Journey to the CSWA-MD

First of all, if you're already going to take the CSWP soon after you take the CSWA, I suggest skipping the associate exam and going for the professional exam, especially since the associate exam isn't a prerequisite for the professional one. Besides, all 3 segments of the CSWP are – somehow – 1€ cheaper than the CSWA, so that's 2 birds with 1 stone.

With that being said, the CSWA is a fairly simple exam that challenges 4 main skills:

1) Part Modelling

This is pretty straightforward; you’re given some drawings of a model and you have to make it as accurately as possible. This means that any inability to read the 2D drawings will affect your results. Furthermore, keep your eye on the units mentioned in the question; some dimensions might be in millimetres, while others can be in inches.

Although most dimensions will be numerically given, some will be given as variables (A, B, C, etc.) that you’ll be asked to change throughout the exam. It’s better to start your modelling process by adding these as Global Variables, which eases changing them later on.

Tip #1: Make sure all your sketches are Fully-Defined, and never use the Fix relation during the exam.

Tip #2: Since all questions are viewable, take a look at the upcoming questions and see what will be changed later on. That'll give you a better understanding of the design intent.

2) Part Modification

After you make your model, you’ll be asked to modify it. This can be in one of 2 forms:

1. Adding features that add/remove material from the model
2. Change the variables that drive some dimensions

In the 1st case, the edits will be shown in another colour (probably red) so that you can recognize them easily. Take a minute to think of that edit and the feature/s you’ll use to make it.

As for the 2nd case, you’ll need to keep your eye on the variables to see which ones have changed, then apply these changes to them before making any other changes to the model.

3) Assembling:

Here you’ll be given a zipped folder with multiple part files in it, then you’ll be asked to start a new assembly and insert these parts and mate them together. If the origin is mentioned in the question, make sure to position it correctly as may affect some of your answers.

After you finish assembling, make sure you have no warnings or errors in your FeatureManager Design Tree. You’ll also have to make sure the assembly is functioning properly (moving parts are free to move, fixed parts are fixed with mates).

Tip #3: The assembly in the exam can be assembled using standard mates only, but using advanced mates is Ok as long as it doesn’t take extra time or effort.

4) Extracting Info:

Since Tangix TesterPro doesn’t require you to upload your CAD files, it verifies your model by asking you to extract information from the model.

For part modelling & modification, it’ll ask for the mass of the model (make sure you get the model’s material correct).

For assembling, it’ll either ask for the centre of mass of the assembly (make sure you get the assembly’s origin correct) or ask you to measure the distance/angle between 2 faces.

Resources

• SolidWorks (built-in) Tutorials

I can keep talking forever about how underrated yet helpful these tutorials are. They have step-by-step instructions, images, sample files, even a cool feature-fetcher (just like the search bar's Show Command Location) and the list keeps going...

• MySolidWorks

As the official Everything SolidWorks site, it has tons of lessons, learning paths and eCourses. All that's between you and that content is logging in, then you'll be able to check out the CSWA Prep Learning Path for free, as well as the CSWA Sample Exercises.

• Official CSWA Sample Exam

You can take this sample exam by yourself (the questions are here), or in a complete exam experience through Tangix TesterPro Client.

General SolidWorks Exam Tips

Tip #4: Make a new file for each question (Save As will come in handy).

Tip #5: Take your time to familiarize yourself with the interface, make changes to it if you want and make custom keyboard shortcuts/mouse gestures (click here to know how).

Hope you found this useful!

Stay tuned for the rest of the series