CHMP

Questions are drawn from the CHMP blueprint, which IHMM publishes and updates. The blueprint's domains are hazardous materials identification and handling in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; emergency planning, preparedness, and response; sampling and analysis of air, water, soil, and waste; site investigation and remediation; and hazmat program or project management. Download the current blueprint before you plan any study.

You need at least five years of relevant experience with responsibilities directly related to handling hazardous materials and/or waste in the workplace, or an associate-level degree in applied science or a related field from an accredited college or university plus three years of such experience. You must also file an application, upload a transcript or diploma where applicable, provide third-party employment verification, and pay the application fee.

IHMM does not publish the item count, time limit, or passing score on the pages describing the CHMP, so treat any specific figure you see elsewhere with caution and confirm with IHMM. The exam is delivered through Kryterion, and IHMM has had ANSI approve Kryterion remotely proctored delivery for the CHMP, so you may be able to test from home or office instead of a testing center.

IHMM's fee schedule lists a nonrefundable application fee of $175 for the CHMP and an examination fee of $360. The application fee comes first; after your application is approved you purchase the examination. If you pass, an annual certification maintenance fee of $160 applies for a single credential, and a late fee of $25 applies to past-due annual fees.

IHMM describes the CHMP examination as challenging. The most common self-inflicted problem is studying from general hazmat knowledge instead of the blueprint, which leaves whole domains thin. The second is neglecting the regulatory and scientific-principles base IHMM says candidates must be familiar with. Third, candidates underestimate sampling and analysis and site investigation topics because they see less of them at work.

Start by downloading the CHMP blueprint and mapping its domains against your own experience, then read the Candidate Handbook. Close your weakest domains first. IHMM notes that many candidates attend overview courses or use self-study materials, but it requires no specific training and the exams are not based on any single reference, so use more than one source.

IHMM's CHMP pages do not state a retake policy, number of attempts, or waiting period, so confirm the current rules with IHMM staff before you sit the exam. Because the examination fee of $360 is separate from the nonrefundable $175 application fee, budget for the possibility of paying the examination fee again on a later attempt.

You recertify every five years. Over that cycle you earn 200 certification maintenance points: 100 come from the job you perform, and you must earn at least another 100 in other ways. Enter CMPs in MYIHMM as you earn them, start the recertification application early to track them, and keep records because IHMM audits.

A former certificant not decertified on ethical grounds may apply for reinstatement if annual fees have been expired for less than five years and/or the decertified certification has been expired for less than five years. Otherwise the full certification process applies. The reinstatement application fee is $75, plus a $200 reinstatement fee and all applicable annual and late fees.