Matthew WellsPM III| DematicWest Chester, Oh, United States
What is the best approach to pass the PMP on my first attempt, it has always been difficult for me to retain info. Any tips on both topics? Saving Changes...
Read Rita's book "PMP Exam Prep", another good resource is Andy Crowe's book "The PMP Exam - How to pass on your first try", cross reference with the PMBOK, do simulation exams (as many as you can without repeating more than a couple of times each) and get a score of at least 80%, create some flash cards which will help you with retain information, read all tasks in the process group tables in the "PMP Examination Content Outline" pdf on the PMI website, as that will give you a good idea of what will be tested. Saving Changes...
Thank you Sante, I too will be taking my PMP later in the year so very useful info. I agree flash cards are a great idea, I also find writing down the key points a few times assists me with retaining info. Saving Changes...
RAJESH K LProject Manager, PMP| Bharat Electronics, Bengaluru, IndiaBengaluru, Karnataka, India
Focus on concepts; understand them thoroughly. Use of flash cards, notes etc are only for revising/remembering what u have learnt.
2 to 3 hrs study per day for 2 months is good to complete study.
Any book is Ok. But read PMBOK at least once.
Next 1 month spend time on taking online tests. Saving Changes...
Markus KopkoAI Enabler for Project & Program Mgmt | Founder PMotion.ai / The PM
AI Coach| PMotion.aiHamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Hi Matthew,
regarding your first question please refer to my :
PMP®: Getting “Project Management Professional (PMP)® in 5 Steps
Joining this program makes double sense for you cause we just added a 3,000+ word article called: How can You Get the Best from Your Project Management Learning?
Exactly what you have asked for, i guess ...;)
Regards,
Markus Saving Changes...
Deepesh RammoorthyICT Project Manager ( PMP®AgilePM®Certified ScrumMaster® (CSM®))| Australian Red Cross Blood ServiceTarneit, Vic, Australia
Online Simulation Exams that put you in the Real examination scenario like PM PrepCast . The one suggested above by Markus Klein helped me immensely.
PMBOK guide - Please read twice, Go through it once, reading like a novel to understand concepts and then read Rita and HeadFirst to understand all concepts in detail. It is very important for you to visualize and apply some of the things that you read in your day to day work.
Work hard 2 hours a day and more on the weekends for 3-4 months. Don't memorize but try to understand how the process groups and processes interact.
After giving a mock test, go back and check the answers that you got wrong against the PMBOK guide. Then do some more study and attempt another test
Just like Progressive Elaboration of Planning as mentioned in the PMBOK, your study should be a progressive elaboration. Study ...Mock.. check answers.....Study....Mock...check answers........until you consistently start getting 80% in exams and also finish before time.
The concepts , process groups and knowledge areas will start dancing before your eyes and all the pieces will start falling into place by themselves....
The next time you read the PMBOK guide , you will know and understand exactly what you could not , in your first glance.
Finally , attend a good quality Training Course - FACE to FACE where the instructor can give you tips and mock tests on focus areas for the exam.
I just finished my exam last week so maybe I can give some "fresh, hands on" insights.
What I used:
1. PMBOK - as mentioned above
2. Head First PMP - 3rd Edition -- This book really helped as it is more interactive and that's what I need. If I studied to much with the PMBOK it is hard for me to focus and stay on the topic. I liked the Head First language and interactive parts for that matter best.
3. Simplilearn - I bought the instructor lead package/ Online Classroom Flexi-Pass and attended the classes to earn the necessary PDU to apply for the exam with PMI. I liked simplilearn as it is - thanks to instructors - an online classroom with real people to ask questions and not just you and the book. I think it was totally worth the money.
4. I wrote my own summary out of all the above and while doing plenty of questions captured a "lessons learned" and reviewed every single questions - not just the ones I got wrong but also made sure why the correct one are correct.
5. I made my own process overview/ flow chart with all ITTOs and that helped a lot for the big picture and how everything goes together.
6. I checked: https://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/...xam-outline.pdf (PMI Exam Outline). Some questions might refer to it and sometimes the wording can be somewhat the same in the answers, then it is very important to know the "proper" answer.
Where I found questions:
1. Head First comes with some at the end of each chapter and a big practice test at the end of the book
2. Simplilearn includes 5 practice tests no matter which version you buy, including explanations
3. PM challenge here on the website: it's pretty good for warming up, just don't get confused by the Agile related questions
Last hint of advice: Try to finish this year as there will be a new PMBOK in September and then the exam and everything around it will change Spring 2018.
Maybe some questions to ask your self and make a plan:
1. How many hours do you plan on studying every day/ how many days a week? e.g. one practice test takes about 4h if you do it at once
2. What's your timeline? you write 4 months, but how long do you plan on each task / book you want to read? How much for studying and not just reading, like writing notes or making flash cards etc.?
3. Where or how do you plan to get the PDUs from that are required to even apply at PMI?
4. Did you get confirmation from PMI already to actually take the test?
5. Where and how do you plan on taking the test? Paper? Computer? I struggled a lot to find a computer based test center in China and had to go all the way to Hong Kong to do it. This had a big impact on my budget and timeline...
Let me know if you have further questions!
Happy studying! Saving Changes...
You mention you find it hard to retain. The best way to retain is familiarity and familiarity comes from repetition or practice. Read PMBOK 2 times, 3 if you need to but then take interactive excercises/ exams/ quizes to test your understanding. This is particularly important for those candidates who have not practiced project management for a long time. You can read the various books if that helps but not only PMBOK is a concise and comprehensive resource some of these books like Heldmann and Rita are quite wordy. It takes a lot of time to go through those materials. Retention is inversely proportional to time.
Having said that, not all learning styles fit everyone so find what's the best way you 'understand' a concept and what methods help you retain it. Attempting questions and from different sources (this is important for variety of presentations of information,and style & tone of questioning) will help you draw upon your memory. Like Tina said, do make sure you review explanations of both your correct answers ( this will help you see how you reached a correct answer and how the author did using principles and basics - I found there was more to arriving to the correct answer) as well as incorrect. Read some academic papers.on risk, stakeholder management, quality etc. This will provide depth to your understanding which in turn will help with long term retention.
Though it seems you are planning four months of prep - my recommendation is do focused intensive study and shorten your prep duration, especially in view of retention issue you mentioned.
Also engaging in discussion of PMBOK materials/ concepts with study buddies or peers will enhance retention and understanding.
Wish a you the very best. Let us know of your success or if you have additional questions. Saving Changes...
Praveen MalikIndependent Consultant| Independent ConsultantNew Delhi, India
How To Pass PMP In The First Attempt? Pass PMP In The First Attempt You should imbibe all the points written in the above article. One should understand what what should be done and what should be avoided. Some of the important points written in he article are: Attend a formal training course Read the PMBOK Guide Do not overtly rely on free sources (although some free sources are good). The article also give valuable study sources and suggestion to pass the exam in first attempt. You can visit the following link and download free PMP Exam Prep guide. Complete PMP ExamPrep Guide This guide gives complete information about PMP Exam, including: - Eligibility Criteria for the PMP Exam - Pros & cons of different modes of training - Study approach to pass the exam in first attempt - Suggested PMP exam preparation schedule - Recommended study material for the exam prep
