TOPIC: Success - First Attempt - 26th September 2016

Hello All, just wanted to share that i passed my PMP on 09/26/16 with 4 Ps and 1 BP(in closing - don't know how that happened )!

Have recently relocated to US and while i was waiting for my work permit to come thru, I thought of taking the exam. In total it was 6 weeks of study with 4-5 hours per day. Before i tell you the reading material I used, i must tell you that my concentration span for reading is no more than 15 secs, hence PrepCast really helped.

Study material:
1. Started with PMBOK, but it was too bland for me.
2. Moved to RITA and that gave me a good understanding of concepts but I completely missed on ITTOs.
3. Then came the PrepCast. Firstly, i needed something to give me the 35 hours but on top of that it is the VDOs which i required the most (for the reason stated above about my concentration span).
4. The PrepCast also came with the simulator, for me that was another way of learning, since every time i did Timed/Learning quizzes, it helped me learn many new concepts and scenarios.
5. Along with quizzes, i started reading PMBOK, this time it was much more comfortable to read, however still bland (pushed myself to read it at least once end-to-end).
6. I also did some online practice questions but they got me nervous; as there were some materials which were not in line with latest course material or had questions which i had never seen earlier (got me spooked), but still they gave me a different perspective to looking at questions.

That’s it. Like everybody advocates; instead of memorizing ITTOs try and understand them, i would give the same advice. Also do a lot of practice exams. i like PrepCast simulator a lot, it is very similar to the real one and covers all topics as well as extra concepts. The quizzes were the best part for me, i could do 10 questions (to boost up my confidence level - you get 8/10 and that’s 80%) or anywhere from 20 to 100 questions. The full length exams can help you to get used to sitting for long hours and stay focussed, so please do them.

Thanx PrepCast for your VDOs and simulator; really helped. The live feedback for questions is quick and awesome.

All the best to all the aspirants, take care.

PS: No brain dump created/required. Do ensure that you reach the exam center 30 mins before your appointment (do consider the time required to find parking spaces and distance of parking lot from the exam center). Though i reached well before time, but all these factors add up to anxiety and since you are already nervous, avoid adding more reasons to panic !

Arohi,

Thanks for posting your exam experience and lessons learned to the forum. Congratulations on passing the exam! Bland is probably too kind a word to describe PMBOK. But, I listened to Cornelius and somehow managed to get through it 3 times. I think that was a key thing for me to help pass the exam but it wasn't fun. Best of luck to you in the US and I hope the PMP certification opens new doors for you.

Cheers,

Mark