Anyone who is interested in taking the Project Management Professional (PMP)(r) exam might be asking, “Is the PMP(r] difficult?”. The short answer to that question is “it depends.”
The good news is that you can pass the PMP (r) exam if you study well and prepare well. This article will help prepare you for the exam and help you decide if the PMP (r) is right.
What is the PMP(r).
In 1984, the Project Management Institute created the Project Management Professional (PMP(r),) certification. The PMP(r), the industry standard, has over 500,000 Project Managers worldwide certified.
To obtain the PMP(r), certification and to write the exam, you must have completed 35 hours of project management. You also need either a high school diploma or an associate degree, five years of project management experience, and at least 7500 hours of leading and directing projects. OR 2) A bachelor’s degree or higher, with at least 3 years of project management experience and a minimum 4500 hours of leading and directing projects.
There are 200 multiple-choice questions. The test is of high difficulty. It tests your knowledge of project management and your ability solve problems in real life.
Questions are based on both knowledge and understanding of PMBOK (r) content and real-world experience as project managers.
Exam questions will cover five domains of the PMBOK(r). Below is a list of the questions that are from each domain.
These percentages determine how many questions will be asked about each task and domain on the PMP(r). I. Initiating 13% II. Planning 24% III. Executing 31% IV. Monitoring and Controlling 25% IV. Closing 7%
The maximum time allowed to complete an exam is four hours. Questions can be categorised as Situational, Theoretical, or Graph Drawing.
How is the test graded
There are 200 questions in total. There are 200 questions. 175 of them are scored and 25 are unscored (pre-test). Unanswered questions will be marked incorrect.
There is no set ratio of correct and incorrect answers that you must pass. Each question is rated according to its relative difficulty. The harder questions are worth less and the easier ones are worth more.
This means that you can answer all the easy questions correctly but fail to answer the more difficult questions.
The psychometric analysis is used to assess the ability of candidates to perform well at their job. Each exam is scored according to the difficulty of the questions correctly answered. One candidate may fail with a score of 65% while another candidate may pass with a score of 60%.
The PMI does not release the failure rate. However, it is estimated that 40-50% fail the first time they take the test. 50-60% of those who pass the test are successful.
You must complete a 35-hour preparation course before you can take the exam. This course will increase your chances of passing the exam first time.
How long should I spend studying?
You will spend approximately 60 hours studying the PMBOK(r) and practice questions in addition to the 35-hour prep class.
Try to score at least 80% on practice exams. Practice exams should include difficult and situational questions. Pass marks on the actual exam are around 65%.
You can take the exam again if you fail it up to three times within a calendar year. After the third attempt, you must wait one year before taking the PMP(r).
How do I know when I’m ready to take the exam.
You can consider yourself ready if you pass consecutive simulated exams with a score between 75-80%.
Why is the PMP(r), exam so difficult?
There are many factors that contribute to the difficulty of the exam. Here are the top three.
Material length
There is a lot of information in the PMBOK(r). You need to be realistic about your time and how much you can study. It will take you 60 hours to study if you only study one hour per night, Monday through Friday.
