Being skilled and experienced isn’t just essential to become a successful manager, but it takes a lot more than these two things. Of course, being an expert in a particular field is important for a successful manager, but PMP certification is the added benefit and may add laurels to your ‘Resume.’
We all have professional project managers in almost every field and industry. Becoming a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) through the PMP Certification can take your career to the next level. Earning a certification in the relevant industry ensures that you accept more responsibility at higher levels within your company and have all the required skills.
In this article, we share all the required details about PMP® Training, like the time required to complete PMP certification, requirements, benefits and a lot more. So, let’s begin with the basic thing:
What is PMP Certification?
Project Management Professional or PMP certification is one of the top requirements for Project Managers worldwide. No one can even think about becoming a professional project manager without having PMP certification, especially when seeking a job in the big and respected brands. The certification is issued by Project Management Institute (PMI) that was established in 1984 and it has since become the de facto standard in the field.
Currently, more than 500,000 project managers hold this certification and it has become a prime condition for a job in the global brands. PMP certification has also earned the ANSI/ISO/IEC 17024 Accreditation from the International Organization for Standardization.
How long does it take to get a PMP certification?
It usually takes over 6 months to complete and achieve a PMP certification. But, it is essential for the candidates to ensure meeting the eligibility criteria which include the followings:
Academic Education
- You must have a 4-year degree. You may also need to name of the institution and the year you graduated, and the major.
Project Management Education
- While applying for examinant, you must show 35 contact hours of project management education. Preference is given to those having education in initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing.
Project Management Experience
- Candidate must have experience of working on 4500 hours of leading and directing a project that is non-overlapping, cumulative across all process groups. If not available, you must have a secondary degree with 7500 hours of leading and directing projects
If the candidate meets these requirements of PMP certification, they can apply for the exam online and it requires over 3 to 4 months to adequately preparing for the exam. Various online platforms offer reading materials for successful clearance of the examination. You can also read the PMBOK® Guide and also take practice tests and quizzes from KnowledgeHut.
The PMP Examination
Many people start to prepare for the examination, without even knowing about the structure of the examination. Following is the detailed information about the structure of the PMP certification exam:
The exam consists of five parts. The parts of the exam will test your competence in more than 20 skill areas. Additionally, the PMP certification exam is also designed in a way to test your ability, understanding, and knowledge of each of the skills that you must poses to become a successful project manager. The PMP exam is frequently reviewed by the experts and changed according to the latest industry requirements and skill needs, the content is highly relevant to an actual project management role. The PMP exam contains total 200 questions out of which 175 are scored questions and 25 are unscored questions.
If you choose to skip the questions that you are not sure about, they are scored as incorrect, so it is good that you try to solve all the questions.
Who Should Apply for PMP Certification?
Whether you are a professional working as a project manager and want to gain more exposure in the industry with bigger brands or are a senior professional, aiming to give a boost to your career as a project manager, you can apply for the examination online.
Apart from the desire to grow in the industry, if you perform your duties under general supervision and if you are responsible for various aspects of the particular project, then PMP certification is just for you. Additionally, if you lead and direct cross-functional teams and are responsible for the timely delivery of the projects within the constraints of schedule, then you are sure to gain benefit with PMP certification.
PMP Certification Exam Study And Preparation Strategy
PMP certification isn’t as easy as it sounds. You can’t just apply for the examination online and stay focused on your job and normal daily routine, you must spend some time studying the helpful study materials to crack the examination with better scores. There are many study materials available online, but it is not just the study material that will help you stay prepared for the exam, but it is also important to become logical and know how to solve problems easily.
It is because the prime purpose of the manager is to solve problems that your team may be dealing with. To prepare yourself with better analytical ability and problem-solving skills, go online and look for the practice tests and quizzes. KnowledgeHut is a very helpful platform that helps improve your analytical skills in an engaging manner.
What’s Next?
PMP certification is one of the top choices anyone can make to become a successful project manager with the ability to solve problems and deliver even the most complex projects in a short amount of time. If it is your next goal, then PMP certification is just for you, which takes over 6 months for complete preparation. Make sure to become serious about the study and look for the best reading materials online. And one more thing, don’t leave any question unanswered.
PMP Certification is sure to give a boost to your professional career as it helps you stay prepared with what’s required as a professional project manager.