OSEPOffensive Security Experienced Penetration Tester
Created per CertMap methodology · About the editorial team → · Official page ↗
▾ Jump to …6 sections
What is OSEP?
OffSec's OSEP certifies advanced penetration testing skills. The exam runs for 48 hours, is purely hands-on and is proctored throughout in a private VPN: candidates compromise multiple machines on a simulated corporate network, some of them through multi-step attack chains, and report the vulnerabilities they find. There are no formal prerequisites; OffSec recommends having taken PEN-200 and passed the OSCP+, or holding equivalent knowledge and skills. No standalone exam product exists: access runs through the bundle of the PEN-300 course plus one exam attempt at 1,749 USD as a one-time payment with 90 days of access. The certification does not expire.
Suitable for
Quick facts
CertMap assessment & background
The OSEP addresses a narrower group than an entry-level credential: OffSec positions holders as advanced penetration testers and counts it as one of the three certifications that combine into the stacked OSCE3 designation. The hard part is not admission, there are no formal prerequisites, but the run-up: OffSec recommends PEN-200 and a passed OSCP+. The limit is in the purchase. There is no standalone exam product, so the lowest price including the exam is the bundle at 1,749 USD with 90 days of access, plus possible US state taxes. Upkeep, by contrast, costs nothing, because the OSEP does not expire and carries neither an annual fee nor a CPE obligation. Anyone who needs an externally accredited certification will not find one here.
More on CertMap editorial methodology →Cost, prerequisites, exam & renewal
Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites. OffSec recommends that learners have taken PEN-200 and passed the OSCP+, or hold equivalent knowledge and skills; the course itself is explicitly not a formal admission requirement. Candidates are expected to be comfortable with operating systems, TCP/IP networking, scripting in Python or Bash and basic exploit development.
Exam format
The OSEP exam runs for 48 hours and is proctored throughout by an OffSec employee in a private VPN. It is purely hands-on against a simulated corporate network: candidates compromise multiple machines on one large network, some requiring multiple exploitation steps, others fully exploitable remotely, and report the vulnerabilities they find.
Renewal & maintenance
The OSEP does not expire. OffSec states in the course FAQ that, unlike OSCP+, OSIR and OSTH, it carries no expiry date, and it is absent from the list of certifications whose maintenance the Annual Membership Program covers. There is no expiring plus variant. No annual fee, no recertification cycle and no CPE requirement apply.
CertMap score and matching roles
Rating
Schema quality 1/3: documented but vendor-run process, with no accreditation on record. Practice evidence 3/3: 48 hour proctored hands-on exam against a simulated corporate network. Maintenance 0/3: no published revision cycle and no dated revision of the exam content. Market recognition 2/3: visible through OSCE3 and public sector customers, but evidenced by provider sources only.
Matching NICE roles
About OffSec
OffSec is the commercial provider of the PEN-300 course and issues the OSEP. The exam is sold only bundled with course access: 1,749 USD as a one-time payment for 90 days of access, labs and a single exam attempt, with a note that US state taxes may apply. Permanent and expiring certifications sit side by side in the portfolio. The Annual Membership Program covers maintenance for the expiring designations OSCP+, OSAI+, OSCC-SEC, OSCC-SJD, OSTH and OSIR; its 145 USD annual fee does not apply to the OSEP. OffSec also awards the stacked OSCE3 designation to holders of the OSEP, OSWE and OSED. Customers named by OffSec include US armed forces units.
More certifications
From OffSec
OSAI+OffSec AI Security ProfessionalOSCC-SECOffSec CyberCore Certified - Security EssentialsOSCC-SJDOffSec CyberCore Certified - Secure Java Development EssentialsOSCE3Offensive Security Certified Expert 3OSCPOffensive Security Certified ProfessionalOSCP+OffSec
In Pentesting / Red Team
CEHEC Council Certified Ethical HackerCPENTEC Council Certified Penetration Testing ProfessionalECESEC Council Certified Encryption SpecialisteCPPTINE Security Certified Professional Penetration TestereJPTINE Security Junior Penetration TestereMAPTINE Security Mobile Application Penetration Tester
From the knowledge base
View all articles →CISSP or CISM? Two Careers, One Decision
Both require five years of experience, both cost roughly the same at first glance. Yet CISSP and CISM lead to different professions. The comparison with the numbers that course providers don't show.
CISM or CISA? Two ISACA paths, one directional decision
Both come from ISACA, both require five years of experience, and both cost almost the same. The difference is not the price but the role: managing or auditing. The comparison with the numbers and the role mapping.
CC or Security+? The Free Entry Point and the Job-Market Classic
Both are entry-level certifications with no admission barrier, both cover the fundamentals of cybersecurity, and yet they stand for different strategies: one as a low-threshold, temporarily free start, the other as an established credential with weight in the job market. The comparison with the numbers and the opposing cost logic.