Action Plan: How to become a project management professional
I passed the project management professional test, on my first attempt, conducted by Project Management Institute(PMI).
So, why would you ever think about taking a PMP test?
Well, the question you just posed relates the level of interest that you have in your domain, whatever that is - Doctor, Engineering, Medicine, Architecture, etc; my reason was:
1. that, I wanted to learn more about project management
2. that, I had some time
3. that, it is an add-on in my skillset
4. A lot of other reasons, as well...
By passing the exam, you can say that you passed an international exam to prove your knowledge of project management. Since exam focuses on situations you might see in real world. The PMP certification is a way to set yourself apart.
Plus, whatever you do management and planning is involved in it - implicitly or explicitly. And since I believe in planning and executing, I did not plan to fail.
For those, who are interested in my experience of PMP, following are some thoughts.
First things first, let me share the sources that I utilized:
Books:
1. PMP Exam Prep by Rita Mulcahy. I used 5th Edition, because I started reading the book when 6th edition was'nt out.
2. PMI PMBOK v4.0; you can get your exclusive PMBOK Guide when you get the PMI membership.
3. PMP Project Management Professional Exam Study Guide by Kim Heldman; I used an older PDF version.
Be wary! The book by Rita is dangerously interesting, involving, and gluing to an extent that you might find your wife shouting out loud to grab your attention while you are in deep waters "with"(pun intended) Rita; so do not wonder.
I was so inspired by her writing style, after Paulo Coelho and Patrick Lencioni, that I called on her US number to thank her(her number is on every page of her book), and I kept on trying all afternoon until I realized that the other half of the world is sleeping - must be half past midnight then. This happened earlier last year. Later, during the end of the year, around September/October-2010 I tried an online lookup, and to my unpleasant surprise I found out that she died just a couple of months ago of breast cancer. I felt sad. And prayed for her family.
Fee Structure:
Following were couple of options that I was considering:
Note 1: Exchange rate was USD 1= PKR 86
Note 2: Re exam can be taken upto three times, in a year, till it expires; (Re Exam for Member is USD275, and Non Member USD375)
Note 3: According to the law of attraction, note 2 should not be a part of your plan or even your thought
Action Plan:
Following was my action plan; action plan meaning, I've read all the books, attempted all the questions at the end of each chapter, and now am ready for full fledge 200 questions/4 hours mocks.
Here, following table, are the exams that I took:
Note: Morning means I used to attempt the tests from 6AM to 10AM, and evening means I wake up at 10 :) and start the tests at 12PM. Twelve till four. This includes, sometimes, bringing groceries from the store, as required and demanded by household "president/prime-ministers".
The above bar chart is the projection of the data/tests that I attempted to identity my future score (0:
Good luck with your PMP; and Welcome, to the brand new shiny new year! (0:
So, why would you ever think about taking a PMP test?
Well, the question you just posed relates the level of interest that you have in your domain, whatever that is - Doctor, Engineering, Medicine, Architecture, etc; my reason was:
1. that, I wanted to learn more about project management
2. that, I had some time
3. that, it is an add-on in my skillset
4. A lot of other reasons, as well...
By passing the exam, you can say that you passed an international exam to prove your knowledge of project management. Since exam focuses on situations you might see in real world. The PMP certification is a way to set yourself apart.
Plus, whatever you do management and planning is involved in it - implicitly or explicitly. And since I believe in planning and executing, I did not plan to fail.
For those, who are interested in my experience of PMP, following are some thoughts.
First things first, let me share the sources that I utilized:
Books:
1. PMP Exam Prep by Rita Mulcahy. I used 5th Edition, because I started reading the book when 6th edition was'nt out.
2. PMI PMBOK v4.0; you can get your exclusive PMBOK Guide when you get the PMI membership.
3. PMP Project Management Professional Exam Study Guide by Kim Heldman; I used an older PDF version.
Be wary! The book by Rita is dangerously interesting, involving, and gluing to an extent that you might find your wife shouting out loud to grab your attention while you are in deep waters "with"(pun intended) Rita; so do not wonder.
I was so inspired by her writing style, after Paulo Coelho and Patrick Lencioni, that I called on her US number to thank her(her number is on every page of her book), and I kept on trying all afternoon until I realized that the other half of the world is sleeping - must be half past midnight then. This happened earlier last year. Later, during the end of the year, around September/October-2010 I tried an online lookup, and to my unpleasant surprise I found out that she died just a couple of months ago of breast cancer. I felt sad. And prayed for her family.
Fee Structure:
Following were couple of options that I was considering:
No. | Name | Fee (USD) | Fee (PKR) | Url |
Option 1 | Earn 32 Contact Hours (PM PrepCast) | 99.97 | 8597.42 | http://www.project-management-prepcast.com/index.php |
PMP Fee for PMI Members | 405 | 34830 | http://www.pmi.org/Membership/Pages/Types-of-Memberships.aspx | |
PMI Membership | 129 | 11094 | http://www.pmi.org/Pages/default.aspx | |
TOTAL | 633.97 | 54521.42 | ||
Option 2 | Earn 32 Contact Hours (PM PrepCast) | 99.97 | 8597.42 | |
PMP Fee for Non Members | 555 | 47730 | ||
TOTAL | 654.97 | 56327.42 | ||
Option 3 | Earn 32 Contact Hours (Local R.E.P) | ? | 40000 | Local REPs fee ranges from PKR 35000 to PKR 50000 |
PMP Fee for Non Members | 555 | 47730 | ||
TOTAL | 654.97 | 87730 |
Note 1: Exchange rate was USD 1= PKR 86
Note 2: Re exam can be taken upto three times, in a year, till it expires; (Re Exam for Member is USD275, and Non Member USD375)
Note 3: According to the law of attraction, note 2 should not be a part of your plan or even your thought
Online Resources:
1. PMZilla.com (Not very much effective, but you can find 25 pretty diverse question bank there)
2. DeepFriedBrainPMP.com (Run by an Indian guy Harwinder Singh, works for Seagate, Singapore); his style of explanation is excellent; especially the "To Complete Performance Index(TCPI)" term.
Following was my action plan; action plan meaning, I've read all the books, attempted all the questions at the end of each chapter, and now am ready for full fledge 200 questions/4 hours mocks.
Here, following table, are the exams that I took:
No. | Tests | Questions | Percent | Time | Incorrect | Status |
1 | PM Fastrack - PMP | 200 | 80% | Afternoon | 40 | Passed |
2 | PM Headstart | 200 | 82% | Morning | 35 | Passed |
3 | PM Fastrack - Super PMP | 200 | 65% | Morning | 70 | Passed |
4 | Oliver Lehmann | 175 | 68% | Afternoon | 55 | Passed |
5 | PMZilla | 25 | 40% | Morning | 15 | Failed |
6 | Oliver Lehmann | 75 | 67% | Morning | 24 | Passed |
7 | PM Study | 200 | 71.43% | Morning | 33 | Passed |
8 | PM Fastrack - Super PMP | 200 | 68% | Morning | 63 | Passed |
9 | PMZilla | 25 | 95% | Afternoon | 2 | Passed |
Average Score | 71% | |||||
Success rate | 86% | |||||
Actual PMP Score: | Moderately Proficient (Between 70% to 80 %) | |||||
Note: Morning means I used to attempt the tests from 6AM to 10AM, and evening means I wake up at 10 :) and start the tests at 12PM. Twelve till four. This includes, sometimes, bringing groceries from the store, as required and demanded by household "president/prime-ministers".
Good luck with your PMP; and Welcome, to the brand new shiny new year! (0:
