a lot has been happening with the cdi exam and we have some updates to share! the cdi task force has been working tirelessly since 2011 to develop ideas and provide suggestions to the the nad-rid certification committee, who approved the recommendations and then proposed the recommended changes to the rid board of directors, who also provided their approval. this information was shared this past summer in views. since that time, we've continued to work to revise various aspects of the cdi exam including a complete revision and re-creation of the asl version of the exam. over the summer, the cdi tf looked at the eligibility requirements and felt they were not up to par, made some more revisions and the proposed changes were approved by the nad-rid certification committee
and again approved by the rid board in july. i'm sure you're wondering what the proposed changes entail; most recently, 16 hours were required for cdi eligibility- split between interpreting training and learning about the cpc, or ethics. we are now increasing the requirements to 40 hours of training, or 4.0 ceus. the areas of training are as follows: first, the requirement for 8 hours of training in the area of ethics remains the same- for example, training on the cpc, ethics, or ethical decision making would all fit into the 8 hour requirement. second, 8 hours of training must be focused on an introduction to interpreting like an interpreting 101 course. the next 8 hours must be in the area of the process of interpretation, for example, learning how deaf interpreting works, how deaf/hearing teams work, how deaf/deaf teams work, interpreting for deaf-blind, etc.
other relevant trainings include simultaneous or consecutive interpreting; all having to do with mental processes; or perhaps reading literature about interpreting, or learning more about vgc, visual gestural communication, or platform interpreting- all of that is inclusive under the third phase of 8 hour training requirements. the last 16 hours of training requirement is for general interpreting training like the linguistics of asl, an interpreting class, an interpreting practicum, mentoring, etc. all of the requirements add up to 40 hours worth of training which must be documented for proof of completion or a college transcript, or any other means of verification of completion, these requirements will go into effect on january 1, 2014. this means that the 16 hour requirement will maintain until january 1, along with the current exam.
on january 1, the new requirements will be effective and the new exam will be deployed. now, say january 1 comes and you've submitted your 16 hours, but don't yet have the remaining hours- no need to worry; just take the requisite remaining classes, send in your paperwork and once the 40 hour requirement has been satisfied, you can go ahead and take the cdi exam. most of you know that the rid website provides a cdi bulletin explaining the ins and outs of obtaining cdi certification; this document will be replaced with comprehensive and in-depth cdi candidate handbook. as we've gone through test revisions, we've looked to castle, a testing company, to help us identify the new pass score. after analyzing the exam and assessing the level of difficulty and ease throughout, castle proposed a new pass score of 72. the cdi tf accepted this recommendation which was then approved by the certification committee and the board,
solidifying our new pass score which is, again, 72. are we implementing any other revisions at the moment? not for now. for example, the current degree requirement is for an associate's degree- the cdi exam is comprised of both production and written portions of the exam and in order to take the production portion, you must prove that you've obtained an aa degree. now, july 1, 2016, starts the bachelor's degree requirement, but that hasn't changed since it was voted on at the 2003 rid conference. please know that if you can't get a ba or aa degree, you can apply for the alternative pathway to eligibility. make sure to look online for more information about that option.