Today I passed PMP with 5 Above Averages. Here is my breakdown:
1. Took a week class in November 2016 that used velociteach material
2. Study a couple weeks after November 2016 class then didn't do anything until July 2017. Originally signed up for exam in August 2017 (1 month to study). A few days before the August 5th test date I rescheduled for today, Sept 16. I took a break for about three weeks in August. All in all I say my total study time was about 1-2 months which included a couple hours each night after work with a little more time on the weekends.
3. I have about 12 year of project management experience which I believed visualizing certain past experiences helped me remember the information. Obviously there were certain things that PMI believes that were different than what I did in reality but I would think how I should have handle that real world experience differently so it would fit the PMI mold. This visualization helped me remember the material easier.
4. I used the velociteach study material and to the individual knowledge areas quizzes multiple times. I liked their guide book, textbook and audio CDs. I didn't like their online tutorial which you get one week free. It was too boring, plain and very basic material on the online tutorial. However their online tests were great as it gave a breakdown of process groups and knowledge areas scores so I knew where to focus on my weaknesses. For me I combined different senses to help me learn- visualization, audio and traditional reading textbook.
5. Downloaded a free Rita Mulcahy PDF because people raved about it on this forum. I like Rita's process map which I didn't memorize bc I already memorized the majority of the ITTOs. However her map help me understand the sequence of the ITTOs. I do think her process map was extremely beneficial in initiation and closing as there were numerous questions on the exam in these process groups that asked what to do next or required this understanding of sequence. I liked Rita's test tips or need to know information as I felt they were point on. I didn't do her exercises but rather scan her material to see if there were points not included in Velociteach material. I felt her quizzes were way harder than velociteach and really helped you understand concepts. Initially I probably scored in the 60% on her quizzes but ended up taking them a couple times and scored in the 80%.
6. PMP simulator free one week trial. Used it in July and thought the questions were more challenging than velociteach. I actually felt the PMP simulator and Rita questions were harder than the actual PMP exam which was good with preparing. I just wish that I waited closer to my actual exam date to sign up for free simulator.
7. PMP cast free newsletter. I liked the daily questions and daily topics. It is very well done and keeps things loose which helped me keep interest during studying process.
8. Scan this forum and took points of others lessons learned.
9. Honestly, few people say this but I barely opened the PMBOK. I only cracked it open for a few terms or concepts that weren't fully explained in the resources I identified above. I mean barely, I mean like 2-3 terms total. There was literally only one question on the exam today where I didn't know the term but I was able to provide an educated guess on it. Point being you don't need to overwhelm yourself which extra material sources since it provides extremely little value.
10. I was surprised because I felt the exam was a lot easier than expected. I read things saying it was the hardest thing ever, I think you use the material and truly understand it, the exam is a formality. I wish I didn't reschedule it from August to today and just took it in August. I recommend to people to just take it if they understand the basis of the materials. Don't get hung up trying to score perfect scores in the practice exams.
11. I marked down the exam questions that I would get wrongs after a couple tries and made a running list of the right answers in a way for me to review and understand the concepts I missed. Focusing on these weak areas during the final prep week I think really helped me.
12. Scored a 72% on a velociteach practice 200 question exam this pass Thursday (2 days ago). And I said velociteach questions were easier. I really focused on my weak areas from then until today. I was slightly off with a lot of the questions and I think what I did in step 11 helped me make that leap.
13. DO NOT use some of the other free sources online. That is what caused me to delay my original test date. I found inconsistencies with practice exam questions and then having wrong answers (same question on different website but different answer marked as right answer). Simplilearn was one of them, sorry if you support that site. There were a few others too. Bottom line is use PMP simulator, Rita and understand the ITTOs (not necessarily memorize them but understand conceptually) you will be fine.
Thanks
Gerry
