Want to Become Certified in PMP?
Take These Steps
Project Management Professional (PMP) is a certification for project managers that is offered by the Project Management Institute. It is a globally renowned qualification that can add high value to your profile. If you work in the field of Project Management or are interested to start a career in this field, then this certification will help you get recognized. A Project Management Professional is an essential part of any organization. It is the responsibility of such individuals to oversee any projects that their company starts and ensure that the implementation is done properly. PMP certification will ensure that you are ready to implement the standardized set of industry practices. Take these steps to become certified in PMP.
Checking the Eligibility for Getting PMP Certified
- Before starting your journey to get PMP certified, you should check the eligibility requirements to ensure that you will be able to sit for the PMP exam to get qualified. According to the Project Management Institute, some educational requirements have to be fulfilled to be eligible for this certification. These requirements are:
- A four-year educational degree, a bachelor’s degree with 4500 hours spent in directing and leading projects or,
- Any secondary degree i.e. a high school diploma, that requires 7500 hours of leading and directing projects.
- On fulfilling the eligibility criteria, you will be required to undergo a 35-hour educational training on project management that will cover everything required for the examination.
- On average, it takes approximately three to four months to complete the training and prepare for the examination before sitting for the exam. The preparation time depends on your effort and capability.
Applying for A PMP Certification
Applying for PMP Certification is a simple and easy-to-follow process. Before taking this step, ensure that you clear all the eligibility criteria set for this certification. To apply for a PMP certification online, follow these steps:
- Go to the official website of the Project Management Institute (PMI.org).
- Create a free account on the website.
- Confirm your registration through your email address.
- After confirmation, login to your account.
- Fill the application form available for PMP certification.
- After filling the application form, you will have to submit the proof for the relevant project management experience and the training contact hours.
- Submit the application once all the information has been filled and proof submitted.
- It takes about 5 days to process the PMP certification application.
- Pay the examination fee for the PMP certification.
- Once your application has been approved and fees paid, you can schedule the date of your exam and reserve a spot for yourself.
Cost of Getting A PMP Certification
The costs of getting a PMP certification includes the application fee, the cost for the computer-based exam/ paper-based examination, required for the certification. The cost of application to get a PMP certification is as follows:
Computer Test:
- PMI members – $405
- Non-PMI members – $555
Paper Exam:
- PMI members – $250
- Non-PMI members – $400
Along with the above-mentioned cost, there can be additional costs that cover the training, etc. The total cost of getting a PMP certification can go up to $800 – $1000.
Preparing for the exam
The PMP exam is considered difficult and therefore, requires time as well as effort. Use PMBOK guides, third part PMP textbooks, join PMP exam workshops, enroll for PMP test series to ensure that you are 100% ready to give the exam. On average, you require 180 hours of study to prepare well for the PMP exam.
Giving the PMP Certification Exam
- To clear the PMP exam, you should have a good understanding of what the test entails and how it is structured. A PMP test is made for testing your abilities as a project manager. The exam has 200 multiple-choice questions with four options provided for each question that has to be answered in four hours. The exam has different types of questions to test the abilities of the exam-takers in the best possible way. Therefore, there are six types of questions that are present in the PMP exam:
- Situational questions
- Specific technique questions
- Formula based questions
- Interpretational questions
- Knowledge-based questions
- PMBOK guide knowledge questions
- The difficulty of the exam is often high to ensure the standards of the exam and the institutions. To clear this exam and get a PMP certification, you will be required to study the material provided in the PMBOK guide along with all the supplementary material available for preparation. Taking quizzes and mock tests will help you understand the structure of the exam and would prepare you for the final exam. Reading the material properly and finding methods to implement it practically will help you clear the exam.
- To clear the PMP certification exam, you will be required to correctly answer at least 175 questions out of the 200 multiple-choice questions that appear in the exam. The left-over 25 questions are known as the ‘pre-test’ questions will not be easily identifiable as they would be scattered among the other 175 questions. It is advisable to attempt and answer all the 200 questions in the exam to ensure that there is no room for error.
- The scoring of the questions is done according to the difficulty level of the questions. Therefore, if you get an easy question, the passing score determinant will be higher and if you get a difficult question, the passing score determinant will be lower.
- All candidates will get different questions in different orders.
- PMP certification can be taken three times in a year and your application for the exam will be eligible for one year only. If you were not able to clear the exam in your first attempt, you will have two more chances within that year. If you cannot clear the exam in your third attempt, you will have to wait for another year to appear for the exam again. For all the three attempts in the year, you will be required to pay the exam fee, and your application will be reviewed and approved every time. In such a case, you will not have to compulsorily take the training course once again.
