CG SET study guide
CG SET · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Computer Graphics Society of Educators and Trainers (CG SET) Certification Examination is a professional credential for people who teach, train, or assess computer graphics and for practitioners who want to demonstrate breadth across the field. It is aimed at instructors in degree programs, bootcamps, and corporate training, as well as technical artists and engineers moving into education. The CG SET study guide has 9 sections and about 2,435 words.
01Graphics Mathematics and Geometry
Graphics Mathematics and Geometry tests vector algebra, affine and projective transforms, viewing and projection, barycentric coordinates, and geometric intersections. Expect small numerical problems, not just definitions.
251 words, about 1 min02Rasterization and Rendering Pipeline
Rasterization and the Rendering Pipeline tests how primitives become fragments: clipping, viewport mapping, coverage, depth testing, blending, and the programmable stages that replaced fixed-function lighting. Vertex shader outputs clip-space positions; clipping happens in homogeneous clip space, then NDC and viewport mapping.
269 words, about 1 min03Shading, Lighting, and Global Illumination
Shading, Lighting, and Global Illumination tests the rendering equation in practice: BRDFs, local illumination models, shadowing, path tracing, and the approximations real-time engines use. The BRDF is the ratio of outgoing radiance to incoming irradiance; a physically valid BRDF is non-negative and conserves energy.
274 words, about 1 min04Texture Mapping and Image Processing
Texture Mapping and Image Processing tests UV parameterization, sampling and reconstruction, mipmaps, filtering, color-space handling, and common image operations such as convolution and resampling. Texel centers are at half-integer coordinates; bilinear filtering blends four neighboring texels using fractional offsets.
272 words, about 1 min05Geometric Modeling and Curves/Surfaces
Geometric Modeling and Curves/Surfaces tests mesh representations, parametric curves, splines, subdivision, and the trade-offs between control, continuity, and computational cost. A Bézier curve of degree n has n+1 control points; it interpolates its endpoints and is tangent to the first and last control segments.
246 words, about 1 min06Animation and Simulation Fundamentals
Animation and Simulation Fundamentals tests keyframe interpolation, quaternion rotations, skeletal skinning, and numerical integration for particles and rigid bodies. Quaternions represent rotations without gimbal lock; q and -q are the same rotation, so slerp must choose the shorter arc.
279 words, about 1 min07Graphics Hardware and Real-Time APIs
Graphics Hardware and Real-Time APIs tests the GPU pipeline, command submission, memory and synchronization, and the performance model behind draw calls, bandwidth, and occupancy. Modern APIs such as Vulkan, D3D12, and Metal expose explicit command buffers, pipelines, and barriers; OpenGL hides much of this in a state machine.
279 words, about 1 min08Color Science and Display
Color Science and Display tests color matching, tristimulus values, chromaticity, transfer functions, gamut mapping, and HDR display pipelines. CIE XYZ is a device-independent tristimulus space; Y is luminance, and x+y+z=1 gives chromaticity.
257 words, about 1 min09Professional Practice, Ethics, and Pedagogy
Professional Practice, Ethics, and Pedagogy tests how graphics work is documented, licensed, taught, and assessed: attribution, asset rights, accessibility, reproducibility, and academic integrity. Copyright protects expression, not ideas; a shader's source code is generally protected, while an algorithm may be implemented independently.
308 words, about 2 min