CAIP · Pass mark
How the pass mark is set
The pass mark is the score a just-competent practitioner would reach. It is fixed before you begin, and it is the same for every candidate.
Who sets it
Today's pass mark is provisional. It was set by founder decision from a modified-Angoff study run with AI personas, not with a human panel, and it awaits ratification by the Certification Committee, which is being seated.
A standard-setting panel of qualified practitioners will replace it, each declaring any conflict of interest before taking part. This page will show the new figure and the date it applies from.
How it is worked out
The method is called modified Angoff, the most widely used way of setting pass marks for professional certification exams.
Picture the borderline candidate
Not an expert: someone who is just good enough to be certified, judged against the published competence standard.
Rate every question
Each rater answers one question for every item: of 100 borderline candidates, how many would get this right?
Average into one line
The ratings are averaged for each question, then across all approved questions, and rounded to the nearest whole percent.
A worked example
ILLUSTRATIVE| Question | Panelist A | Panelist B | Panelist C | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| An easier question | 85 | 80 | 90 | 85% |
| A middling question | 65 | 70 | 60 | 65% |
| A harder question | 40 | 50 | 45 | 45% |
Across the whole approved bank, suppose the averages come to 68.3%. The pass mark is published as 68%: on this 60-question exam, that means 41 or more correct.
What keeps it fair
- Fixed when you begin
- Your attempt is marked against the pass mark in force when you press Begin. A later change never affects an attempt already started.
- The same for everyone
- Every candidate is marked against the same line. Nobody is graded against how other people did.
- Never moved to manage pass rates
- It changes only through a new standard-setting study approved by the Certification Committee — for example when the exam blueprint changes.
- Changes are dated here
- If the pass mark changes, this page shows the new figure and the date it applies from.
What we don't publish
The ratings for individual questions and the panel's working notes. Together they would show which questions are hard, which would undermine the exam for everyone.