Hello everyone,
I want to share advice after having taken my CAPM exam with "Above Target" across all 4 domains on my 1st attempt.
I began by purchasing all textbooks referenced in the PMI exam content outline / reference list, and I took the PMI CAPM course with concise note taking along the way while applying "active reading" during the day's course session – and performed "active recall" at the end of the session and subsequently thereof as the information compounded. After finishing the course, I filled out the exam content outline for each domain to be able to exam every bullet point. Nevertheless, I must say that the PMI CAPM course and exam content outline are the tip of the iceberg. It's far from enough to prepare you for the depth of detail necessary to pass across every domain.
Subsequently, I subscribed to Pocket Prep; it was great. It provided a new level of preparation greatly expanding into detailed knowledge to you must have across every domain (that's knew I knew the PMI course and exam content outline were far from enough; it was shocking). Pocket Prep provides a high volume of excellent questions through you can study with in a flashcard manner – and provides concise explanations for why a certain answer is correct.
And overall, Prep Cast. From my initial research before I even undertook the PMI course, I read that Prep Cast provided challenging exam simulations prepared for the rigor of the actual exam – and I decided to move onto Prep Cast only after I reached a level of performing higher than 80% on Pocket Prep on every quiz I took. (I inevitably got to continual 100%). Prep Cast was a whole new level. Pocket Prep questions I found more to the point and rote memorization plays a key role in them. With Prep Cast, each question provides a complex scenario in working across all methodologies and various industries with wording which requires you to actually read between the lines to truly understand context, and it requires you to active recall what could even be the most obscure yet critical of details in project management. Moreover, and invaluable, Prep Cast provides thorough explanations over each nuanced scenario; why the correct answer stands best; and why each of the remaining multiple choices can not be correct (even if one may have made for a good option). Read it all. I took all 3 exam simulations successively once I knew I held mastery of them.
In your journey, read and review your textbooks cover-to-cover with active reading and use Post-it sticky flags to reference key information / pages / sections, etc. Be easily familiar the smallest critical details within the pages. And continuously practice active recall. The 'PMBOK Guide' is not enough. I found 'Process Groups: A Practical Guide' to be a necessary companion to it. The 'Agile Practice Guide' and 'Business Analysis for Practitioners' are good as well. I also greatly appreciated 'The Project Management Answer Book'. Nevertheless, the textbooks aren't enough. At all. They're just relatively good reference points. Expand on the information within with thorough research. Always research and learn. Go beyond in compounding domain knowledge for project management aside experience; it's all a journey of continual education.
Overall, organize your studies, materials, etc. in a structure that works with your mind and overall circumstance. I am an avid reader, notetaker, organizer, etc. – I made it a whole quasi-uni course out of it all for me more so for my enjoyment – and structure everything with relevancy in terms of subject matter and how I can easily reference and implement study techniques. Also, I weightlift, so I approached it with the mental determination and push I exert out on the floor at the gym to progressively overload and make gains. The brain is a muscle. Neuroplasticity.
When I took my actual exam, I found it to be a walk in the park. I made sure to move swiftly question by question with focus and equanimity while being mindful of the countdown. I actually got to the final question in the second portion with over 30 minutes left which gave me time to go over some few ones I had flagged and still ended with some minutes to spare. I understand being critical of yourself because I was, and I was actually amused to find out I passed "Above Target" in every domain even after all the dedication I put into practice and mastery. Be methodical and determined and never forget your end game!
Thank you to Prep Cast for having played a key role in my success with my CAPM certification.
