I'm preparing to take my PMP exam for my PMP certification this January, I've heard that the application for this exam is difficult - taking up to 2 weeks to fill out??? I prepared a document of some of my program management experiences hoping to find out what format is needed, but I can't seem to find out what the formatting requirements are before I actually apply. I still need to complete my 35 hours of course work before I apply. Any resources out there to help me prepare for the application process? Saving Changes...
2 weeks is quite excessive. It really comes down to how many projects you intend to submit to meet the experiential requirements. If you are just claiming one large project and have the basic information about it, you might complete the application within one hour. If you have lots of little projects, it will definitely take longer.
The info is all entered into an online web form so there's no special formatting required.
Just make sure that you have supporting evidence for your project submissions in case your application gets audited.
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Angela, if it was the PgMP or the PfMP, then I would say 2 weeks is reasonable but for the PMP, it takes couple of hours at most to complete the application and it is not that complex unless they recently changed it. I think you are also limited with the amount of words you can enter for each project (500 words maybe). Just like Kiron said, make sure you have supporting evidence in case audited and when you fill in your experience make sure to use PMI's terminology.
For courses, check Joseph Phillips courses on Udemy. He is a PMI ATP, and his courses are self-paced and for a very affordable fee.
Hope this helps. Good Luck!
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1 reply by Angela Schans
Oct 19, 2024 9:18 AM
Angela Schans
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Helpful! Thanks!
Saving Changes...
Karo OkiPlanning Coordinator | Program Management and Data Analytics Professional| Infrastructure OntarioWaterloo, Ontario, Canada
Hey Angela, I wouldn't say the application is difficult provided you have program management experience already. When you do apply, you will have to tailor your job description to project management experiences and key thing is to make sure your roles are all project management titles and your experiences contain projects with start and finish dates.
Once you're able to practice with 3-4 exams under exam conditions, you're more than ready Saving Changes...
Michael WellesManaging Director| EdWel Project and Risk Management TrainingChicago, Il, United States
Hi Angels, we suggest that you adhere to the IPECC process model when describing your project experience (initiate, plan, execute, control, and close). To describe your role during the Control process, you may write something like "Monitoring and Controlling: Tracked and reviewed progress. Reported project performance. Controlled quality, scope, schedule, budget. Integrated change control." Just be aware that there is no need to cover each process in your descriptions. There might be a project where you played no role in the Close process as an example. Saving Changes...
2 weeks is quite excessive. It really comes down to how many projects you intend to submit to meet the experiential requirements. If you are just claiming one large project and have the basic information about it, you might complete the application within one hour. If you have lots of little projects, it will definitely take longer.
The info is all entered into an online web form so there's no special formatting required.
Just make sure that you have supporting evidence for your project submissions in case your application gets audited.
Angela, if it was the PgMP or the PfMP, then I would say 2 weeks is reasonable but for the PMP, it takes couple of hours at most to complete the application and it is not that complex unless they recently changed it. I think you are also limited with the amount of words you can enter for each project (500 words maybe). Just like Kiron said, make sure you have supporting evidence in case audited and when you fill in your experience make sure to use PMI's terminology.
For courses, check Joseph Phillips courses on Udemy. He is a PMI ATP, and his courses are self-paced and for a very affordable fee.
Hope this helps. Good Luck!
Helpful! Thanks! Saving Changes...
Aleksandar VukovicAgile Project Manager| Toyota Motor CorporationMelbourne, Victoria, Australia
Hi Angela,
both Andrew Ramdayal's and David McLachlan's Udemy acredited 35hr exam prep courses have a section that covers the application and a template you can use.
If you provide the template to chatGPT for example and provide the project details it will generate descriptions for the application for each project. It worked for me :)
I was in the same boat a few months back and honestly, I have ADHD and was super nervous about the whole PMP application process. I had so much self-doubt and kept second-guessing whether I should even go for the PMP. Like some others have mentioned, it can definitely take longer if you’ve got a bunch of projects to list and I had quite a few of them myself with lots of overlaps so I was very confused how to even show all the projects.
what saved me was finding this guide/help that walked me through how to write the project descriptions in PMI’s language. This guy showed how to break everything down across the five process groups, which made it feel so much more manageable. Thankfully, i got approved and I can’t even describe the relief. Here’s the resource I used if it helps you too: https://www.careersprints.com/pmp-application-review
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