Cool post, just subscribed.

Math-oriented…now I know why this looks way too complicated for me! I’d better stick to being the spelling and grammar police.

I suppose it is a good ideal to conduct audits of PMP candidate applications. After all it must be important to have a qualified person on staff. Employers can’t be to careful. Fraud is every where now days, even on job applications. Thanks.

larryj

How much do people pay to take this exam? I am just curious. Was that the 1000 dollars or was for the administration fees? Do companies help pay these fees for you?

Are there apprenticeship programs to get to the level where you feel qualified for the exam, or do you learn this field in universities?

I do not really know much about being a project manager.
Thanks.

Hey, great post, really well written. You should blog more about this.

Hi all, thank you for the wonderful feedback and comments.

Yeah, in a nutshell, the process to becoming certified by PMI as a project manager is tedious and nail-biting. The exam is extremely difficult and very math-oriented. But that also has its blessings.

To apply to take the exam, you must prove that with an undergraduate degree you have 4500 hours of auditable project management experience.

The industry standard pass rate on the exam is rumored at 60% – PMI does not publish the pass rate.bIt’s a hard exam. When I took it in 2002, it was 4 hours long and was several hundred questions. A huge chunk of it is math, and that actually turns out to be the easiest part, because the rest of the exam is selecting the best answer from 3 out of 4 “right” answers. You have to learn PMI’s mentality as to what is the best right answer.

The tedious process and difficulty of the exam is like a double edged sword. It means those become certified are really good at what they do and have a depth and breadth of experience, and have mastered it. And thus are more likely to lead successful projects, which means profit for the company in the private sector, or cost savings and/or best value in the federal government (where I work).

While becoming certified doesn’t guarantee that you will lead consistently good projects, it does help to keep the certification very meaningful and is usually a pretty good indicator of your ability to execute successful projects.

Thank you all for commenting!
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It sounds like a long and involved process. Do you think the benefits outweigh the challenges in following this system? I am curious to know….
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I had no idea that the Project Management field was so demanding. This is a great resource for anyone taking the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam
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Project management is one of my biggest downfalls! thanks for sharing the info, just need to figure out how to use it!
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This PMP process sounds worse than getting a teaching credential. I guess they are both as tedious but I am sure anyone passing all the requirements to be a Project Manager makes far more money than those of us who prepare children to one day be project managers.
Your blog has opened up knowledge of the field and what is takes to have a rewarding career that pays well.