You must attend a formal PMP training program in project management to apply for the PMP certification exam.
Attending a formal project management training program and earning 35 contact hours in one of the three requirements is necessary to apply for the PMP exam. The other two eligibility conditions are experience and educational qualifications, which we will discuss later.
Before discussing the PMP training, let us quickly examine the PMP certification.
The PMP stands for Project Management Professional, a certification offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI) in the USA to project management professionals. It is the most prestigious certification desired by project professionals globally.
To attain this certification, you must pass an exam with 180 questions lasting 230 minutes.
The exam is divided into three sections with two ten-minute breaks each. The first break will appear when you complete the 60th question and review the answers. The second break will appear after you complete the 120th question and confirm that you have reviewed all answers.
Note that once you review your responses and start your break, you cannot return to the questions from the previous section of the exam.
When you return from the break, you can use the remaining time to complete the next part. The total time is 230 minutes to respond to 180 questions.
A tutorial and a survey precede the examination; both are optional and take 5-15 minutes to complete. The time used for the tutorial and the survey is not included in the exam time.
Now, let us discuss PMP training programs.
PMP Training
You must obtain project management education before applying for the PMP certification exam and earn 35 contact hours.
You can satisfy the educational requirements by demonstrating the successful completion of courses, workshops, and training sessions offered by any of the seven types of education providers listed below:
A. PMI Registered Education Providers (R.E.P.s)
B. PMI Authorized Training Partners (ATPs)
C. PMI chapters*
D. Employer/company-sponsored programs
E. Training companies or consultants (e.g., training schools)
F. Distance-learning companies, including an end-of-course assessment
G. University/college academic and continuing education programs
The following education does not satisfy the educational requirements:
- PMI chapter meetings*
- Self-directed learning (e.g., reading books, watching instructional videos, or sessions with coaches or mentors).
Also, note that this training is valid for life. Once you complete it, you can use it to apply for the PMP certification exam at any time.
You can complete your PMP training in many training modes, such as classroom, online, or hybrid. Among all these types of training programs, I find online training programs are better as they provide many benefits over other methods:
- They are cheaper
- They are always available
- They can be joined from any location
- They can be completed from home
When preparing for the PMP exam almost eleven years ago, I found no online PMP training programs, so I settled for a classroom training program. The location was over 300 miles away from my home. I had to make arrangements to travel and stay there.
The experience was not pleasant.
You can now choose to join an online training program, so I recommend using an online PMP training program to earn your contact hours. Some popular PMP training program providers are:
- PM Sprout PMP Training Program
- Brain Sensei PMP Training Program
- PM PrepCast
If you have decided to go for an online PMP training program, I recommend the PMSprout PMP Training Program.
PM Sprout’s PMP Training Program
I have developed this PMP training program in partnership with PMSimplify. PMSimplify is a PMI-approved ATP (Authorized Training Partner).
This PMP training course is based on the latest PMP exam content outline applicable in 2024.
This training program is affordable, available for 150 USD, and you will have six months of access.
The training program is 100% online, and access is granted immediately after the payment.
Key Features of this course are:
- Video sessions
- Flashcards
- True/false statements
- Over 800 practice questions
- PMP Formula Guide
- One mock test
- Social networking with other aspirants
- 100% money-back guarantee
- 35 contact hours certificate
Click here to subscribe to PMSprout Training
Brain Sensei
Dr. John Estrella and Chris Stafford founded Brain Sensei. It offers two courses for project professionals: PMP training and CAPM training. Both programs are 100% online and self-paced.
Brain Sensei’s PMP training program is different from other training programs. It uses animated storytelling to explain project management concepts, and I find it very entertaining.
The content is engaging; it provides many quizzes and over 900 PMP exam sample questions, including four mock tests.
This course covers the entire PMP exam course and is aligned with the latest exam content outline, applicable from January 2, 2021.
Key Features of this course are:
- 35 Contact Hours Certificate
- 100% online
- Access to personal samurai
- 100% money-back guarantee
- Fast customer support
- Six months access
- Highly interactive lessons
- Four full-lengths tests
- Chapter Quizzes
- In-depth progress tracking
- Pass guarantee
The course costs 499.00 USD, and access is for one year.
PM PrepCast
The PM PrepCast is the most popular PMP Training Program by famous PMP trainer Cornelius Fichtner.
This training program has video sessions that explain project management concepts. Each chapter concludes with end-of-chapter quizzes. After watching sessions, you can attempt a course completion test and download your 35 contact hours certificate.
The PM PrepCast has over 50 hours of video/audio sessions; this is the longest session I have seen on any PMP training course.
Key Features of this course are:
- Over 50 hours of video/audio sessions
- Can be accessed offline
- Can be accessed from any device
- 90-day money-back guarantee
- A 141-page workbook outlining useful concepts
- Good Content Quality
- Accessible everywhere on all devices
- Access Duration Until the exam content changes
- 90-day Refund Policy
This PMP training course costs 389 USD, and you have access until the new version of the PMBOK/Agile Guide arrives. However, buying the course six months before the exam content changes will give you a free upgrade.
PMP Training: PMP Certification Eligibility Requirements
You have three options to fulfill the PMP eligibility requirements.
Option-I
- Educational Background: Secondary degree (high school diploma, associate’s degree, or global equivalent)
- Project Management Experience: Minimum five years or 60 months of unique, non-overlapping professional project management experience
- Project Management Education: 35 contact hours of formal education unless you are an active CAPM holder
Option-II
- Educational Background: Four-year degree (bachelor’s degree or global equivalent)
- Project Management Experience: Minimum of three years or 36 months of unique, non-overlapping professional project management experience
- Project Management Education: 35 contact hours of formal education unless you are an active CAPM holder
Option-III
- Educational Background: Bachelor’s or post-graduate degree from a GAC accredited program (bachelor’s degree or master’s or global equivalent)
- Project Management Experience: Minimum two years or 24 months of unique, non-overlapping professional project management experience
- Project Management Education: 35 contact hours of formal education unless you are an active CAPM holder
Summary
The PMP training is mandatory; you must attend it to apply for the PMP exam. This training will teach you about project management concepts and equip you with the required knowledge to pass the PMP exam.
I recommend you join the following online PMP training program to complete your training.
Visit the PMSprout Online PMP Training Program Page.
Good luck with your PMP exam preparation.
Some links in this post are affiliate links, and I will earn a commission if you purchase after clicking. Please understand that I recommend these resources because they are useful, not just because of my commissions. Please do not purchase unless you need the materials to achieve your goals. Read the disclaimer.
I am Mohammad Fahad Usmani, B.E. PMP, PMI-RMP. I have been blogging on project management topics since 2011. To date, thousands of professionals have passed the PMP exam using my resources.
