Student Profile: Khulisani Sibindi, PMP

My name is Khulisani Sibindi, I am an entrepreneur driven qualified Electronics and Telecommunications Engineer, PMP certified Project Management Professional who is highly motivated with high ambitions and plans for my career advancement. I have been in the ICT field for over 7 years and in that time have had opportunities to visit several countries appreciating their telecommunications infrastructure, and to attend training programs in technology-driven China institutes of learning.

In my years of experience, I have been in the planning, design, implementation and project management side of things giving me an all-round understanding of the project environment. I am currently working as a Project Manager for a Telecommunications company.

As I progressed in my career I thought it wise for me to attain the PMP certification to improve my approach in project management. The first thing I did when I decided to go for my certification was to look for relevant study material and on top of the list was the PMP Handbook from PMI, PMBOK Guide. The time I started the 5th edition was still running, and the book looked big at first sight. Once I started reading the book I couldn’t stop as I could relate which much of the things it spelled out. I finished the 5th edition but only to fail to find slots in the nearest centres for the exams, this meant I had to wait for the new syllabus. When I got my 6th edition I couldn’t read the whole of it, I had to look for areas which differed from the previous syllabus and read those. I realised after reading the book I could answer most mock questions I came across and with some questions, I then looked for more materials for deeper understanding.

To anyone preparing to take this exam I would recommend that in the last week they channel all their energy into taking as many mock exams as possible, in my case I did all OSP practise exams that came with the PrepCast materials, I joined project management groups on social media and answered questions posted on these groups. My target was to make sure before the exam I was able to score above 80% in my papers, and this I achieved in the last week. It is key to identify your areas of weakness and make sure in this last week you zero in on them. In the last 48 hours you must relax, maybe visit your formulas and practise your processes, make sure you have enough rest the day before the exam because one thing I can assure you is that the exam is long and needs a fresh and rested mind.

All the best if you are planning to take the exam, I passed it on my first seating on September 11 with an Above Target mark, and this was a great feeling.

Engineer Khulisani Sibindi, PMP