Question:
I got my PMP certification on Nov 2010, I attended a Businesses Analysis Fundamentals training from a PMI REP before to be a PMP, could I claim these PDUs. Thanks.
Question from Miguel Gomez
Answer:
Hello Miguel,
I get this question quite often. What usually happens is that we project managers get a lot of training in our career. Then we decide to take the PMP Exam and we take a 35 hour long prep class. We do this to help us prepare for the exam and not necessarily to earn the 35 required contact hours. So when we take the exam we may have quite a number of contact hours above the PMI requirement. Wouldn't it be great, if we could use these additional hours as a "rollover" into our PDU activities?
Unfortunately we cannot do that. The requirements that PMI has in this regard are quite clear: All project management training hours that you have accrued before you take your PMP exam are called Contact Hours. Once you pass the PMP exam, all of these hours "expire" and you start at zero. So you cannot claim any PDUs for anything that you did before becoming a PMP.
Luckily, as you may have learned from The PDU Insider newsletter, earning PDUs is not really all too difficult. There are enough free and commercial PDU opportunities available to help you earn them in a continuing as well as economical fashion. So get started today and try earning about 1.5 PDUs every month to stay on track.