New CCSA & CCSE exams, Exam Prep Guides & Exam Retirements notice!

[Jason_Tugwell]

We are excited to announce the release of a the new R82 CCSA and CCSE exams!

• 156-215.82 – Check Point Certified Security Administrator – R82 (CCSA)

• 156-315.82 - Check Point Certified Security Expert – R82 (CCSE)

• 156-609 - Check Point Certified Security Administrator R82 - Practice

• 156-610 - Check Point Certified Security Expert R82 – Practice

Additionally, to assist in preparing for the new CCSA and CCSE exams, we are releasing a free Exam Prep Guide for each exam!

• CCSA Exam Prep Guide
• CCSE Exam Prep Guide

The Exam Prep Guides are not a substitute to the class course documentation, but  will assist the candidate to:

• Understand the exam details (prerequisites, number of questions, etc.)
• Ensure their Pearson VUE and User Center email accounts are aligned
• Know how to schedule the exam and choose a delivery option
• Outline each module of the exam
• Provide next steps after exam completion

In conjunction with the new exam announcements, we will be retiring previous versions of the CCSA and CCSE on this schedule:

Retire December 31, 2025

• 156-215.81 – Check Point Certified Security Administrator R81 – Japanese Only

• 156-315.81 - Check Point Certified Security Expert R81 – Japanese Only

Retire June 30, 2026

• 156-215.81.20 – Check Point Certified Security Administrator R81.20

• 156-315.81.20 - Check Point Certified Security Expert R81.20

All exams are on Pearson VUE.

These new certifications are great way to level-up your skills and build the expertise the world's most secure organizations demand.

Go get Check Point Certified today!

[the_rock]

Yes sir!

[Sven_Ott]

Which exam would you currently recommend, R82 or R81.20?

[Don_Paterson]

Why do you ask?

R82 seems to be the obvious answer but it depends on the individual candidate.

Both will give the candidate a 2 year certification period after they pass the exam.

Some people may have sat on the R81.20 CCSA class as recently as last week or last month.

That would mean that they would have the R81.20 CCSA book, which is the exam preparation material.

In their case the CCSA R81.20 makes more sense.

The FAQ will be updated soon I am sure, and then the student can confirm that the R82 CCSE is an option (for learning/course and achieving the CCSE Certification) after passing R81.20 CCSA. 

https://support.checkpoint.com/results/sk/sk163417 

The R81.20 courses are no longer being sold/available. They are 'end of life' tomorrow, 31 October 2025.

EDIT: CORRECTION: R81.20 Exams are available until June 2026. I misread the message.

R81.20 exams are still available until the end of the year June 2026 (as above, and when it does indeed seem fair to EOL them), although I think that is too soon because it gives students just 2 months (from now) to prepare and pass those exams.

The courses focus on the tasks of the Admin and Expert, which carry over into the exam.

There are a few significant changes in the new courses, and therefore exams. But at their core they are the same, for the most part.

Tim has captured the difference nicely here:

https://community.checkpoint.com/t5/Training-and-Certification/CCSA-R81-20-vs-CCSA-R82/m-p/254426#M3...

Leaving the course descriptions in here for reference.

[the_rock]

I would say latest ones are always better, regardless of the vendor.

[Don_Paterson]

That's a broad statement.

The study material is acquired by attending the course for the majority.

That can be a deciding factor for some. Consider the differences in the two courses is quite significant this time around (between R81.20 and R82)

R81.20 is still supported until November 2026 and some customers admins may prefer to keep that in focus if something is holding them back from going to R82. They may have also already invested in R81.20 training in the last 6 to 12 months.

It really does come down to the individual. That is until R82 exams are the only option.

https://www.checkpoint.com/support-services/support-life-cycle-policy/#software-support 

[the_rock]

Yea, true 🙂

[Don_Paterson]

Hands up, who's still running R77.30... 😉

[the_rock]

NOT me 🙌

[juergen_wollert]

I have CCSE R77.30 😀

[the_rock]

I think my first CP exams were R60 ccsa and ccse lol

[PhoneBoy]

I got my first Check Point certifications for version 2.1.
Pretty sure @Timothy_Hall did about the same. 😉

[the_rock]

Let me take a wild guess and say this was years when Bill Clinton was President? 🙂

[PhoneBoy]

During his first term, in fact.

[the_rock]

That was time when I could hold basic conversation in English, thank God for amazing English teacher we had...gotta love teachers 😊

[Timothy_Hall]

3.0b for me, but close enough.