Student Profile: Pooja Manduskar, PMP

I'm a Scrum Master and Project Manager working in the software industry for over 15 years now. I'm also volunteering as a peer instructor for PMP exam preparation course in my organization. Over the course of my development career, I have worked on diverse technologies and that tremendously helped me as I moved to a Project Manager role in the past few years.I feel it’s important for new students to read the official PMP Handbook from PMI, they will get a good overview of what PMP is about.

In 2013, I earned my masters degree in Computer Information Systems with IT Project Management major. That is when I really when I started being more interested in Project Management as a career path. This year I earned my PMP and CSM certification to gain a solid understanding of the field I'm working in.

I think for PMP certification purposes, understanding & comprehending all the contents of PMP handbook are of the utmost importance. I won't say that alone will help you pass the exam though. There are several concepts, like EVM, which need to be clearly understood for the certification exam but are not well explained in PMBOK. For those kinds of concepts, supporting materials like PrepCast videos are very helpful. I also think merely reading or listening to the material is not enough, students should start early taking the mock exams on various sources that truly helps to understand the gaps in your knowledge and better prepare yourself in the exam.

In the last week before the exam, take at least 2 full 4 hr exams in the similar sitting as actual exam, preferably at the same time as the exam slot... By this time you should know which areas you need most improvements in, focus on improving there. Prepare yourself to read & understand the questions carefully before you decide on the answer. Many times questions have a double meaning and there will be answers matching to both the meanings. Don't take a mock exam day before the exam. This day should be to just relax, unwind and prepare yourself physically & mentally for the exam

Pooja Manduskar, PMP