TOPIC: PMP EXAM formulas to know

Hello,

I was just curious to know how many formulas are on the PMP exam?
Do i need to know all 50 or are there a certain sub group that are more popular?

Thank you,
jody

Hi Jody,

I cannot really tell how many they are, as I never counted them, and I also don't know which are more popular. I'd say any formula related to EVA for sure.
Anyway... I might be a bit biased by my love for Maths, but I strongly encourage you to focus more on the mechanisms and the meaning behind each of those formulas, rather than memorising each of them. Once you understand that, the way each of those formula is obtained will (almost) naturally follows.

Also, it you haven't done that already, I'd recommend this article , where Cornelius provides great tips, as well as clear explanations and a few sample questions on PMP formulas.

Don't let all those formulas intimidate you

Gabriella

I clicked on the link you provided in your post and saw there a link for "21 Free Formula-Based Qs" I just completed these Qs and have this feedback:

THESE Qs NEED TO BE UPDATED, as they are based on the PMBOK 5th edition, not the current 6th edition. For example: the answer key says the correct answer for #21 is "B" (18 days), not 17 days, as the PERT formulas calculates. The explanation states: "Adding a 10 percent contingency reserve to it will give 16.67*1.1 = 18.33 days. Rounding your estimate to the nearest day will give 18 days. Reference: PMBOK Guide 5th Edition, page 171. So, my answer, "A" (17 days) is actually correct.

Here is the link to these (21) 5th edition-based 21 Qs: hwcdn.libsyn.com/p/7/2/a/72a57b78fc9500a...98a39d4565d22e19569b

Is there a comparable set of Free Formula-Based Qs based on the current PMBOK 6th edition?

Thanks.

Hi Susie,

even though the document you refer to is based on the PMBOK 5th edition, I think the answer to question #21 is still correct. 17 days comes from rounding the PERT estimate (whose formula did not change in the 6th edition) to the nearest day; however, the question asks you to account for an additional 10% contingency reserve.
BTW the article is up-to-date and based on PMBOK 6th edition.

I am sorry I cannot point you to any comparable set of free formula-based questions based on PMBOK 6th edition, but I am pretty confident most if not all the formulas didn't change wrt the previous edition.
One relevant difference might be related to how to compute Early/Late Start/Finish date on a schedule network diagram, depending on whether you start to count from Day 1 or Day 0, but usually the question helps clarifying that. At least this is my experience with the PMPrepCast Simulator.

Hope that helps,

Gabriella

Thanks for this clarification.

Another Q:

Do you know where I can locate the PMI 6th Edition Exam Content Outline? Several PrepCast Qs involve the "Tasks" from this outline. The PMI site has links to:
a) the June 2015 5th Ed. Outline (Tasks) and
b) the forthcoming 2021 Outline (Tasks).

The copyright page for the 6th Edition PMBOK book has a 2017 publication date, so the Outline/Tasks for this version (the current version) does not appear to be on the PMI site:

www.pmi.org/certifications/types/project...pmp-exam-preparation

Hi Susie,

you got it right: the current PMP exam content outline dates back to June 2015. I understand it could be a bit confusing, but this document is not directly related to the new edition of the PMBOK Guide.
What I mean by this is that many parts of the Exam Content Outline are also covered in the PMBOK Guide. However, some are not, so you should look for additional references to get those topics/skills covered and be ready for the exam. A couple of examples could be Vendor Management techniques or process analysis techniques (Lean/Kanban/Six-Sigma).

Gabriella

Appreciate the reply about this question. Unfortunately, this 2015 "current" outline, conflicts with the 2017 PMBOK structure. For example:

- in Planning, Task 5 says "Develop the HUMAN resources management plan." - PMI changed this in the 6th Edition from "Human Resources" to "Resources"
- in Initiating, there is no mention of creating the Stakeholder Register (now prominent in the 6th Edition)

So, I will not refer to this (dated) outline to prepare for the exam.

Do you know the extent to which the PMP exam will have these Task-based Qs?

Thanks,
Susie

Hi, Susie,

Let me give you a tip on how I did to memorize these PMP formulas.

I have developed a methodology to carry them out, with 100% success. You have to put it on your calendar for an appointment called "Write the Formulas on a Sheet" every two days. When the time comes, you go there and write all the PMBOK formulas you memorized, the ones you forget, open the reference formulas sheet, and learn. As the days go by, you remember everything.

About three weeks would be enough to memorize all the formulas.

I hope that my comment helps you.

Regards,
Thiago