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In this issue... |
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Studying for the PMP exam is time-consuming and it will take great discipline to be able to manage your time wisely. Have you ever asked yourself "Am I going to have to sacrifice some study time in order to fulfill my work obligations?"
In this week's newsletter I will give you my idea on how to effectively budget your PMP Exam study time. Also read how Rashmi Joshi from Tokyo, Japan passed the PMP exam with the help The PM Prepcast and PM Formula Guide.
Lastly, don't miss your chance to practice on our weekly free PMP exam sample question. If you think you need more of these practice questions, why not test-drive the PMP Exam here..
Enjoy!
Until Next Time,
Cornelius Fichtner, PMP
President, OSP International LLC
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Gantthead PMXPO2011
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Let me also remind you of the gantthead PMXPO2011:
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In five sessions-plus an exciting keynote presentation-gantthead
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PMP Exam Product Spotlight
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The PM Study Coach is a 10-week long coaching course in which you are taught exactly what you have to study for The PMP Exam.
It's your "Study Roadmap" to the PMP Certification.
Each session is a recorded MP3 file that you can play on your computer or portable player. With each coaching session, you also receive other study material in the form of videos, podcasts, worksheets, articles, as well as reading and homework assignments. The course takes you step by step, chapter by chapter through the PMBOK Guide and your PMP Exam Prep Workbook and points out specific areas of focus in every coaching session. In total you will receive over 7.5 hours of recorded coaching.
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How To Budget Your PMP Exam Study Time
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 Studying for the PMP exam is going to take a big chunk out of your day and you might be wondering how you're ever going to find the time to do it. Between work and personal obligations, you might think you don't have the time to study. Don't be discouraged.
One of the first things you should do is sit down and write out everything you do during the day. This should include meals, work, playing with children or family obligations, personal care, housework, recreation, your job and anything else that you spend your time on. And remember, you're the only one that sees this list so don't pad the time you spend on cleaning the house; nobody cares if you spend five minutes or five hours on it. Be realistic and honest as you assess your time and how you spend it.
Now that you know how much time you spend on various aspects of your daily life, you might be surprised at how much time you have left over. Your job now is to bring structure so that you have a block of study time every day without compromising your job or personal life. But before you can decide how much of your time that you'll spend on studies, you must be realistic. If you plan to spend three hours per day on exam preparation but have to give up all your leisure time for it you're probably going to fail. Realistic time budgeting must allow for down time or you'll eventually burn out so allow one full day per week to walk away from your work and studies and enjoy yourself.
Be sure to look at work projects that might take up extra time and eat into other areas of your life. Are you going to have to sacrifice some study time in order to fulfill your work obligations? Do you have a big project coming up next month? If so, you might have to think about rescheduling your exam and extending your study time. It does no good to have a working time structure if it will be disrupted in a few weeks. When is your vacation scheduled? Don't even think of using that vacation time for study! Is there a family even such as a wedding or reunion approaching?
Now that you've looked at possible future scheduling issues, work obligations and family plans, you know how much time you can spend studying and preparing for your PMP exam. Go back to your daily schedule and look closely at it. Determine what time of day would be best to hit the books. If you can pinpoint the time of day that's best for study, you've solved half the problem. If you cannot pinpoint a specific time you may want to look into alternative learning methods that enable you to learn throughout the day. For instance with an audio based course on your MP3 player.
Are you exhausted and brain-weary when evening comes? In that case, you might want to consider a quiet time in the morning before work to do your studies. It's been proven that the brain is at its most receptive in the morning so if you're too tired at the end of the day, morning might be a better time for you to study. You might want to do it right after work or after dinner. Choose a time that's the least stressful for you, when you'll have a minimum of interruptions and stick to the amount of time you've blocked out for this task. Remember, you're working for your project management certification so consider this your most important project and manage it efficiently!
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Exam Time Management and Question Styles
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 Proper time management and understanding the question styles in the exam will help you pass the PMP Exam.
Watch this video we have prepared for you:http://bit.ly/k2xPja
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Sample PMP Exam Question
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 You are managing a construction project. You are currently estimating the duration of a very critical activity. You have gathered the following information from the experts:
Best case scenario: Activity can take 3 days to complete.
Worst case scenario: Activity may take up to 12 days to complete.
Expected scenario: On average it takes up to 6 days to complete such activities.
What duration you will put into your schedule for this activity if you want to put some weight on the expected scenario?
A. 7 days
B. 7.5 days
C. 6 days
D. 6.5 days
Hint: Use PERT to calculate.
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Exam Tip: Schedule your PMP Exam as early as possible.
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 One of the more important steps in preparing for the PMP exam is to schedule you exam date as soon as you meet all the eligibility requirements. This will give you a specific date toward which you can work. Now you have deadline - a big red "X" on your calendar - and this will motivate you in your studies. If you don't have the date scheduled you can always find excuses for not studying and delaying things. But having the date in your mind and calendar will drive you to study regularly.
Now that you see your exam approaching, here are a few good study activities:
Read the PMBOK. Read it twice. Because the PMP exam is largely based on the PMBOK contents, it makes sense to know what it says. However, the PMP exam requires far more than just recounting facts. You can't just memorize the PMBOK and pass the exam. You must understand how each of the Pod MBOK's processes, along with their inputs, outputs, and tools and techniques would be applied in real live project situations. So a good way to enhance your studies is to apply the concepts you learn from the PMBOK Guide on your projects right away.
Next, read the PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, and as with the PMBOK, read it at least twice. Think of project scenarios for each topic that will be more meaningful and help you remember the concepts as you study the Code. Learn how each section in the Code is different and why each one is necessary for the project management profession.
And lastly, don't forget to discuss project management topics with others to really learn the material. Find a local or online study group and meet with them as you study for the exam.
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Solution
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 Correct Answer: D
Reference: PMBOK4 - pg:150
Explanation: Since you want to put some weight on the expected scenario, you will use the PERT formula. Your estimate will then be 6.5 days. Hence choice D is the correct answer.
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Lessons Learned from Rashmi Joshi |
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Cleared the PMP exam on May 9 (first attempt). I would like to thank my family for their support. Thanks to Cornelius for The PM Prepcast and The PM Formula Guide. And also various forums & websites.
I used following books and material for the preparation.
- PMBOK 4th Edition (read cover to cover twice)
- The PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try, Fourth Edition by Andy Crowe (read it 2 times)
- PMP Exam Prep, Sixth Edition: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam by Rita Mulcahy (read it 2 times)
- The PM Prepcast from Cornelius
- The PM Formula Guide from Cornelius
I had planned to give myself 4 months to prepare for this test.
I started preparing from December last year. After reading all the books mentioned above once and finishing The PM Prepcast, I applied for the exam in January. Then I scheduled to give the exam on 24th March. But as I am based in Tokyo, and there was the earthquake incident, I rescheduled it for yesterday 9th May. After the earthquake and incidents that followed, the PMP study stuff was kind of completely washed off.I was feeling as if I dont remember anything. :cry: Then again I started studying from 1st May. Took one week off before the exam and studied every day. And took the exam on 9th May.
Things that I did for preparing for this exam:
- Memorized the Process group-knowledge area chart on page 43 and the Rita Process chart.
- Read a chapter from PMBOK, then Andy and lastly Rita. This gave me a deep understanding of the processes.
- Learnt all the formulae from the formula guide and solved all the formulae questions.
- Read the PMBOK glossary.
- Did Rita's fast-track questions for all knowledge areas.
- Did not memorize ITTOs. But read it enough times to know most of them.
Mock tests
- PMStudy Free Test and one paid test. Very good questions. Good difficulty.
- Oliver Lehman's 175 & 75 question. Very good questions. Good difficulty.
- HeadFirst Free Test. Very good questions. Moderate difficulty.
- PMRoadtrip free questions. Very good questions. Moderate difficulty.
- Edwel Very good questions. Good difficulty.
- Prepare PM Good Questions. Moderate difficulty.
- End of book exam from Rita and Andy
I scored between 75% to 80% for all of the tests.
Only in the end of book test for Andy I scored 89%
My observations & suggestions:
- The questions on the real exam were not wordy and the choices were not difficult to pick up.
- Only few questions required more thinking.
- The exam was not so tough in my opinion. It depends on the understanding of the processes and also on how much do you retain after reading the books/material.Overall, the exam was not as tough as I thought but also it was not easy either.
- Practice at least 3-4 full length tests. If you are doing good on the above mentioned tests, you will be good on the exam.
- Writing the dump during initial 15 minutes of tutorial may NOT be helpful. Do it only if you find it useful. I wrote the process chart and the formulas but did not look at them at all.
- Plan for the breaks and take them only if you need. I took one break after 1 hr 30 mins.
Completed the exam in 3 hours 10 mins.
Regards,
Rashmi
For more first hand tips from new PMPs, click here.. |
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