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Update: Changes to PMP^® exam by PMI has been pushed to 2 Jan 2021. Bookmark this page for all the latest updates.

PMI announced changes to PMP® exam for 2019 – 2020 sometime ago, and followed it up with an announcement for syllabus change in December 2019. In this post we shall what exactly has changed (hint: it’s nothing like we’ve seen in a decade), what does this mean to a PMP® aspirant, and what the next steps should be.

Bookmark this page to come back to understand more details about the exam. I keep this page updated to give you more clarity and better expectations from the new exam.

What’s covered?

• Why does PMI keep changing exam syllabus?
• What did PMI primarily change this time?
• Alright, what are all the changes?
• PMI has more details about the PMP exam (new update!)
• Does PMBOK version or content change?
• What about CAPM exam?
• In a nutshell
• Summary
• Verdict
• What are the next steps?

Years ago when I was preparing for my PMP® exam, I got to know that the syllabus was changing. And I was thinking..

Why Changes to PMP^® exam syllabus?

Project management practices evolve based on the needs and demands of the industry, stakeholders, dynamics of economy, and human ingenuity.

A project manager needs to follow the best practices in order to manage her projects effectively and efficiently.

I mean, isn’t that one of the reasons why we take up certification exams?

To know the best way of handling projects, based on what working out there.

PMI ensures that PMP® syllabus reflects the best practices from the industry and stays relevant to every project manager looking to learn the best practices and approaches.

PMI follows a unique process to keep it relevant to industry practices.

It does this by studying in detail how projects are managed across industries across the world, and incorporating those best practices into what is known as ‘Examination Content Outline’ (ECO) document.

This ECO is the real PMP® exam syllabus (did you think it was PMBOK?).

Thus, when you pass the exam, you would have been tested in a way that your result reflects your readiness to manage projects in the real world.

Make sure you read the Summary section below to understand what’s changing and its impact for you, at a glance.

In other words, both

(a) content of the PMP® exam, and

(b) the way the exam evaluates a candidate for the application of these concepts to real life project scenarios,

are made to reflect the project management practices in the industry.

Consider this a way to train yourself to manage projects based on the best practices across industries around the world.

This way when you pass your PMP® exam, companies know that you are prepared to manage projects effectively.

This increases your value in the job market.

PMI does this market research exercise every 3-5 years and brings in its findings into PMP syllabus – the ECO document.

PMBOK guide – used as one of the reference books for PMP exam preparation – is based on this Examination Content Outline document, but is not the sole and only reference resource to prepare for the exam.

So, what did PMI find this time?

[continue reading…]

“Research your PMP exam material well and choose the one’s that suits your learning style”, says Garima Grover, who passed her PMP exam recently.

Garima is a Technical Project Manager at IBM with around 10 years of experience in IT industry. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and a Post graduate certificate in Business Management from XLRI, Jamshedpur. She’s equally adept in Agile project management and IT service delivery. She loves to travel to explore new places, cultures, and cuisines.

Don’t miss the 10 insightful tips Garima shares about what to do and what not to on the exam. You’ll find these in the last section of this post.

What was your PMP trigger?

During a decade long career I have been in various project management roles and learned a ton along the way. It was only natural for me to want to give myself a well-rounded exposure to project management knowledge.

What better certification than PMP when it comes to learning the real-world, best project management practices?

Plus, the PMP credential is valued globally and helps landing into good job opportunities worldwide.

Early in my journey I realized that preparing for PMP certification exam along with personal and professional commitments was never going to be an easy thing. And that it required dedication and efforts, but outcomes were going to be worthy.

Once I prepared myself mentally to give it what it takes, the path suddenly became clearer and straight forward.

What were the study resources you chose?

Some amount of research is needed to choose the PMP exam material that suits your unique style of learning. [continue reading…]

Neetu Bodhi is a Bachelor of Engineering – IT from Mumbai University, with work experience of 8 years. She worked as a SAP BASIS consultant on implementation projects and decided to take up PMP as a way of enhancing her project management skills. Her core strategy was self-creating PMP exam prep notes.

Neetu is a voracious reader, swimmer, trekker and traveler. She is a passionate artist and runs a small setup where she makes Tiffany style stained glass items and mosaic items, as a hobby.

What triggered your desire to take up PMP exam?

After having worked for almost 8 years in consulting environment, I decided to go on a sabbatical and explore other areas of my interest. It was a conscious decision to take a break from chaotic work life and see if I could make a living out of my passion for art.

Since, it didn’t work out the way I expected I wanted to come back to work life. While working on implementation projects, I’d realized I was enjoying managerial challenges more than technical (I happen to be a SAP Basis consultant). The former role needed me to juggle multiple aspects of project management and helped me realize I multi-tasked well.

This is what triggered me to look for project management education – something that would help me prepare for PM role better.

After some research I decided to go with PMI PMP certification because it covers all aspects of project management.

Now that you are PMP certified, what changes would you foresee in near future?

First, PMP will help me greatly to make a “come back” in corporate career. I am armed with fair bit of knowledge to tackle PM challenges, and my previous experience will help me take this up confidently.

Now that I am more confident about my choices, I shall explore opportunities which are more aligned with project management.

Which study resources did you consider?

I used PMBOK (PMI members get free pdf) and Rita Mulcahy for my preparation.

Also, I enrolled for classroom training at my local PMI chapter, and used the PMP exam prep notes they gave me. It was a condensed form of PMBOK.

Other resources would be notes from PM Exam SmartNotes (access from the menu above), and few random YouTube videos.

Video explanations of knowledge areas, memory aids, mind maps, exam simulators, secret techniques to identify and answer any questions in seconds, techniques to answer ITTO questions, knowledge capsules, flashcards, cheat sheets, brain dump – this PMP certification training contains everything you need to ace your PMP exam on your first attempt. Grab to pass your exam before the NEW PMP exam kicks in!

[continue reading…]

Sanjiv Ebenezer is an engineer working in a leading Bank in the IT division at Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. His main focus of work is online banking, mobile banking, web site administration and integration. He passed PMP exam last week and being my student I couldn’t wait for him to spill the beans for PMESN readers! 

So, here are some real study gems you can use.

– Shiv Shenoy

What event triggered your desire to take up PMP exam?

I had passed the Prince 2 certifications, both Foundation and Practitioner levels. That helped me in my role as a project manager. I was looking for something that helps me learn all-round aspects of project management.

After some research I was convinced that it would be PMP certification. So I decided to take it up earlier this year.

How may PMP impact your work now?

I am working as a IT administrator in a bank, and I take keen interest in Quality control and Risk processes. I feel that the PMP has given me necessary perspective and the knowledge to implement these at my work.

Now I am conscious about the cost of conformance, and I have better control over the spending on Quality function.

I see myself applying more of PMP concepts at work and use more of the tools and techniques that I otherwise wasn’t aware of. This sure helps me get better at my job and I’m thankful that I chose PMP at this stage of my career.

Also read: Take this short training to cover a PMP topic not covered in PMBOK!

[continue reading…]

Point of Total Assumption, is part of Project Procurement Management knowledge area of PMP/CAPM exam.

This concept is useful in Fixed Price Incentive Fee (FPIF) type of contracts.

Using PTA in the contract needs some generosity from the buyer, because they are expected to absorb some amount of cost overrun on seller’s side!

You can expect to get a question on the exam to use the formula to calculate PTA-

Point of Total Assumption = {(ceiling price – target price)/buyer’s share ratio} + target cost

The video below explains the concept succinctly using an example.

PTA helps seller identify at which point on project cost curve would the buyer stops contributing for cost overrun. This is the point beyond which seller absorbs all additional cost overrun.

Image courtesy:
Ybelodray, PMP FPIF Contracts – BAC exceeds PTA, CC BY-SA 3.0

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