Okay – at this point, you have a lot of information to process. This is about the time my students start asking questions about the actual exam and what they need to do to pass it, as well as some other common questions. I highly encourage my classes to get all the most worrisome questions out of the way as soon as possible. That way, they know what to expect and can move on through the content with those burning questions answered. Here are several of those types of questions.
Do I need to be proficient in everything? How will I know?
Not at all. You could be moderately proficient in everything and pass. That is the equivalent of about 75%. Scores are broken down into Above Target, Target, Below Target, and Needs Improvement.
Will anyone be able to see my results? As in, will PMI® post my results anywhere?
Only you know how you did. Passed is all anyone needs to know unless you decide to leave your results sheet laying around the breakroom. Otherwise, none the wiser.
If I get below target in any domain, will I fail the exam?
The easy answer is yes, and it depends. If you are below target in the business environment domain category and above or on target in the rest, the score should balance out.
What score should I be aiming for in practice exams?
My best advice is to consistently get between 75% and 85% on 180-question practice exams (remember to take out five questions to get your real score). For the first practice exam I took, I got 35%. Yes, that number is correct! I was horrified! But as I took more and more practice exams, I got better and better.
You'll have good scores and bad scores. The key is to understand why the answer you chose is incorrect and review the content. Study what you don't know, not what you do know. Take practice exams with the book open at first – that way, you can look up the information you need. That is also part of tactile learning and helps solidify your knowledge.
Don't get demotivated by a low score. Instead, look at it as an opportunity to shift your focus to those processes that aren't as clear.
I have zero time to study and that study for 100 hours bit is making me nervous. How can I still work and have a life, but also still study?
Listen, I would rather clean my garage than sit down and take a 4-hour practice exam on a Saturday, and my garage is a total disaster. I get it, I really do. I can give you a strategy – my strategy – which may or may not work for your learning style or time constraints. Toward the end of this chapter, I'll review common learning styles and give you some advice on how to utilize them for study purposes:
- I took 10 practice questions in the morning over coffee, instead of reading the news, chasing my dog around the house, trying to convince my daughter that wearing a Princess Jasmine dress to third grade probably wasn't the best idea, and other such distractions. I would take the 10 and then go back and score myself. Any question I got wrong, I would go back through those sections in the PMBOK® Guide and locate the correct answer. I would think about the concepts while dropping Princess Jasmine off at school and then attempt to incorporate the best practices mentioned in the questions in my projects.
- When I got home after work, I would take those 10 questions again, plus another 10 different questions, and perform the same process of checking answers and understanding why I got them correct/incorrect. Those evening study sessions were much easier for me since the wine opener was placed directly next to my study materials.
- This is your study time. You break it down how you need to. If I had time during the weekend, I would take a 180-question practice exam and score it. The next weekend, I would go through it and determine why I got those questions correct/incorrect.
- Some prefer to take a full-blown practice exam of 180 questions right out of the gate to get a baseline and go from there. Totally up to you. There will be practice questions after every single chapter in this guide. I would say take those practice exams after you read through each chapter the first time. See how you do. Go back through that chapter to pick up anything you may have missed conceptually and take it again until you score 100%. Then, move on to the next chapter and so on. That is a good strategy to begin with.
How will I know I am ready to schedule my exam?
For sure I recommend not scheduling your exams too far out. Much of this information is use-it-or-lose-it stuff unless you are using many of the best practices already. I wouldn't wait longer than 3 to 4 months after your prep course to sit the exam. With that being said, do not schedule your exam until you feel you are ready.
When your passing scores are consistent with different exams and questions, you are most likely ready to go. Once you schedule your exam, it is difficult to unring that bell, and there may be costs associated with rescheduling. You'll need to review the Pearson VUE policies on that. Otherwise, this process shouldn't take longer than 6 months max. Currently, PMI® isn't charging for reschedules for those of you who have scheduled your exams and need more time. Always check www.pmi.org for the most up-to-date information.
How many times can I take the exam?
You can take the PMP® exam up to three times in one year. Each time, it costs you money. It's less the second and third time, but who wants to pay for it twice, let alone go through it thrice? If you take it three times and fail, you will have to wait an entire year and then start the entire process again. By the way, I have yet to hear of or meet anyone that took the exam three times. Twice yes, but not three times.
My training company has a "first-time pass guarantee" – is that for real?
With first-time pass guarantees, I want you to read that as "we'll give you a refund if you fail." There isn't any way that any training company (mine included) can guarantee you'll pass. We have no idea how hard you worked or how much you study. We figure you are all adults and want the cert for professional reasons.
If you fail and were given all of the information you needed to pass, then that is on you. Sorry, but it's true. It could be for a variety of reasons, as mentioned in the six common reasons people fail the exam, and it isn't the end of the world either. Dust yourself off and change how you study.
Unless, of course, your training course was terrible, which happens. I'll go out on a limb here and very clearly state that boot camps do not work very well. Much to the shock and horror of those instructors doing boot camps, I'm sure. Although authorized training providers still need to present the content created by PMI® and most run it in a boot camp style. Don't say I didn't warn you. The firehose of information is forthcoming!
This information is extensive – it's a ton of information. Faster isn't always better. A PMP® boot camp is the equivalent of learning 800 statistical formulas in 1 week and then being asked to take an exam on everything you just learned at the end of the week. Those that are good at statistics will prevail. Those that are not will fail. It's that simple. This is why they offer a money-back guarantee: because they know some of you will fail. Something else to consider is that if your instructor is reading out of the PMBOK® Guide slowly and without purpose, you need a new instructor.
By the way, you will not be learning 800 statistical formulas. If that were the case, I wouldn't even have my PMP®. You'll be learning about 10 formulas and they are algebraic, so yay!
Study tips
It's probably pretty obvious that taking and retaking practice exams is one of the best ways to test your knowledge. But is that really the place to begin your studying journey? Well, that depends on you and how you learn. We will get to that in a minute. The following list is certainly not exhaustive, but it does provide a good overview of some really important items to consider:
- Read The PMBOK® Guide – 6th Edition, this guide, and others as needed.
- Read The Code Of Ethics and Professional Conduct, which can currently be found at https://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/ethics/pmi-code-of-ethics.pdf?sc_lang_temp=en.
Note
You will be asked to agree to and abide by The Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. We will cover this in Chapter 6, Creating and Leading a Team. You will get questions in your exams concerning ethics. It is a good idea to download the code and read it at some point. I'll break down everything then.
- Read through other exam prep books: Yes, I said it before and I'll say it again – you will need to gain information from different authors, blogs, YouTube videos, and the like to ensure you have a well-rounded approach to your studies. Be sure that everything is from The PMBOK® Guide – 6th Edition and follows the exam content outline. Your version is in Chapter 15, Next Steps and Study Tips.
- Get used to answering questions for almost 4 hours in a row: This can only be done if you sit for 4 hours answering exam questions.
- Read the questions first, then the answers, then the questions again: I'd say this is more of an as-needed situation. You'll know when you begin to study and take practice exams whether this strategy works or doesn't work for you. Just make sure you read carefully.
- Think as PMI® thinks: The best practices PMI® has put into their standards, exams, and guides always win during an exam. It's best to buy in early; otherwise, you may be tempted to throw your laptop out the window while taking practice exams.
- Question types: It used to be that the PMP® exam required you to choose one correct answer and only one. Now, it seems, they have changed that as well. This may be good news, or it may be really bad news. It depends how you feel about exams.
The question types are as follows:
a) Drag and drop.
b) Hot spot questions where you click and interact with diagrams and digital graphics.
c) Check all that apply.
d) Check the best answer.
- Review the exam content outline for your planned exam dates: This is super important. The good news is that this was just updated and probably won't change until another iteration of The PMBOK® Guide is updated. Typically, that is about every 3 to 4 years. I'll cover the main points as well throughout this guide.
As we wrap up this section on all of the questions and answers, my hope is that it has provided you with enough information to get you started. Don't forget to circle back to these again after reading Chapter 15, Next Steps and Study Tips.
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