what is the best path to train for the PMP certification exam
Daniel PastorSr IT Project Manager| PwCMonterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
I began my study plan detailed below, please let me know of your opinion if you think thats enough to pass on the 1st attempt or should I include another activity. All feedback is more than welcome.
Study Plan:
1) Read and study Rita´s PMP Prep Book
2) Complete the "PM Challenge" badges all the way to Guru badge
3) Take an online 35 PDU PMP course to refresh the theory terms
4) Invest on the Exam Simulator Fast Track that they recommend on Rita´s book
5) Take the test once I feel I have mastered the Simulator
James ShieldsIS Director - Portfolio Solutions| City and County of San Francisco, SFPDSan Francisco, Ca, United States
Generally, looks good … but with a few comments:
I'm not so sure about the PM Challenge. I thought it was based on PMBOK 5th edition. Hopefully, others weighing-in will comment on this.
Also, the Rita book should be read through at least twice. And, although it is a bit challenging, you should also read the PMBOK, 6th edition.
Keep in mind the PMP exam changes in July 2020 -- but by 'how much', I'm not really sure. It is still based on the PMBOK 6th edition, but will cover agile and hybrid approaches. Therefore, you will need to also include in your study plan PMI's 'Agile Practice Guide' if you seat the exam in July 2020 or later. Saving Changes...
It depends on your experience level. If you have significant career experience, much of the prep is adapting what you know to the way the PMBoK defines and organizes the knowledge.
I agree with James that the PM challenge may offer dubious benefit but others may think otherwise. I had taken a recent courses which qualified, and then found multiple practice exams to figure out where my knowledge was lacking and focused there. I found that a better use of time than reading hundreds of pages several times.
Personally, I frequently found it confusing why they placed some subjects under a specific knowledge area in the PMBoK rather than others, and memorizing the various formulas for things like EVM was important since I rarely do hand calculations anymore. Saving Changes...
Thomas WalentaGlobal Project Economy ExpertHackenheim, Germany
Daniel
I would suggest 1. Make PMBoK your guiding book instead of Rita 2. make a plan, in which week you want to read which section of the PMBoK/Rita - this provides a structured approach and for monitoring your progress 3. get a set of ed 6 questions for each of the PMBoK sections and repeat them until you have 90% correct. The ones you have problems have the topics you should learn
PMChallenge is OK, but too unstructured and not all questions cover ed 6. You need a better/more focused question bank.
There is no 35 PDU PMP course. If you still prepare for PMP, you are not entitled to gain PDUs. Providers selling such are cheating or incompetent. What you need is any project management course with 35 contact hours.
You must download the PMP handbook and the ECO (exam content outline).
Good luck. Saving Changes...
Angela Sharpe, PMP Instructor | Coastal Carolina Community College Jacksonville, Nc, United States
With the PMP exam changing next year, are there templates and practice questions available yet for the new format? I ask because I will be mentoring/teaching junior PM's and I want to ensure I use the new information. Any feedback from those who have seen the new information (Agile and hybrid practice questions if available) would be awesome....
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2 replies by Angela Sharpe, PMP and Kiron Bondale
Sep 27, 2019 3:53 PM
Kiron Bondale
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Angela -
It will take PMI REPs a bit of time to update their materials based on the magnitude of the published changes. That is one of the likely reasons that PMI pushed the date of the switchover to July 1, 2020 from the original December 15, 2019 date.
Kiron
Sep 27, 2019 3:58 PM
Angela Sharpe, PMP
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Thank you Kiron, we are planning course for March time frame, but I was never one to wait...
With the PMP exam changing next year, are there templates and practice questions available yet for the new format? I ask because I will be mentoring/teaching junior PM's and I want to ensure I use the new information. Any feedback from those who have seen the new information (Agile and hybrid practice questions if available) would be awesome....
Angela -
It will take PMI REPs a bit of time to update their materials based on the magnitude of the published changes. That is one of the likely reasons that PMI pushed the date of the switchover to July 1, 2020 from the original December 15, 2019 date.
Kiron Saving Changes...
Angela Sharpe, PMP Instructor | Coastal Carolina Community College Jacksonville, Nc, United States
Sep 27, 2019 3:46 PM
Replying to Angela Sharpe, PMP
...
With the PMP exam changing next year, are there templates and practice questions available yet for the new format? I ask because I will be mentoring/teaching junior PM's and I want to ensure I use the new information. Any feedback from those who have seen the new information (Agile and hybrid practice questions if available) would be awesome....
Thank you Kiron, we are planning course for March time frame, but I was never one to wait... Saving Changes...
elisabete monteiroManager Management and Consulting| AccentureNew York, Ny, United States
Hi Daniel,
I think it is a good plan! I passed today on my second attempt and here are my lessons learned:
Do not rely only on the course material, you need to read all PMBok Guide at least once
As you progress on the exam simulator, always go back to PMBok guide to understand better the questions you didn't get right, even if the course gives you the answer, this worked very well for me because you take the simulator as a study guide.
I did the course PMTraining but I also did one course from Linkedin which was very helpful.
I took the PM Challenge badges one day before the test just to relax from the material and test myself. It is fun, but not a way to study because the questions at the challenge are simpler and objective while in the test the questions are mostly situation based.
For me it was important and made a difference on the second time to stop every 50 questions to take a breath and stretch.
Good luck!!! Saving Changes...
Daniel PastorSr IT Project Manager| PwCMonterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
thank you all for your comments and valuable feedback. I will adjust my study plan accordingly Saving Changes...
Sylvester JemigbeyiProject Development Specialist| Glo Mobile GhanaLagos, Nigeria
Hi Dan,
Materials and methodologies have been proffered and not so many divergent opinions surfaced. You are on your way to a big bang at first attempt.
I did find Rita book very, very useful...one attempt and that was it, Year 2013! I suggest you digest the book at least twice to see open doors of proficiency in the knowledge areas. Good success! Saving Changes...
Collins AlugaQuantity Surveyor| MCK Contract Services LtdNairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
Your plan is great,I used the same during my time and it worked.All the best in your exams Saving Changes...
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