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Credential Preparation

The Parliamentarian’s Path

A field-tested system for preparing for the RP, PRP, CP, and CPP credentialing examinations. The plan, the reading order, the drills, and the charts I used, free to download.

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C.J. Cavin, Esq., CPP-T, PRP  ·  Cavin Law, PLLC

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Most candidates stall for one reason

They do not know how to study for a performance-based examination. Reading an authority cover to cover is not studying. It produces recognition, and the examinations test recall and application under pressure.

This page contains the system I built preparing for my own credentials. It organizes the authorities by topic rather than by page, drills the order of precedence daily, and converts each published performance expectation into a checklist you can actually work through. Everything on this page is free. Take it, use it, and tell me what to fix.

The Four Credentials

Which one are you pursuing?

Two organizations credential parliamentarians in the United States. The National Association of Parliamentarians offers the RP and the PRP. The American Institute of Parliamentarians offers the CP and the CPP, each with an optional teacher designation. The bodies of knowledge overlap heavily. The examinations do not resemble each other at all.

Compare all four side by side Prerequisite, exam format, passing score, authorities, and realistic preparation time
  RP NAP PRP NAP CP AIP CPP AIP
Full name Registered Parliamentarian Professional Registered Parliamentarian Certified Parliamentarian Certified Professional Parliamentarian
Prerequisite Current NAP membership Must already hold the RP Current AIP membership Must have held the CP for one year
Exam format One day, two sections: 100 multiple-choice questions, plus written performance scenarios Two-day meeting simulation, in person or virtual, no more than six candidates Computer-based, proctored, closed book, three parts Oral examination before an audience of AIP members, closed book, two parts
Passing score 80% on each section Evaluated by examiners against the PRP performance expectations 80% 90%
Activity points Not applicable Not applicable 20 points earned within the past 7 years 30 points earned within the past 7 years
Where offered Quarterly seven-day examination windows NAP Biennial Convention, NAP Training Conference, and other times approved by the Commission Within a testing window, at a date and place you and your proctor select At an in-person AIP event
Results Within 60 days of the close of the window Announced after the simulation; a follow-up assignment is possible Within two months Within two months
Realistic prep About 6 months at 5 to 7 hours per week 8 months or more 6 to 8 months 8 months or more
Authorities RONR (12th ed.), RONRIB (3d ed.), Code of Professional Responsibility, PPPP, Script Writing Made Easy The RP list, applied at an advanced level across eight domains AIPSC (2d ed.), RONR (12th ed.), Joint Code of Professional Responsibility The CP list, plus Cannon’s Concise Guide to Rules of Order
The single most useful distinction. The RP and the CP test what you know. The PRP and the CPP test what you can do in a room, in front of people, without your books. Preparation for the second pair is rehearsal, not reading.

Inside the Examinations

What to expect on each exam

Each summary below comes from the credentialing body’s own published policies. Confirm current requirements with NAP or AIP before you apply. Both revise their standards periodically.

RP Registered Parliamentarian National Association of Parliamentarians Registered Parliamentarian Credentialing Exam (RPCE)
Structure
Two sections, one session, each completed within three hours of the exam start time
Section I
100 multiple-choice questions drawn from the RP Performance Expectations, scored automatically
Section II
Written scenarios drawn from the same expectations, scored by trained examiners
To pass
80% on each section, independently
Windows
Quarterly, seven days each; register at least 21 days before the window opens
Proctoring
In person or by an approved virtual monitoring system

Seven Domains

  • Motions in general and main motions
  • Subsidiary and privileged motions
  • Incidental motions, and motions that bring a question again before the assembly
  • Organization and conduct of meetings
  • Voting, nominations, and elections
  • Being a professional parliamentarian, serving in meetings, and teaching parliamentary procedure
  • Boards and committees, and writing and interpreting bylaws

How to prepare

  • Convert every performance expectation in the Criteria for Credentialing into a checklist item, then work the list.
  • Section II is written. Practice writing answers under time, not just recognizing them.
  • Sample practice questions are published. The actual items are not, and no two administrations are identical.
PRP Professional Registered Parliamentarian National Association of Parliamentarians Professional Registered Parliamentarian Credentialing Exam (PRPCE)
Structure
A two-day simulation of a client meeting, in person or virtual, capped at six candidates
In advance
You receive the client materials, including governing documents, and instructions to write a meeting script, develop a workshop, and draft an opinion
Day one
A 30-minute presentation to the examiners and the other candidates, then a pre-business session in which examiners question your script and raise problems you may face
Day two
The business session convenes. You serve both as presiding officer and as parliamentarian, rotating on announcement, working through complex and unannounced situations
After
Examiners may request a follow-up assignment, though one is not required

Eight Domains

  • Motions and meeting-related procedures
  • Governing documents
  • Serving as parliamentarian in meetings and conventions
  • Teaching
  • Business and ethics
  • Governance
  • Consulting skills
  • Nominations, elections, and voting

How to prepare

  • Write scripts until the form is automatic. You will draft new ones on site, under time pressure.
  • Rehearse presiding aloud. Reading about the chair’s role will not carry you through day two.
  • Build a teaching segment you can deliver in 30 minutes and adapt to any assigned topic.
  • Practice stating the pending question and what comes next, every time, out loud.
CP Certified Parliamentarian American Institute of Parliamentarians CP Examination, Accrediting Department
To be awarded
Current AIP membership, 80% or higher on the examination, and 20 activity points earned within the past seven years
Structure
Three parts; the final score is cumulative across all three
Conditions
Closed book. No physical or electronic materials. The proctor may supply blank paper, which is destroyed immediately afterward
Delivery
On a computer with internet access, supplied by you or your proctor
Proctor
You nominate two candidates. A CP, a CPP, or another qualified independent professional such as a librarian, minister, attorney, or teacher. The proctor must be physically present
Scheduling
You and the proctor pick the date, time, and place inside the testing window, and notify the Department at least seven days out
Grading
Blind graded by evaluators who hold the CP or the CPP

Required Authorities

  • AIP Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure (2d ed.)
  • Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (12th ed.)
  • Joint Code of Professional Responsibility for Parliamentarians

How to prepare

  • Read RONR and the Standard Code side by side on the same topic. The differences are deliberate and they are testable.
  • Start the activity points form early. Points must be documented and must fall inside the seven-year window.
  • Line up a proctor before you apply. The points form goes in with the application.
CPP Certified Professional Parliamentarian American Institute of Parliamentarians CPP Oral Examination, Accrediting Department
To be awarded
Current AIP membership, the CP held for one year, 90% or higher on the examination, and 30 activity points earned within the past seven years
Structure
An oral examination in two parts, with a 15-minute break between them
Part one
Parliamentary theory, and your ability to explain concepts and procedures to an assembly. No notes
Part two
A presiding demonstration. Writing materials are allowed, and any notes you generate are retained by the Department
Setting
In person at an AIP event, before an audience of AIP members. At hybrid events only in-person attendees may witness it
Examiners
Three, each holding the CPP. Each scores both parts and a total; your final score is the average of the totals

Required Authorities

  • AIP Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure (2d ed.)
  • Cannon’s Concise Guide to Rules of Order
  • Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised (12th ed.)
  • Joint Code of Professional Responsibility for Parliamentarians

How to prepare

  • 90% is the highest bar of the four credentials, and it is oral and closed book. Recall must be instant.
  • Practice explaining, not reciting. Part one asks you to teach a concept to a room.
  • Rehearse presiding in front of someone. An audience changes how you sound.
  • Cannon’s is required here and nowhere else. Build it into the reading plan from the start.
Teacher designations. AIP also awards the CP-T and the CPP-T. The initial teacher designation requires 15 activity points in the teaching category. The designation expires with the underlying AIP certification.

After You Pass

Keeping the credential

Plan for renewal on the day you pass, not in the last year of the cycle. Both bodies require documented continuing activity, and both require it inside a fixed lookback period.

NAP

Continuing education, every two years

  • RP: 10 hours of continuing education credit, including 1 hour of professional responsibility.
  • PRP: 15 hours, including 2 hours of professional responsibility.
  • A certification statement is submitted in the last year of the renewal period.
  • Credit is earned at NAP national educational events, or at events approved by the Commission on Credentialing.
  • Credits are awarded on a timing scale: 30 to 49 minutes earns 0.5 credit, 50 to 74 minutes earns 1 credit, and 90 to 120 minutes earns 2 credits. Breaks, opening and closing remarks, and business meetings do not count.
  • Instructors earn three times the credit for content they teach.
AIP

Activity points, on a seven-year cycle

  • Recertification totals: CP 20 points, CPP 25, CP-T 30, CPP-T 35.
  • Four categories: education, AIP leadership, parliamentary practice, and teaching. Which are required depends on the credential.
  • For recertification, a minimum of 10 points must come from each required category.
  • Every activity must fall within the past seven years, and no activity may be counted twice or applied to two credentials.
  • Activities at an AIP Annual Session, Practicum, or Dahms Foundation Workshop do not require separate validation.
  • On approval, the expiration date resets to December 31 seven years after the year of submission.

The Method

Six steps, in order

  1. Determine your whyCandidates who cannot say why they want the credential are the ones who stop in month four. Write it down before you buy a book.
  2. Get your booksBuy every required authority at the start. Reading plans fail when a text arrives in month six.
  3. Make your planPick the exam date first, then work backward. Reserve the final two weeks for review, not new material.
  4. Do the workFive to seven hours a week, every week. Consistency beats intensity, and cramming does not survive a performance exam.
  5. Practice makes perfectDrill the precedence chart daily. Write scripts. Say the pending question aloud. Work questions and then go find why the answer is the answer.
  6. Take the testThere is a point at which more reading stops helping. Register, sit, and finish it.

Time and Sequence

A sample eight-month plan

Plan at least six to eight months of steady study at five to seven hours per week. The RP is realistic in about six months. The PRP and the CPP need eight or more.

  • Before month oneTake a Parli Prep or foundations session. Two to four weeks. It answers the first real question, which is what to read first, and it shows you the exam format and the topic breakdown before you have invested anything.
  • Month 1Get your books. Print the charts. Set the exam date and build the calendar backward from it.
  • Months 2 through 5Read by topic across the authorities. RONR (12th ed.) and the AIP Standard Code together, adding Cannon’s if you are sitting for the CPP. Track completion on the reading plan.
  • Months 6 and 7Outline each topic in your own words. Record the standard descriptive characteristics of every motion. Review script form, then write your own. Work the question sets.
  • Month 8Daily drills and challenge areas only. Reconstruct the precedence chart from memory each morning and check it against the key.
  • Final two weeksReview only. No new material. Rehearse aloud.
  • ThenTake the test.

Why the Reading Plan Is Ordered This Way

Read by topic, not by page

Parliamentary authorities are reference works. They were not written to be read like novels, and reading one straight through produces the illusion of preparation without the retention.

Grouping the material by concept does three things. It matches the way the examinations ask questions. It lets you plan around topics that will take you longer. And because the authorities do not follow the same internal order, reading them by topic is the only way to see them side by side, which is where the comparative knowledge the examiners are looking for actually comes from.

The topics need not be taken in the exact order below, though the sequence builds cumulatively and is recommended. Moving among them to fit your schedule is better than falling out of the routine.

The Roadmap

Thirteen modules, twenty-six topics

This is the full scope of what the credentialing examinations cover, arranged by concept. Plan roughly one to two topics per week, allowing extra time for the motions modules and the convention capstone.

Module 1  ·  Foundations

Topic 1. Principles and Rules of Parliamentary Law. Principles matter more than rules. Learn to derive the rule from the principle.

Topic 2. Deliberative Assemblies. The types of meetings and the nature of effective participation.

Module 2  ·  Structure and Order of Business

Topic 3. Organizing a Society. How formal organizations come into being.

Topic 4. Order of Business and Agenda. The standard order of business for a formal meeting.

Module 3  ·  Bringing Business Before the Assembly

Topic 5. Main Motion and Resolutions. The six steps by which a motion is processed to a decision, and the proper form of a resolution.

Topic 6. Precedence of Motions and the Table of Motions. The principle and the application of precedence.

Module 4  ·  Subsidiary Motions and Amendment

Topic 7. Introduction to Subsidiary Motions and the Amending Process. Amendment as the method of perfecting a proposition.

Topic 8. Subsidiary Motions. Their precedence and their proper use.

Module 5  ·  Privileged and Incidental Motions

Topic 9. Privileged Motions. Their purpose and procedural rules, and how they differ from questions of privilege.

Topic 10. Incidental Motions. The reason for them and their use.

Module 6  ·  Revisiting and Renewing

Topic 11. Changing Previous Decisions. Motions that bring a question again before the assembly.

Topic 12. Renewal of Motions, Dilatory and Improper Motions. How to renew a motion, and how to recognize one that is out of order.

Module 7  ·  The Chair and Debate

Topic 13. The Presiding Officer and Assignment of the Floor. What makes a good presiding officer, and how the chair handles the special circumstances that arise.

Topic 14. Debate and the Strategy of Debate. The purpose and goals of debate, and the procedures that decide outcomes.

Module 8  ·  Meeting Integrity

Topic 15. Quorum. A valid meeting requires previous notice and the presence of a quorum.

Topic 16. Minutes. Contents, drafting, and why they matter.

Topic 17. Discipline. The methods by which meetings are kept under orderly control.

Module 9  ·  Officers and Boards

Topic 18. Officers and Reports. The responsibilities and duties of elected officers.

Topic 19. Governing Board and Advisors. The duties, powers, and limitations of an executive board.

Module 10  ·  Members and Committees

Topic 20. Membership. The rights and the obligations of members.

Topic 21. Committees and Committee Reports. Composition, function, committee of the whole, and how to write a report.

Module 11  ·  Governing Documents

Topic 22. Bylaws. The articles bylaws should contain, and the detail required to draft and maintain them.

Topic 23. Standing Rules. The need for them and their place in the hierarchy of rules.

Module 12  ·  Voting and Elections

Topic 24. Voting Methods. The methods by which votes are taken and the number required in each case.

Topic 25. Nominations and Elections. The principles of both processes, and how to apply them.

Module 13  ·  Capstone

Topic 26. Conventions. How conventions are constructed, planned, and processed. This module draws on everything above and should be taken last.

Readiness benchmark. Before you sit, you should be able to score consistently above 85% on objective questions and explain, aloud and from memory, the reasoning behind each answer. Knowing the answer is not the standard. Knowing why is.

Free Downloads

The materials

These are the working documents I built for my own credentialing examinations. They were written for the CPP, but apart from Cannon’s Concise Guide, the content is the same across all four credentials.

1. Study Plan

A high-level outline of the whole approach, with a section for challenge areas and a section for the things you have to practice rather than read. Identify what you are weak on, put it on the list, and see it every week.

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2. Reading Plan

The reading assignments organized by topic instead of by page order, with page references for RONR (12th ed.), the AIP Standard Code (2d ed.), and Cannon’s. Includes a completion tracker.

Download →

3. Study Questions

Questions and topics gathered from AIP publications. They are not arranged in any particular order, which is the point, and each carries page references to RONR (12th ed.) and the Standard Code.

Download →

4. Blank Precedence Chart

This looks trivial. It is not. I filled out this chart every day while studying for the CPP. It kept the order of precedence instant, and it settled my attention before I started reading. Print several and keep them in a folder.

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5. Precedence Chart Key

The completed chart. Use it to check the blank one, never to fill it in. Rank, vote required, debatability, and amendability for each motion.

Download →
Please share it, within reason. Send this page to anyone preparing for a credential. I would rather people have the link than a forwarded folder of files, because the link stays current and the files do not.

Get Your Books

What to buy, and when

Buy the required authorities for your credential in month one. Add the supplements as you reach the topics that need them.

Required

  • Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 12th ed.
  • Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, 3d ed.
  • AIP Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure, 2d ed. (AIP credentials)
  • Cannon’s Concise Guide to Rules of Order (CPP only)
  • Joint Code of Professional Responsibility for Parliamentarians
  • Professional Practices in Parliamentary Procedure (NAP)
  • Pathways to Proficiency: What to Say When, Script Writing Made Easy, 3d ed. (NAP)

Supplemental and recommended

  • Demeter’s Manual of Parliamentary Law and Procedure
  • Parliamentary Law, by Henry M. Robert
  • Fundamentals of Parliamentary Law and Procedure
  • AIP Study Manual
  • The differences book, for comparing RONR and the Standard Code
  • Notes and Comments on Robert’s Rules
  • Mason’s Manual of Legislative Procedure (legislative bodies)
  • Riddick’s Rules of Procedure

Practice Protocol

What to do every day

The daily drill

  • Complete the blank precedence chart from memory, every morning, before you read anything.
  • Recall rank, vote required, debatability, and amendability for each motion.
  • Check it against the key, or use the scored drill below.
  • Note where RONR and the Standard Code diverge on the same motion.
  • Repetition builds instinct. Instinct is what the oral and simulation formats actually test.

Working questions

  • Write your instinctive answer first, before you look anything up.
  • Research the answer in the authority.
  • Rewrite your answer in the language of the book.
  • Then answer the harder question, which is why the rule is the rule.
  • Questions in random order simulate the unpredictability of both the exam and a live meeting.

Building the record

  • Keep one notebook. Not four, not an app, one notebook.
  • Outline every topic in your own words, organized by topic rather than by book.
  • Record where the authorities agree and where they differ.
  • Track your completion on the reading plan so you can see the gaps.
  • Anything you miss twice belongs on the challenge-area list until it is fixed.

Common challenge areas

  • Calculating a two-thirds vote live, in front of an assembly.
  • The process for filling blanks.
  • Substitute amendments and the order in which they are perfected.
  • Stating the pending question and what comes next, clearly, every time.
  • Votes of the entire membership, and every other basis that is not majority of those present and voting.

Daily Drill

Fill in the precedence chart

Complete the chart from memory, then score it. Type the motion name and set each characteristic. Do this once a day, before you read anything, and track what you miss.

I Can interrupt a speaker S Requires a second A Amendable D Debatable M Vote required R Can be reconsidered
00:00
Rank Motion I S A D M R
Where the shorthand compresses the rule. The chart gives the answer the examination wants. Four cells carry conditions worth knowing.
  • Previous Question, R. Reconsidered only before any vote has been taken under the order, never after the order has been partly executed. RONR (12th ed.), §16:2.
  • Limit or Extend Limits of Debate, R. From an affirmative vote, only an unexpired order may be reconsidered. A negative vote may be reconsidered until it would constitute a new question. RONR (12th ed.), §15:2.
  • Call for the Orders of the Day, M. On the call of a single member the chair enforces it without a vote. It takes a two-thirds vote in the negative to set the orders aside. RONR (12th ed.), §18:2.
  • Point of Order, M and R. The chair rules, but may submit the question to the assembly. It can be reconsidered only where it was submitted to the assembly for a vote. RONR (12th ed.), §23:2.
How it is scored. Seven answers per row, one hundred forty-seven in all. The motion name accepts common variants, so “commit,” “refer,” and “refer to committee” all count. Anything you miss twice belongs on your challenge-area list until it is fixed.

Questions, corrections, or a study group

If you want help building your own plan, or your unit or chapter wants to run a study group against this roadmap, write to me. If you find something on this page that should be fixed, tell me and I will fix it.

cj@cjcavin.com

This process is not endorsed by either credentialing body. It worked for me, and it is not perfect. It is not approved or endorsed by the NAP Commission on Credentialing or the AIP Accrediting Department. If you find a way to improve it, tell me and I will fix it.

Confirm current requirements before you apply. Examination policies, fees, deadlines, required authorities, and activity point schedules are revised periodically and are subject to change without notice. The summaries here reflect the NAP Criteria for Credentialing revised September 28, 2025, and the AIP examination policies and activity points package revised 2024. Verify everything with NAP or AIP before you rely on it.

No legal advice, no attorney-client relationship. C.J. Cavin is a licensed Oklahoma attorney, and nothing on this page is legal advice or an interpretation of any organization’s governing documents. Visiting this page, downloading these materials, or corresponding about them does not create an attorney-client relationship with C.J. Cavin or Cavin Law, PLLC.

RP® and PRP® are registered marks of the National Association of Parliamentarians. CP and CPP are credentials of the American Institute of Parliamentarians. Neither organization is affiliated with Cavin Law, PLLC.

© C.J. Cavin. Cavin Law, PLLC, 13300 N MacArthur Blvd, Oklahoma City, OK 73142.

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About Cavin Law, PLLC.

Cavin Law, PLLC. is a boutique law firm that specializes in corporate governance, parliamentary procedure, and meeting effectiveness.