CMA Exam Sample Questions
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Free Sample CMA Exam Questions
Our practice questions are designed to help you understand the why behind each answer choice for every question, and are written by our team of practicing CMAs. We show you detailed answer explanations for every option—no matter if you select correctly or incorrectly—to build your reading comprehension and application skills.
Get started below with our strategically-selected multiple-choice samples.
At the end of Year 3, the managers of Guardian Company are planning for Year 4. In Year 3, manufacturing overhead was $349,600, direct labor hours equaled 16,000 hours, and machine hours totaled 48,000 hours. For Year 4, manufacturing overhead is estimated to be $524,400, direct labor hours are estimated at 20,000 hours, and machine hours are estimated at 50,000 hours. If overhead is applied based on direct labor hours, what is the predetermined overhead rate for Year 4 (if necessary, round your answer to two decimal places)?
| A. | $10.49 per direct labor hour. | ||
| B. | $32.78 per direct labor hour. | ||
| C. | $21.85 per direct labor hour. | ||
| D. | $26.22 per direct labor hour. |
Which of the following emerging technologies can help in improving the efficiency of manufacturing plant assembly operations and warehouse operations?
| A. | 3D printing | ||
| B. | Robots | ||
| C. | Virtual reality | ||
| D. | Internet of Things |
All of the following statements concerning currently attainable standards are correct except:
| A. | Currently attainable standards assume machines will be taken off-line for preventative maintenance. | ||
| B. | Currently attainable standards assume employees work at a normal pace. | ||
| C. | Currently attainable standards can only be reached by the most skilled and efficient employees. | ||
| D. | Currently attainable standards are expected to be achieved most of the time. |
Fashionable Purses (FP) is about to begin its annual budgeting process, but would like to make the process more informative. Specifically, FP is facing product demand uncertainty. Management is forecasting that FP will sell around 30,000 purses; however, this amount could be 20% more or 30% less. What tool or method should FP employ this year to make the budget process more informative?
| A. | A zero-based budget | ||
| B. | A flexible budget | ||
| C. | An activity-based budget | ||
| D. | A continuous rolling budget |
Which of the following statements is correct concerning a company using budgeted output to calculate an allocation rate?
| A. | The company will be more likely to be able to evaluate the cost of unused capacity than if it used practical capacity to calculate its allocation rate. | ||
| B. | The company will be less likely to experience a product pricing death spiral than if it used theoretical capacity to calculate its allocation rate. | ||
| C. | The company will be more likely to have to adjust its allocation rates than if it used practical capacity to calculate its allocation rate. | ||
| D. | The company will allocate less cost to its products than if it used theoretical capacity to calculate its allocation rate. |
Take a look at a typical sample question from another provider below. The question shows you what you’ll see on the exam, but that’s not enough to help you pass. Their explanation addresses the right answer choice but does not go the extra mile to explain the wrong choices—so you don’t make the same mistakes on exam day.
Nemo Diving Products, Inc. usually stores its product inventory in a special area within its manufacturing facility. Due to a recent fire, all inventory this month was stored offsite at a cost of $3,000. Some inventory items are normally purchased from Switzerland. This month’s import duty was $2,000. This month’s unreimbursable freight charges on product sold were $4,000. Given the above three costs, what amount(s) are chargeable to inventory vs. chargeable to expense?
| Inventory | Expense | |||
| A. | $2,000 | $7,000 | ||
| B. | $9,000 | $0 | ||
| C. | $5,000 | $4,000 | ||
| D. | $3,000 | $6,000 |
The management team at an organization has recently begun to bond certain employees to prevent cash embezzling and other unethical activity. Is this an appropriate step?
| A. | No, bonding employees has not been proven to prevent unethical activities linked to cash activities, back reconciliation, or depositing cash receipts. | ||
| B. | Yes, bonding employees helps protect the organization from potentially unethical activity, including but not limited to embezzling cash, misreporting cash amounts, or other fraudulent actions. | ||
| C. | Yes, instituting an employee bonding program protects employees from top-down pressure initiated by management to boost financial performance. | ||
| D. | No, employee bonding is only linked to the technology processes underlying financial reporting, so it would not have any benefit for the firm. |
Which of the following is an example of the loss event data technique of identifying events within an Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) approach to risk management?
| A. | The head of HR holds a meeting with employees to get their ideas on possible steps to improve the hiring process. | ||
| B. | A company maps out the process for conducting position searches and hiring new employees. | ||
| C. | A company considering outsourcing its payroll function consults a list of events related to outsourcing payroll developed by a consulting firm. | ||
| D. | A delivery company analyzes losses from accidents its vehicles were in to see if any patterns emerge. |
Which of the following statements about contribution margin is true?
| A. | A decrease in variable administrative expenses per unit will decrease contribution margin per unit. | ||
| B. | A decrease in fixed administrative expenses per unit will not impact contribution margin per unit. | ||
| C. | An increase in variable administrative expenses per unit will increase contribution margin per unit. | ||
| D. | A decrease in variable administrative expenses per unit will not impact contribution margin per unit. |
Which of the following statements concerning earnings volatility resulting from foreign currency fluctuations is not correct?
| A. | Investors and management are not likely to be concerned about earnings volatility resulting from foreign currency fluctuations as an international business provides diversification to a company’s earnings and cash flow. | ||
| B. | Investors and management are more likely to be concerned about volatility arising from foreign currency transactions than from volatility arising from foreign currency statement translation. | ||
| C. | Management can take steps to reduce exposure to foreign currency fluctuations arising from transactions through hedging. | ||
| D. | Management can take steps to reduce exposure to currency fluctuations arising from the translation of foreign currency statements by matching assets and liabilities denominated in a foreign currency. |
Which of the following is not a reason pricing decisions might differ at various stages of a product’s life cycle?
| A. | There are different levels of production efficiency at various stages of a product’s life cycle. | ||
| B. | A company’s customers have different after-purchase costs at various stages of a product’s life cycle. | ||
| C. | There are different levels of competition at various stages of a product’s life cycle. | ||
| D. | A company has different goals for a product at various stages of a product’s life cycle. |
Take a look at a typical sample question from another provider below. The question shows you what you’ll see on the exam, but that’s not enough to help you pass. Their limited explanation addresses the right answer choice but do not go the extra mile to explain the wrong choices—so you don’t make the same mistakes on exam day.
Which of the following is an item with high earnings persistence?
| A. | Extraordinary gain | ||
| B. | Extraordinary loss | ||
| C. | Gain on disposal of old equipment | ||
| D. | Sales from a new product |
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Breaking Down the CMA Exam
The CMA exam evaluates your knowledge of 12 essential management accounting competencies, your attention to detail, and your ability to apply the IMA’s ethical standards to real-world scenarios that commonly impact businesses.
You will be assessed on your understanding of areas like risk management, decision analysis, corporate finance, planning, budgeting, and more via two standard question types in both Part 1: Financial Planning, Performance, and Analytics and Part 2: Strategic Financial Management.
How Do the Question Types Work?
Multiple-Choice (75% of Your Score): When tackling these questions, be sure to read the initial query and all available answer choices carefully. The ICMA incorporates MCQs questions that:
- Have a single, identifiable and straightforward answer.
- Include multiple values in a single answer option formatted in columns.
- Use tricky phrases like “Select the statement that is not…”
- Offer multiple correct answers, but you must select the best one(s).
Essays (25% of Your Score): Management accounting professionals must demonstrate strong written communication skills. The essay section evaluates your ability to:
- Assess a business situation.
- Offer the best solution or path forward based on core CMA exam principles.
The essay section comes after you have answered at least 50% of your multiple-choice questions correctly, so you must build up mental endurance to effectively tackle the writing portion.
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CMA Exam Question Format
Multiple-Choice Questions That Make a Difference
Our multiple-choice QBank and mock exam questions use the language, structure, and scenario types most commonly found on Parts 1 and 2 of the CMA exam. We also incorporate retired ICMA questions, so you know you are practicing with material reflecting what you will experience on exam day.
A tip for effective studying—reviewing all answer explanations will help you avoid related mistakes on future questions.
Multiple-Choice Questions That Make a Difference
Essay Questions Designed to Challenge You
Essay Questions Designed to Challenge You
UWorld’s 70+ CMA exam essay questions help you boost your time-management skills, apply the concepts you’ve learned from your lectures and study guide, and start thinking like a practicing CMA. As you would on the exam, your goal is to use core CMA competencies to solve common business scenarios.
Another study tip—as you approach exam day, do your practice essays after spending at least an hour answering multiple-choice questions to replicate real testing conditions. The key is to increase your mental stamina while maintaining accuracy.
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Frequently Asked
Questions
There are two types of questions on the Part 1 and Part 2 CMA exams—multiple-choice and essays.
Both Part 1 and Part 2 feature 100 multiple-choice questions and 2 essay scenarios each. Multiple-choice questions are worth 75% of your score, while the essay portion is worth the remaining 25%.
The IMA states that exam difficulty varies from test form to test form, regardless of exam window. This means some test forms may have more challenging questions than others. To make sure all candidates are graded fairly, the ICMA uses statistical equating methods so all passing scores are generated fairly.
The best way to prepare yourself for a challenging test form is to practice with questions at or a higher difficulty level than what you would encounter on the actual exam.