You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
CERTNEXUSCertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP)
The CertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP) certification validates your ability to answer real-world questions by collecting, wrangling, and exploring data sets, then applying statistical models and AI algorithms to extract and communicate actionable insights. Designed for professionals across industries, it proves you can define the right question, perform ETL, build and test predictive models, and deliver findings that drive decisions.
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
Free questions841
Content last reviewed 16 February 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What CertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP) proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
7domains
26objectives
255concepts
US $367exam fee
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The CertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP) certification validates the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to answer questions by collecting, wrangling, and exploring data sets, applying statistical models and artificial-intelligence algorithms, and extracting and communicating knowledge and insights. It is designed for professionals across different industries seeking to demonstrate the ability to gain insights and build predictive models from data.
Earning the CDSP demonstrates that you can define the question to be addressed through the application of data science, perform ETL across data sets, conduct exploratory data analysis, build and test models, and communicate findings effectively. This certification equips you to turn raw data into strategic business value, making you a capable data science practitioner in a wide variety of job functions.
Who it’s for
This certification is for professionals across different industries who want to demonstrate their ability to gain insights and build predictive models from data. It is ideal for data analysts, aspiring data scientists, business intelligence professionals, and anyone involved in data-driven decision-making who needs to validate their hands-on data science skills. You are comfortable working with data sets, performing data cleaning and transformation, and applying statistical and machine-learning techniques to solve practical problems. You aim to communicate your findings clearly to stakeholders and drive measurable outcomes through data.
Recommended experience
While CertNexus does not mandate formal prerequisites, a background in statistics, programming, and working with data is strongly recommended for success on the DSP-210 exam. Familiarity with data analysis concepts and tools; Experience with programming languages such as Python or R; Understanding of basic statistics and probability; Hands-on experience with data wrangling and visualization
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective CertNexus measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official CertNexus exam outline · checked 16 February 2026 · See the source
1.0 Defining the need to be addressed through the application of data science
- Objective 1.1 Identify the project scope
- Objective 1.2 Understand challenges
- Objective 1.3 Classify a question into a known data science problem
2.0 Extracting, Transforming, and Loading Data
- Objective 2.1 Gather data sets
- Objective 2.2 Clean data sets
- Objective 2.3 Merge and load data sets
- Objective 2.4 Apply problem-specific transformations to data sets
3.0 Performing exploratory data analysis
- Objective 3.1 Examine data
- Objective 3.2 Preprocess data
- Objective 3.3 Carry out feature engineering
4.0 Building models
- Objective 4.1 Prepare data sets for modeling
- Objective 4.2 Train models
- Objective 4.3 Evaluate models
5.0 Testing models
- Design A/B tests
- Experimental design
- Design use cases
- Test creation
- Statistics
- Define success criteria for test
- Evaluate test results
6.0 Operationalizing the pipeline
- Build and Automate Pipelines
- Deploy and Manage Models
- Monitor and Ensure Operational Performance
- Secure and Govern Data and Access
7.0 Communication findings
- Objective 7.1 Report findings
- Objective 7.2 Democratize data
On the day
The exam itself
Everything CertNexus publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
No mandatory prerequisites — this certification has no required predecessor exam or credential.
CertificationCertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP)
Exam formatMultiple choice
DeliveryPearson VUE
LanguagesEnglish
PricingUS $367
Certification levelPractitioner
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path CertNexus lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to CertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP)
Credential earnedCertNexus Certified Data Science Practitioner (CDSP) Practitioner level certification Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. CertNexus maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by CertNexus
Exam registration
Register for the exam through Pearson VUE, CertNexus’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official CertNexus certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
How does the CDSP relate to other CertNexus certifications like CAIP?
CDSP focuses on data science, while CAIP (AIP-210) covers AI and machine learning solution design. They are separate certifications with distinct exam codes; earning one does not require the other.
Do I need to earn a lower-level CertNexus certification before taking DSP-210?
No. CertNexus does not require any prior certification for the CDSP. It is a standalone credential.
Can I take the DSP-210 exam online?
Yes, CertNexus exams are available online via Pearson VUE's OnVUE platform, in addition to test centers.
What are the online proctoring requirements for the DSP-210 exam?
You must have a Windows 10 or macOS 14+ computer, a working webcam and microphone, a stable internet connection, and a private, distraction-free room. Multi-monitor setups and headphones are prohibited.
What is the retake policy for the DSP-210 exam?
CertNexus vouchers include one free retake. Use the same voucher to schedule your retake. Standard waiting periods may apply.
Are there any hands-on or lab components in the DSP-210 exam?
The official materials do not specify a hands-on lab component. The exam focuses on validating knowledge and skills through multiple-choice questions.
What job roles does the CDSP certification map to?
The CDSP is designed for professionals in data science, data analysis, business intelligence, and related roles who need to demonstrate their ability to gain insights and build predictive models from data.
Can I use a voucher to pay for the DSP-210 exam?
Yes, CertNexus vouchers can be used at the payment screen when scheduling your exam. Vouchers include a free retake.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-02-16 Up to date
Practice free questions 841 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept CertNexus measures — each one written out.
7domains
26objectives
255concepts
178free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official CertNexus exam outline · checked 16 February 2026 · See the source
11.0 Defining the need to be addressed through the application of data science107 questions
22.0 Extracting, Transforming, and Loading Data131 questions
33.0 Performing exploratory data analysis108 questions
44.0 Building models99 questions
55.0 Testing models173 questions
Design A/B tests8 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Experimental design6 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Design use cases5 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Test creation6 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Statistics5 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Define success criteria for test5 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Evaluate test results1 concepts · 4 pagesOpen →
66.0 Operationalizing the pipeline126 questions
77.0 Communication findings97 questions
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
Objective 1.1 Identify the project scope5 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
22 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
841 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
841questions
178pages
26objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
11.0 Defining the need to be addressed through the application of data science107 questions
22.0 Extracting, Transforming, and Loading Data131 questions
33.0 Performing exploratory data analysis108 questions
44.0 Building models99 questions
55.0 Testing models173 questions
66.0 Operationalizing the pipeline126 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
255concepts
841free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from CertNexus
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
3official links
255concepts mapped
The source
CertNexus’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official CertNexus outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 26 objectives, 255 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When CertNexus changes the outline, this page changes with it.
26objectives on the outline→255concepts written→841free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.