CDFM Module 3 study guide
CDFM Module 3 · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Defense Financial Manager (CDFM) is a professional certification for financial management professionals in the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). It is administered by the Society of Defense Financial Management (SDFM) and validates a candidate's broad-based understanding of core defense financial management principles, practices, and standards. The credential is recognized across military and civilian sectors in areas such as resource management, budgeting, cost control, and fiscal law. Topics on this exam: Resource Management, Environment Budget and Cost Analysis, and Accounting and Finance. The CDFM Module 3 study guide has 3 sections and about 1,408 words.
01Resource Management
Resource Management on CDFM Module 3 tests whether you can trace a requirement from authorization through obligation and outlay without violating fiscal law. Expect questions on appropriation color of money, period of availability, purpose statutes, anti-deficiency controls, and reimbursable versus direct funding. Purpose, time, amount. An obligation must be authorized by law for the stated purpose, incurred within the appropriation's period of availability, and stay within the apportioned and allotted amount.
509 words, about 3 min02Environment Budget and Cost Analysis
This domain tests how you build, justify, and compare budgets and how you analyze costs. Questions often ask which cost is relevant, how to treat inflation and discounting, and how to explain a variance between planned and actual execution. A budget submission ties workload or requirement to a cost estimate, phasing, and justification. It must state assumptions, base year, inflation, and period.
453 words, about 2 min03Accounting and Finance
Accounting and Finance on CDFM Module 3 tests federal financial accounting, the dual budgetary and proprietary records, financial statements, and audit readiness. Expect questions on accrual accounting, USSGL entries, Fund Balance with Treasury, depreciation, and the relationship between budget execution and financial reporting. Dual-track accounting. Budgetary accounting tracks apportionment, allotment, commitment, obligation, expenditure, and outlay.
446 words, about 2 min