Passing the PMI exam is one of the requirements for IBM PM Certification.Yesterday I sat for the exam, and passed.Some brief notes that may be helpful to those planning to take the test follow.Notes are based on my personal studying and test experience.If you have questions, please feel free to give me a call, or please drop me a quick note.Regards, Hele

Study Materials:

1. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK)

2.Documents received from the 2 day 'PMI Prep Class':

a. PMP Exam Practice Test and Study Guide

b. PMP Challenge

c. PMP Exam Prep Binder

3. Study Notes on the IBM web site (w3.project.ibm.com)

4. Quality Management for Projects and Programs (book by Lewis Ireland)

Supplement with your PM instincts and past experience....remember, don't be too caught up in IBM lingo.The PMI test is not an IBM test;you need to know PMI terms, practices, etc for at least the day of the test...

Re education:I took the PM Fundamentals class (21788 on MSE) in July, and the PMI Prep Class (N2504) in mid August.

Hints (based on the questions I had on my exam):

1. Exam has 200 multiple choice questions, each having 4 choices.The old exam had 5 choices;with the new format, there is less focus on pure memorization, and more emphasis on solving business problems.For example, you take a new job as a project manager on a project that's in trouble (cost, schedule, or customer sat problems), based on the 4 choices given, what would you do first.That kind of problem.

2. Know formulas cold:Earned value, number of communication channels, etc.There were at least 15 questions on Earned Value [PMI exams have a lot of variation in this area].

3. Know PMBOK cold.

4. Test had several questions on creating a network diagram and determining critical path.You need to draw the diagram, and then answer the questions that follow.

5. Many questions on use of Change Control, and use of Communications Plan.Again, questions were based more on solving business problems, than answering pure PMBOK memorization questions.

6. There were a few questions comparing Contract Closure with Administrative Closure.To be honest, I didn't focus my studies on that, so I was not confident on those questions.

7. Know definitions listed at the back of the PMBOK.Remember, forget your IBM terminology for at least test day.

8. Know Risk calculations (using decision trees, Expected Monetary Value, etc.) and Categories of Risk

9. Know Mazlow's needs, Leadership Styles, Motivation Theories, Sources of Authority/Power, Conflict Management, TeamBuilding, use of Kick-off meetings.The Study Notes on the web site are a good study source.

10.Time Management:Focus was on use of crashing and fast tracking for reducing project duration.

11.There were a few questions on contracts, types of contracts in relation to risk to buyer or seller, and general procurement questions.

12. There were questions re quality (use of CIP, the 'ibilies' such as availability, costs of conformance, control charts, standard deviations, tools, audits, etc).Know the difference between quality planning, assurance, and control.

13.Several questions on costing estimates, types of costs, etc.Again, know Earned Value cold.There were a few word problems re Earned Value.From the text in the question, you need to determine BAC, BCWP, and ACWP, and then calculate CV.

14.The above list is not all inclusive, but it gives you a general flavor of the types of questions on the exam I sat for.My understanding is that the exam is modified daily, so the folks taking the test today will have different questions than the test I took yesterday.

下一篇：PMI-PMPExamTipsandNotes