PMI-PMP®: the new exam

There is more than one million PMP certification to date, making it the most widespread certification worldwide.
Together with the release of new PMBoK® editions, the Project Management Institute® (PMI) is used to update also the PMP exam.

When is the new review effective?

The new PMP review is effective from 2 January 2021.
As a reminder, it has been possible to take the PMP exam online since April 2020.
It will take 3/4 days to find an online exam session. You can therefore find a place in an examination center quickly.

The exam is accessible 7 days a week, 24 hours a day.

Why such a change?

The PMI is following a certain process to evolve this standard of examination.
The new examination is reflected in a document called the “PMP examination content outline“.
This is the preferred document for preparing for the examination (available in pdf).

This change is made to maintain PMI‘s accreditation. PMI follows two standards, ISO 17024 and ISO 9001, and must comply with certain requirements.

Consequently, the PMI has the obligation to conduct a field survey every 4/5 years in order to meet with professionals in the sector and understand what their needs are, what knowledge is required, what skills are needed, what are the daily tasks for a project manager.

This survey allows the PMI to carry out a worldwide market study from which the PMI updates its certification so that the examination best reflects the needs on the ground.

What’s changing in the PMP Exam?

Currently, these outlines of the examination content are valid until 31/12/2020 and reflect 5 areas and 42 tasks.

The survey identified market developments and trends.
PMBOK 7th edition and the new review reflect the reality on the ground and take into account the fact that today’s project management professionals work in a variety of project environments and use different project approaches.

The new PMP certification will reflect this and integrate approaches across the spectrum of value delivery. Approximately half of the exam represents predictive project management and the other half represents agile or hybrid approaches.

These approaches cut across the three areas listed above and are not isolated to any particular area or task.

The 3 new areas

The three new domains are now aligned with the PMI Talent Triangle, presented in the PMBOK 6th edition.

We find:

. The people (human) domain
14 tasks – 42% of the questions under consideration.
It covers leadership, conflict management, virtual team management, emotional intelligence, soft skills.

. The process domain (processes)
17 tasks – 50% of the questions under review.
It covers all processes with the 10 PMBOK knowledge areas, the appropriate project management approach, governance, and value.

. The business environment domain (the business environment)
4 tasks – 8% of the questions under review.
It covers compliance, profit realization, organizational change, the external environment, and links the organization’s strategy to the project.

Here is an example:

Format of the new PMP examination

The new examination includes:

• 180 questions (the previous exam was 200) but the same number of questions will be scored
• 230 minutes to complete the exam
• Two 10-minute breaks
• The questions will be a combination of multiple-choice, multiple answer, matching, hotspot, and limited fill.

Prerequisites for the new PMP exam

Before applying for the examination, the participant must ensure that the following pre-requisites are met:

If you have a four-year degree or higher :

• Have more than 36 months of experience in project management,
• 35 hours of training in project management*.

If not :

• A high school diploma
• Have more than 60 months of experience in project management
• 35 hours of training in project management*.

*The 35 hours of project management training are covered by the QRP PMP Training Preparation.

How to prepare for the exam?

Reading

The PMI provides a list of suggested documents and books to help you prepare.

QRP simply advises you to read the PMBOK 6th edition (included in the training cost), while waiting for the release of the PMBOK 7th edition, scheduled for 2021, and the Agile Practice Guide.

Training Kit (included in the training cost)

The PMI now offers a complete training kit based on the new examination, which can be described as an official kit, called the “PMI CHOICE“.

It includes an electronic version of a PMP certification preparation course material that can be downloaded in PDF format or viewed and annotated online from various media (PC, iPad/iOS tablets, Android) as well as numerous short videos of 3 to 6 minutes to facilitate learning.

Some additional tools are also provided such as the TO-DO LIST, a must for any project manager, various quizzes to self-assess yourself, and a set of 200 questions from the new 2021 exam.

Please note: the CAPM® certification exam does not change.

The PMI recommends using instructors with an instructor badge. Indeed, to obtain the quality of instructor accredited by the PMI, it is necessary :

• To have a valid PMP certification,
• To have significant experience in Agility,
• To have followed a PMI “train the trainer” training course,
• To have passed the instructor’s exam (to obtain their badge),
• To be attached to an ATP (Authorized Training Partner) as QRP International.

What is PMI ATP?

An Authorized Training Provider (ATP) is a training organization accredited by the PMI to provide training in preparation for PMP certification. Attending training with an ATP guarantees you formal training, with official course materials (provided by the PMI) and an accredited and certified instructor with a valid badge.

QRP International is an ATP training organization, check out our PMP training calendar!