CMPP study guide
CMPP · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Medical Publication Professional™ (CMPP™) credential is offered by the International Society for Medical Publication Professionals (ISMPP). It is a professional certification for people working in medical publications and medical communications who want to demonstrate commitment to superior professionalism, upholding industry standards, and continued learning. ISMPP describes itself as the global community advancing ethical, transparent medical publications through education, collaboration, and professional development, and positions CMPP resources within its professional development offering. The exam is delivered online. Topics on this exam: Medical publication strategy and planning, Publication implementation and execution, Ethical and transparency standards (e.g., GPP2022), and Professional practice, collaboration, and governance. The CMPP study guide has 4 sections and about 1,711 words.
01Medical Publication Strategy and Planning
This domain tests whether you can convert clinical evidence and stakeholder needs into a defensible, resourced publication plan. Expect questions on gap analysis, publication steering committees, audience segmentation, channel selection, timing, budgeting, and metrics. Begin with a systematic landscape and gap analysis: what is already published, what congress data exist, and which evidence gaps matter to prescribers, payers, patients, regulators, and guideline developers. Map every planned output to a specific data source (study report, CSR, registry analysis) and a named audience.
455 words, about 2 min02Publication Implementation and Execution
This domain tests execution: turning an approved plan into accurate, approved, timely manuscripts and congress outputs. Questions focus on authorship, medical writing support, journal selection, submission, peer review, and tracking. Apply the ICMJE four criteria early. Every author must meet all four; contributors who do not should be acknowledged, not listed.
446 words, about 2 min03Ethical and Transparency Standards (e.g., GPP2022)
This domain tests whether you can apply ethical and transparency standards to real publication decisions. GPP2022, ICMJE, COPE, and EQUATOR are the key reference points, but exam questions usually test judgment rather than definitions. Publish all company-sponsored research, including negative and inconclusive results, completely, accurately, and in a timely way. Selective publication is a central ethical failure.
399 words, about 2 min04Professional Practice, Collaboration, and Governance
This domain tests how publication work is governed and delivered across functions. Expect questions on roles, standard operating procedures, cross-functional review, vendor oversight, compliance, documentation, and performance measurement. Publication professionals manage plans, timelines, approvals, and compliance; they do not independently decide data interpretation or clinical claims. Define roles with a RACI or similar matrix across clinical development, biostatistics, regulatory, legal, compliance, HEOR, patient advocacy, and commercial.
411 words, about 2 min