- CHA is the Crossover Hiring Assessment, built on Criteria's CCAT: 50 questions in 15 minutes.
- It covers three domains only: verbal reasoning, math and logic, and spatial reasoning.
- 35/50 is the most common minimum threshold; 43/50 or higher is considered excellent.
- Calculators are banned, pen and paper are allowed, and wrong answers cost you nothing.
What CHA Certification Actually Is
CHA stands for Crossover Hiring Assessment, the screening test Crossover uses to evaluate applicants before they reach interviews. It isn't a professional credential you frame on a wall or add letters after your name - it's a cognitive-aptitude gate built around Criteria's Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT). If you've searched for what the acronym means in the context of remote hiring, this is the correct definition: a scored, timed reasoning assessment, not a certification body with membership dues or continuing-education requirements.
Because the term "CHA" is reused across unrelated industries, it's worth being precise: this article, and this site, only cover the Crossover Hiring Assessment. If you landed here from a search about a different CHA credential, the facts below won't transfer - the two have nothing in common beyond the initials.
For a deeper dive into terminology and how the name gets used across job listings, see What Is CHA? and CHA Meaning.
Why Crossover Uses This Assessment
Crossover hires remotely at scale, often across dozens of countries and job families at once. Interviewing every applicant individually isn't feasible, so the company front-loads its funnel with a standardized cognitive-aptitude stage. The CHA lets recruiters compare candidates on a single numeric scale before a human ever reviews a resume in depth.
This matters for how you should prepare. Because the assessment measures general reasoning speed and accuracy rather than job-specific knowledge, memorizing trivia about a target role won't move your score. What moves your score is fluency with the exact question types the test uses - which is why understanding the domains matters more than generic "test-taking tips."
The Three CHA Exam Domains
The CHA draws its 50 questions from three domains. Crossover does not publish a fixed split of how many questions come from each domain, but candidates consistently report all three appearing throughout the 15-minute window, mixed rather than grouped into sections.
Domain 1: Verbal Reasoning
Tests your ability to parse written statements, identify logical relationships, and draw valid conclusions quickly under time pressure.
- Sentence-based logic and inference questions
- Analogies and word-relationship problems
- Reading short passages and answering with limited re-reading time
Domain 2: Math and Logic
Covers numerical reasoning, word problems, ratios, sequences, and pattern-based logic - all without a calculator.
- Arithmetic and percentage word problems solvable with mental math or scratch paper
- Number sequences and pattern completion
- Basic algebra and logical deduction puzzles
Domain 3: Spatial Reasoning
Measures your ability to visualize and manipulate shapes, rotations, and spatial relationships without physical models.
- Shape rotation and mirror-image identification
- Pattern folding and 3D visualization
- Identifying the "odd one out" among similar figures
Each domain rewards a different kind of practice, and none of them rewards memorized facts. For a full breakdown of question subtypes and how they're weighted in practice, read the CHA Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 3 Content Areas.
Format, Timing, and Rules
The initial CHA is a free online assessment: 50 multiple-choice questions, 15 minutes total, taken remotely on your own device. That works out to roughly 18 seconds per question on average, which is why pacing - not just accuracy - determines your final number.
- Question count: 50 multiple-choice questions
- Time limit: 15 minutes for the full test
- Calculators: prohibited
- Scratch materials: pen and paper are allowed
- Penalty for wrong answers: none - an incorrect answer scores the same as a skipped one
- Score validity: your score badge remains valid for six months
- Retake policy: unsuccessful candidates must wait six months before retesting
Key Takeaway
Because wrong answers carry no penalty, guessing on a question you can't solve in time is always better than leaving it blank. Never let one hard question stall your pace through the remaining 49.
For the exact registration and retake mechanics, including how the six-month waiting period interacts with new job applications, see CHA Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify and CHA Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.
Scoring Thresholds and What Counts as Passing
Unlike many credentialing exams, the CHA doesn't have one universal passing score. Crossover sets thresholds per role, so the bar for a data-heavy engineering position may differ from a client-facing operations role. That said, there are consistent reference points worth knowing.
| Score Range | What It Signals |
|---|---|
| 24/50 | Reported average score across test-takers |
| 35/50 | Most common minimum threshold Crossover sets for roles |
| 43/50 or higher | Considered an excellent score |
Because 35/50 sits well above the 24/50 average, passing typically requires performing above the median test-taker, not merely average performance. This is exactly why generic "just take the test cold" advice underperforms for most candidates. A closer look at how thresholds vary by role and what your score badge unlocks is available in CHA Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass and CHA Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows.
The Proctored Follow-Up: PCCAT
Passing the initial CHA doesn't end the cognitive-testing process for finalists. Candidates who advance far enough in Crossover's pipeline retake the same 50-question test under live proctoring, known as the PCCAT. This stage exists to verify that the unsupervised score reflects the candidate's actual ability.
- Government-issued photo ID verification before starting
- A computer webcam active for the full session
- A second camera device positioned to show your hands, desk, and surroundings
- A workspace scan confirming no unauthorized materials or people are present
Since the PCCAT uses the identical question format and domains as the initial test, everything you learn preparing for verbal reasoning, math and logic, and spatial reasoning applies directly to both stages.
Who Actually Requires the CHA
The CHA is specific to Crossover's own hiring pipeline. It appears at the application stage for a wide range of remote roles the company staffs - from technical and engineering positions to operations, sales, and management tracks - because Crossover applies the same cognitive-aptitude filter across most of its job families rather than writing role-specific reasoning tests.
If you're evaluating whether investing prep time is worthwhile relative to the roles you're targeting, it helps to look at the actual job listings that reference the assessment and the cost of preparing well versus the cost of a six-month retake delay. See CHA Jobs for context on where the assessment shows up in practice, and CHA Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown and Is the CHA Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 for a fuller cost-benefit picture.
Building a Domain-by-Domain Prep Schedule
Because the CHA rewards speed and pattern recognition more than deep subject knowledge, a short, focused prep window beats months of unstructured review. The structure below assumes roughly three weeks, with each week isolating one domain before a final week of mixed, timed practice - the same mix you'll face on test day.
Verbal Reasoning Foundations
- Drill short-passage inference questions under a strict per-question timer
- Practice analogy and word-relationship problems daily in short bursts
- Track average seconds per question, not just accuracy
Math and Logic Without a Calculator
- Rebuild mental-math speed for percentages, ratios, and basic algebra
- Practice number sequences and pattern-completion sets with pen and paper only
- Time yourself on word problems to simulate the 18-second-per-question pace
Spatial Reasoning and Full Simulations
- Practice shape rotation and folding problems using visualization, not physical objects
- Run full 50-question, 15-minute simulations to build stamina
- Review missed questions by domain to spot which section is dragging your score down
Crossover officially endorses only its own guide and 12minprep as legitimate third-party preparation; this site does not claim affiliation with Crossover and does not reproduce live exam questions. For a structured walkthrough of what to study and in what order, see the CHA Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt and the condensed CHA Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts. You can also run realistic, timed practice sets on the main practice test site to get comfortable with the 15-minute pace before attempt day.
If you're still deciding how much difficulty to expect relative to your own reasoning speed, How Hard Is the CHA Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 breaks down where most candidates lose points across the three domains.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not in the traditional sense. The Crossover Hiring Assessment is a hiring-stage cognitive test, not a professional credential with a governing body or renewal cycle. Passing it opens the door to further interview stages with Crossover rather than granting a standalone qualification.
The CHA has 50 multiple-choice questions to complete in 15 minutes, covering verbal reasoning, math and logic, and spatial reasoning.
Crossover sets thresholds by role, but 35/50 is the most common minimum, while 43/50 or higher is considered excellent. The reported average score is 24/50, so passing generally means performing above average.
No. Calculators are prohibited, though pen and paper are allowed for working through math and logic problems by hand.
Unsuccessful candidates must wait six months before retaking the assessment. Since your passing score badge is also only valid for six months once earned, timing your attempt relative to specific job openings matters.