and skimming the answer options, then going back to read the rest of the story to ensure you’re looking at the scenario from the correct angle.
Keep in mind it is a timed test. There is also a countdown clock that will always be visible on the screen. It will also tell you the number of questions left. Utilize this to pace yourself and not spend too much or too little time on one question.
I wish I could tell you more about the questions, but the non-disclosure agreement makes it a bit tricky to do so. All-in-all, just keep a cool head and read carefully. Don’t ignore the details, but don’t let them trip you up either.
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Be Prepared for the Pearson Testing Experience
Part of the reason the tests are not free is that they are taken in a Pearson testing center. If there is no testing center near you, you can take the test on your own computer. You’ll need access to a webcam and microphone. A proctor will lock down your computer and monitor you via webcam to ensure no funny business.
The tests are scheduled and paid for online. You can change the date, time or location of the test for no additional charge, at least 24 hours in advance of your scheduled time.
I’m going to sound like your mom now, but there are a few things you’ll want to keep in mind before you go in for the exam:
- There are no bathroom breaks
- No snacks or water bottles
- Belonging must be kept in a locker outside the testing room
After putting away your belongings, you might feel like you’re going through airport security. You will present your ID so they can take a passport style picture of your face, and you’ll do a self pat down including turning your pockets inside out. So no sneaking in a granola bar in your pocket.
Overall, if you do enough prep work, read questions carefully, and are prepared for the testing experience, you can conquer the Facebook Blueprint Exam and become Facebook Certified. It may take a little extra work, but in the end, you will have a leg up in the industry that could bring you awesome opportunities.
Good luck!
Great blog post, thanks for the tips!
In your view, would it be enough to study the courses suggested by Facebook for each exam?
For example, would it be enough to study these courses – https://www.facebook.com/blueprint/certification/exams/310-101 – if I want to take the 310-101: Facebook Advertising Core Competencies exam?
Looking forward to hearing back from you,
Yes, I do believe it is enough to study those courses, as long as you are able to fully understand the concepts from those courses alone. The courses do provide a lot of detail and include knowledge checkpoints to make sure you’re understanding everything as you go along.
If there are any concepts that are still fuzzy after going through the Blueprint course, I would then do additional research, specifically looking through the Facebook Help Center: https://www.facebook.com/help/
Since Facebook wants the test questions answered in line with what is in their Blueprint course, staying within the Facebook-approved universe of Blueprint and the Facebook Help Center will help you understand the concepts the way Facebook presents them.
The practice exam is nowhere to be found. Perhaps they did away with it???
It seems like Facebook revamped the Blueprint experience shortly after this article was written. It looks like they removed the practice exams in favor of more knowledge checks (short question/answer portions) throughout the various courses. There are practice exams through other sources outside of Facebook, but they usually cost money and I couldn’t recommend any, as I’ve never tried one and don’t know how similar they are to the real Facebook exam (since there are NDAs and no one is legally allowed to share content of the exam, I couldn’t imagine they are too similar). If you follow the Blueprint courses as recommended for each exam, I think you can do well.
Can someone please explain me what is meant by:
Each exam costs $150 and is valid for 1 year. Is it the validity of the certification we are talking about?
Hi Sohini, Yes. Once you pass the exam, the certification is valid for one year.
Absolutetly not! I passed the CORE COMPENTENCIES easily but just failed the BUYING PROFESSIONAL.
I’ve studies for more than 20 hours, reviewed everything, looked at all the blogposts, and the questions have NOTHING to do with what I’ve studied before.
It’s a way for Facebook to get more money.