10 Best Tips To Pass The PMP Exam On First Try
“How to pass the PMP exam
on the first try”?
Is that the reason you landed on
this blog post?
In either case, the reason
you are here is because you desire to be a Project Management Professional
PMP. And just like many out there, including me, you want to attempt the PMP
exam and give it your best shot to crack it on your first attempt!
First things first, this post
will walk you through my personal journey on how, I, in particular, approached
the PMP exam. It does not necessarily advocate the ONLY best practices out
there. But it shall rather walk you through the usual works of how to go about
getting yourself PMP certified from my perspective. It would also be a
good idea to first go through the PMP Handbook as a first pass review
to get yourself familiar. Again, I would urge you to also explore and find
your own style of learning, preparing and approaching the PMP as you embark
upon this journey. All along the way you can always keep coming back to this
post to refer to any tips and tricks which you might feel shall benefit you.
The idea to pen down this
information is due to the fact that I personally took help of many such blog
posts to prepare myself. Thus, I am going to try and give you abundant
information on the PMP application process, PMI membership,
PMP exam prep, reading materials, tests, strategies and other tips and
tricks! Anytime you feel overwhelmed with the flow of knowledge in this post or
get tired reading the long text, take a break, drink some water, and come back
and re-focus. After all, the end result of being a certified Project
Management Professional is going to take away all the pain that you went
through!
PS: If you would like to jump
straight to the “10 Best Tips To Pass The PMP Exam On First Try” – then scroll
to the bottom of the post and skip the preparation journey aspect of this blog
post!
PMI Membership
If you are going to be a
certified PMP, you might as well become a member of the prestigious PMI organization.
The benefits are manifold as indicated here. You not only
gain access to their knowledge database but also get an opportunity to interact
with other PMPs within your chapter. For ease of comparison following table
indicates if you do become a member eventually you end up paying $11 less for
your examination fees. Plus you also entail the benefits of being involved with
the PMI organization.
PMI Membership Fees
|
$139
|
|
CBT Test Fees
|
Member
|
$405
|
Non-member
|
$555
|
|
Reexamination CBT Fees
|
Member
|
$275
|
Non-member
|
$375
|
|
Total Fees
|
Member
|
$544
|
Non-member
|
$555
|
PMP Exam Application Process
While I was working on this post,
I had originally planned to describe the PMP exam application process in here.
But then I created a separate blog post since the application is a project in
itself and best be explained separately. Click Here to
read about the PMP Exam Application Process in detail and how you can avoid an
audit for the same.
PMP Exam Prep
Diving right into the crux of how
one should approach the PMP exam I will highlight a few important guidelines on
how I prepared myself.
§ Time commitment – I took a total of 3 months to prepare for the PMP. I
work full-time and so I used to study approximately 2-3 hours every day. During
my last 3-4 weeks I bumped it up to 4-5 hours a day. During my last few days I
went on to read at-least 6-8 hours a day.
§ Initial Approach – I used to read one chapter every day, attempt a few
questions on that chapter and write down my notes from that chapter. I would
highlight a few points which I feel were important for that chapter and make a
quick reference guide.
§ Final Approach – As I moved closer to my exam date, I would review my
notes, dump sheets that I created during my initial reading, and attempt full
set of 100-200 questions per chapter available online.
Following are the details of how
I recommend one to carve out a study plan. Again, this could be transformed as
per one’s own liking and style of studying.
§ Primary Reading Material:
§ Tests:
1. Rita Mulcahy’s Fast Track, 10
Knowledge Areas’ Test + 5 Process Groups’ Test.
2. Rita Mulcahy’s Fast Track, Super
PMP Test ( a Simulation Test of 200 Questions and 4 hours duration)
Hint: Rita
Mulcahy said: DO NOT go to the Exam unless you get 80% on her ast Track Super
PMP Test.
My PMP Exam Study Plan
Following is a detailed
description of my PMP exam preparation journey. Feel free to adjust these per
your studying style and other information you might find online.
§ Step 1: Head First, 3rd Edition 2013, enjoy reading it
1.
Read it and
enjoy solving many types of puzzles and the questions at the end of each
Chapter.
2.
Solve the 200-
question Full Test, the last Chapter.
§ Step 2: Rita Mulcahy’s 8th edition, read page to page
1. During this read I was focusing
only on learning this subject rather than cramming any information.
2. I would read one chapter a day
and attempt the questions at the end of the chapter.
3. I did not spend a lot of time on
the exercises described within the chapter itself.
§ Step 3 (optional) : PMBOK, 4th edition, page to page -
1. During this read, I tried jotting
down my own notes based on what I felt was an important point or a formula or a
concept.
2. I had planned to use these notes
as my last minute review material.
3. Would read one chapter a day and
then attempt Rita Mulcahy’s Fast Track knowledge area test.
§ Step 4: Read Rita Mulcahy and Head First again -
1. During this second pass of both
the books, I would skim the pages a little faster by trying to recollect most
of the concepts, definitions, processes and other information.
2. I would try to relate my
knowledge gaps and find out answers that can solve those queries.
1. Step 5: Final Step: Attempt the Super PMP (tough)
from Rita Mulcahy- Many Times.
Finally, based on the above 7
steps, I can give you the 10 best tips that I find you can follow to pass the
PMP exam on your first attempt.
10 Best Tips To Pass The PMP Exam
On First Try
1. Make sure to read PMBOK and Rita
Mulcahy at-least twice – once in detail, once just skim through it.
2. Attempt all the individual
chapter tests in Rita Mulcahy’s book + all the individual chapter tests on Rita
Mulcahy’s Fast Track CD.
3. Enroll for as many question banks
+ mock tests you can, and try to take as many as you can early on. This will
help you identify gaps in your learning and knowledge to help you focus better
on your lacking areas.
4. Make sure you review ALL your
answers – correct and incorrect ones to solidify your understanding about the
concepts.
5. For ITTOs, I had created 9 charts
on A4 size papers and had pinned them on to my bedroom wall. Every time I would
walk past it, I would stop for 15 minutes and work on 3 charts. This helps if
you have a photographic memory.
6. Make a habit of creating dump
sheets. This will help you a lot to quickly review information instead of
skimming through long texts.
7. If you have a smart phone
download PMP related applications to keep you engrossed while on the go. I
found it quite effective to keep my mind active.
8. Join one of the online PMP forums
to share your concerns, experiences and gain access to many resources of PMP
related information. One such interactive forum is PMZilla.
It will help you interact with similar PMP aspirants, share your thoughts,
express your queries and get more knowledge to help you prepare better.
9. A day before the PMP exam, relax,
listen to some music, take a walk. You are not at war and this exam is not the
last one you will take in your life! So chill out!
10. On the day of the PMP exam – be
prepared to create a dump sheet of the math formulas + processes across the 9
knowledge areas / 5 process groups. Also be prepared to attempt 200 questions
in 3 hours, and mark about 30-40 questions for review. That way you will have
50-55 minutes to review them at the end.
With this, we come to an end of
this long post on how to prepare for the PMP exam. Feel free to drop me a line
at thewisdompearls@yahoo.com or post a comment in the section below if you have
any questions/concerns or need help for your PMP exam preparation. I would be
more than happy to help you out! Good Luck and Happy Studying!
