Who can take the CPHIMS exam?

The three ways to qualify, what counts as experience, what counts as a healthcare setting, and what happens after you apply.

In short: you qualify for CPHIMS with one of three: a bachelor's degree plus 5 years of information and management systems experience (3 of them in healthcare), a graduate degree plus 3 years (2 in healthcare), or 10 years of experience with no degree requirement (8 in healthcare).

What are the CPHIMS eligibility requirements?

Your education	Experience needed	Of which in healthcare
Graduate degree or higher	3 years	at least 2 years
Bachelor's degree	5 years	at least 3 years
No degree required	10 years	at least 8 years

The degree must be from an accredited college or university. You need only one of the three rows.

What counts as information and management systems experience?

HIMSS lists work in any of these areas:

systems analysis and design;
selection, implementation, support and maintenance of systems;
testing and evaluation;
privacy and security;
information systems;
clinical informatics;
management engineering.

So a nurse, pharmacist or physician who moved into clinical informatics counts, and so does an analyst, a project lead or a support engineer working on health information systems.

What counts as a healthcare setting?

More than hospitals. HIMSS defines it as a provider of health services, or of products to a healthcare facility: a hospital, a healthcare consulting firm, a vendor, a federal, state or local government office, an academic institution, a payer, or public health.

Do I have to prove my experience when I apply?

Not with the application. You apply online on the HIMSS site and no documents are attached. HIMSS may check what you wrote, and if you are selected for an audit you will be asked for proof that you meet the requirements. Write your first and last name exactly as on your government-issued ID.

After you apply and pay, HIMSS reviews the application. If it is approved, you receive an Authorization to Test email within 3 to 5 business days, and you have 90 days from then to book and sit the exam. What it costs is on the cost page; the day itself is on the exam day page.

What if I do not have the years yet?

HIMSS has an entry-level certification, CAHIMS, that asks for no years of professional experience. See CPHIMS or CAHIMS? for the difference and which to start with.

Source

HIMSS, CPHIMS Candidate Handbook (May 2024 edition): eligibility requirements, application and scheduling.

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Questions about the exam: CPHIMS guide · Exam cost · Passing score · Renewal · Exam day · How long to study · Is it worth it?

The four domains: Healthcare and Technology Environments · Clinical Informatics · Healthcare Information and Systems Management · Management and Leadership

Facts checked against the HIMSS candidate handbook and the HIMSS site on 9 October 2026; HIMSS may change them, so confirm on its site before you apply or pay. An independent site, not affiliated with or endorsed by HIMSS. CPHIMS® is a registered trademark of HIMSS.