What is PMP? - A Complete Beginners Tutorial

What is PMP? If you have spent time in project management circles, you have seen the PMP letters following well-known project manager's names. So, What is PMP? Is it a certification, or degree or diploma, or credential? These are frequently raised questions for the upcoming project managers as well as the experienced project managers. So, I came up with this article to clear all your doubts regarding PMP Certification.

What Is PMP? - A Complete Guide

• What is the PMP Certification?
• How to Become a PMP?
• Why is PMP Certification important?
• PMP Application process
• Exam structure and fee structure
• Roles and Responsibilities of PMP
• Is this certification right for you?
• Benefits of PMP

What Is Project Management Professional?

Project Management Professional (PMP) is an internationally recognized designation offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI). PMI is a non-profit organization that has started its activity in 1969; it has reached millions of professionals.

The PMIs standard for project management is contained in the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), whose first edition was released in 1996 and recently reached to 6th edition.

Do you want to get certified and build your career in PMP? enroll in "PMP Online Certification Training" This course will help you to achieve excellence in this domain.

How to Become a PMP?

The PMP Certification will add value to your career to the next level. You will be able to take responsibility at highly recognized companies with this certification. Professional project managers can able to work in a high number of various work environments and industries. As per the PMI definition, a project is a temporary endeavor to create a product, result, or service.

A certified project manager has a huge amount of job opportunities regardless of domain or field. From a small-scale organization to a large-scale organization, the need for project managers is extremely high to maintain the productivity and efficiency of a project and team.

Before this PMP Certification, make sure that you have completed the required education and work experience. The PMI offers two options depending on the educational background. 

Candidates should possess the following eligibility requirements to avail of this PMP certification.

Group A

• A four-year graduation degree.
• 35 hours of project management training or CAPM® Certification.
• 36 months of leading projects.

Group B

• An associate degree or a high school diploma.
• 35 hours of project management training or CAPM® Certification.
• 60 months of leading projects.

Related Article: PMP Interview questions for professionals

After meeting the above eligibility requirements, the candidate should apply for the PMP examination. We will discuss the application process further in this article. But, before that, we will see the importance of PMP Certification.

Why is PMP Certification important?

PMP Certification is a globally recognized certification where Project Management Professionals lead projects in various countries. It is a unique certification course that is bound to several regions or work environments. This certification allows you to work in multiple locations and industries. 

This certification helps you add value to your resume while you are looking for a job opportunity. It adds credibility to your knowledge, skillset. Experience and shows how potential you are. This makes you stand out from the crowd of other candidates.

It stands beside you as evidence of your hard work for the current clients and boss. It proves that you are able to conquer objects and achieve complicated long-term goals, professional skills, and learning skills. It is valuable, especially for beginners in the field of project management.

Certified project managers in an organization add more value to the growth of the organization. The certified project manager is the one who knows what to do and how to achieve results most effectively.

Although candidates need to work hard to clear the examination, this exam's key concepts run through project management, such as planning, initiating, implementing, monitoring, controlling, and closing. These skills help the project manager to manage any project.

As already said, the PMP Certification is recognized in many industries and countries; you will have better options to find a job opportunity. While pursuing a PMP Certification or you have become a certified project manager, you will be in contact with other professionals.

Such connections help you look for a new job with a better career opportunity and a high salary. As a result, PMP Certification enables you to grab the best job opportunity and an exciting salary.

PMP Application Process

The first and foremost thing is to verify whether you have met the eligibility requirements for PMP Certification. Before the application process, you have to provide the details regarding your formal project management education. Therefore, the final pre-requisite for PMP application is 35 hours of PMP Training.

PMP application is available online on the PMI website. Create your user ID and password on the website and log in. Choose PMP Certification from the list that is offered by PMI. Fill in the required details.

PMP exam application includes different sections. The first section in the application is Contact Information. Enter your personal and work-related contact details. Next, you fill in the educational qualifications in the application. Next, enter your relevant experience of leading and directing projects over five groups in the PMP application. Start filling your experience from the current or latest project you are handling. 

Note: You cannot enter two projects in the same time period. PMI does not consider overlapping projects.

You can save the application and come back later to continue. So, you can complete the application in any of your free time.

Next, enter your Project Details, like the number of hours you spent on the project, describe what you did on this project. You can add additional projects till you reach a total of 4500 hours. Be precise while describing the project details cause’ you have 500 characters only.

Lastly, you have to enter the provider's details, the name of the program, and the period you attended. If you have filled the application, you might ask your project management education provider to submit it or review it online. You can also download a copy of your application for further reference.

[Related Article: Assistant Project Manager Job Description]

Few tips for PMP Application

• Before you give the reference contact information for each project, check if they are available or not.
• Because the application is placed for audit, you have to take the signature from the reference provided in the application as proof that you have given valid information.
• Specify the contact information, ensure that someone is available to receive your PMP Certification and other communication from PMI in physical form.
• Secure the education qualification copies and 35 contact hour certificates accessible to provide for an audit if needed.

Exam and Fee Structure

The Exam and Fee structure of PMP Certification is given below.

Exam structure

• To clear the exam, you need to pass the objective examination.
• You have to answer 200 questions in 4 hours' time.
• The PMP exam conducts in 13 various languages globally.

The question paper includes the following domains. The priority of the question for each domain is given in detail below.

Project Management Area	Percentage of Questions
Planning	24
Initiating	13
Implementing	30
Monitoring and Controlling	25
Closing	8

Other courses are also available related to PMI project management, such as PfMP, PgMP, CAPM, etc. 

Fee structure:

• The fee structure for computer-based Testing

           For PMI member is $405.00

           For non-PMI member is $555.00

• The fee structure to earn 35 PDUs is different from country to country; it varies from $300 to $5000.
• The re-examination fee

           For PMI member is $275.00

           For non-PMI member is $375.00

• PMI Membership fee is $139.00

Roles and Responsibilities of PMP

As per the PWC report in the United States, 97% of organizations believe that the project manager role plays a crucial role in business performance and organizational success. But, barely 56% of project managers are certified in their field. Two-third of companies communicate with clients through project management tools. 

The project manager role is mainly operational responsible for planning and implementing to monitor the successful delivery of the output/product. The project manager must have practical experience of having been a project manager for complex initiatives. The following are the responsibilities of a project manager.

• Aligning the deliverables to the program’s outcome with the aid of the business change manager.
• Compliance with all mandatory regulations and rules.
• Coordinating the projects and their interdependencies.
• Daily program management by the program life cycle.
• Defining program governance (controls).
• Managing and utilizing the resources over projects.
• Managing the main program documentation, such as the program initiation document.
• Managing the program budget.
• Managing the issues and risks and implementing corrective measurements.
• Managing stakeholder's communication.
• Planning the overall program and monitoring the progress.
• Practice code of ethics with honesty and fairness.

The project manager must possess strong hands-on experience in project management by working on complex projects. The project manager should possess the following skills and attributes.

• Ability to work positively with a wide range of individuals involved in project management.
• Ability to find innovative ways to solve problems and issues.
• Good knowledge and handling of project and program management techniques and methodologies.
• Keen understanding of the objectives of a program.
• Good knowledge of resource allocation and budgeting procedures.
• Strong management and leadership skills.

Is this PMP certification right for you?

The PMI has thousands of members in several countries, and its Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification is a globally recognized course. Individuals who are opted for the Project Manager profession should consider obtaining a certification to gain high-level knowledge and experience in the career.

Although, project management skills are applicable in any field of organization and can be a great way to leverage value to an organization. 

This certification will help you to enhance your skill set and allows you to work like a pro. It adds value to your career and makes you implement unique techniques to produce effective results for the project. 

Related Article: MBA vs PMP

Benefits of PMP Certification

Let’s check out the Benefits of PMP for all the investments that you need to make. The Benefits of PMP are as follows:

• You will be recognized over others and can join the group of PMPs elite club.
• You might expect a hike of at least 20% in your PMP Certification salary.
• PMP certification helps you to meet the mandatory requirements that most of the companies specify for career growth.
• As a project manager, this certification allows you to have better chances of completing the projects successfully.
• The certification itself represents that you are dedicated to improving your skills, knowledge, and credentials. 
• Perseverance is what the certification teaches you. You will learn important soft and hard skills such as leadership, team management, problem-solving, communication, conflict resolution, resource management, time management, and organization.

Conclusion

On winding up, PMP Certification is a unique and globally recognized certification for project managers to enhance their career growth. Although, most people assume that PMP Certification is time-consuming, most expensive, and hard to crack. But, experts find PMP certification as an important certificate that adds value to your career. Further, it helps you to develop the key skills required to handle projects effectively.