About the PMP Exam and Certification
Welcome to the world of the Project Management Professional® (PMP)!
At its heart, the project management standards developed by the Project Management
Institute® (PMI) are relied on by organizations across the globe. The most fundamental
method of demonstrating your own understanding of PMI's project management standards,
is by achieving the PMP certification.
Since the early 2000s, the PMP certification has grown to become one of the most
sought after and internationally recognized management credentials available, consistently
ranking in the top 5 industry certifications across career surveys.
PMP Exam Facts and Updates
Below are answers to some of the most frequently received questions regarding the
PMP exam.
What is the current version of the PMP exam? The current PMP exam
was put into effect March 26, 2018 and reflects the A Guide to Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) - Sixth Edition.
When will the PMP exam change? The PMP exam typically changes every 18-24 months. An updated version of the PMP exam will be released on January 2, 2021 and will take the place of the current exam.
Where do I take the PMP exam? You will take your exam through Pearson VUE either online (with a live virtual proctor) or in-person at a physical test center. You must apply to take the PMP exam via PMI.org and have completed the required Contact Hours (class hours) and work experience prior to qualifying.
Is The PMBOK® Guide Changing? No, the PMBOK® Guide will not change from the current exam. That said, there may be additional references used for the updated exam.
What will change with the new PMP exam?
Updates to the new PMP exam will include:
- Project Management "Domains" will be reduced from 5 to 3
- Agile concepts will play a more dominant role in the exam than in the past
- Predictive(or "Waterfall") approaches to project management will be reflected less
For more in-depth information, please see below
What is the cost of the PMP exam? The cost of the PMP exam is $405(USD) for PMI members* and $555(USD) for non-members.
*The PMI membership cost is $139(USD)
Will the courseware and materials offered by PMTraining be updated for the new PMP exam?
Yes, PMTraining will always offer updated courseware to all students prior to the release of a new exam version.
Frequent Downloads
The PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition is the definitive reference text for
the current PMP exam certification. Students will use the PMBOK® Guide to refer to
for all PMP Knowledge Areas and process definitions.
Upcoming PMP Exam Changes
Domain (Process Group)
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Current exam
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Future Exam (Starting January 2, 2021)
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Domain I
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Initiating the project
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People
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Domain II
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Planning the project
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Process
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Domain III
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Executing the project
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Business Environment
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Domain IV
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Monitoring and controlling the project
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Domain V
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Closing the project
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Misc, Spread across all Domains
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Professional ethics and social responsibility
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Professional ethics and social responsibility
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Reference Text
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PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition
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PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition,
Agile Practice Guide (expected)
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More About the PMP Exam Format (All Versions)
The PMP exam is designed to objectively assess and measure project management knowledge.
Concepts covered in the PMP exam are directly derived from the Project Management
Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®) Guide. The PMBOK® Guide is an internationally recognized
standard (IEEE Std 1490-2003) which outlines project management fundamentals; and
is applicable to a wide range of industries.
- There are 200 total multiple choice questions which make up the PMP exam
- 25 randomly placed "pretest questions" are included, and do not count towards the pass/fail determination. These questions are not identifiable during the exam.
- Individuals have four hours to complete the exam
- Only correct answers count, and a passing score is determined by “sound psychometric analysis”. This scoring method indicates that scores reflect the difficulty of the questions answered. As such, PMI does not identify a precise "score" needed to pass the exam.
Exam content reflects the knowledge areas and processes based on the PMBOK®
Guide - Sixth Edition The ten PMBOK® Knowledge Areas contain a total
of 49 processes which are applied to five basic process groups. These five basic
process groups, which are common across all projects, are listed below along with
the percentage of questions one should expect on the PMP exam:
Additionally, our PMP practice exam content includes
questions on the overall Project Management Framework and Professional
Responsibility , reflecting the real PMP exam. The actual exam is offered
in both a computer based testing (CBT) environment, as well as through proctored
paper-based exams.
About the Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification The
PMP certification is managed by the Project Management Institute (PMI) and reflects
the PMI's project management processes as published in the Project Management Body
of Knowledge (PMBOK®) Guide. Since 1984, the PMP certification has become one of
the most sought after internationally recognized management credentials available.
The average salary of a PMP certified manager is 14% higher than individuals without
the PMP certification.
The PMP certification is a globally recognized credential, and individuals are encouraged
to remain active via PMI's Continuing Certification Requirements (CCRs). Only individuals
who maintain active PMP credentials may refer to themselves as Project Management
Professionals. Individuals do not need to be a member of PMI to earn a PMP credential.
The following are the minimum requirements in attaining the PMP certification:
- 4500 hours of project-based experience for individuals with a four-year degree or global equivalent
- 7500 hours of project-based experience for individuals without a secondary degree (high school, associates degree, or global equivalent)
- Project Management Education: 35 contact hours of formal education
- Ethics: Agree to PMI's Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
- Pass the PMP Exam
- For detailed credentialing information, click here to download PMI's PMP Credential Handbook.
The ten PMBOK® Knowledge Areas covered by the PMP exam are listed below.
- Project Integration Management
- Project Scope Management
- Project Schedule Management
- Project Cost Management
- Project Quality Management
- Project Resource Management
- Project Communications Management
- Project Risk Management
- Project Procurement Management
- Project Stakeholder Management
A complete list of all processes, grouped by Knowledge Area, is outlined at the
end of this page.
PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition and the PMP Exam All PMTraining exam prep content
reflects the latest PMP exam version based on the PMBOK® Guide - Sixth Edition
The most recent version of the PMP® exam was placed into use by PMI® as
of March 2018. The PMP exam is based on information contained in the latest PMBOK®
Guide—Sixth Edition, which was (officially) released by PMI®.
With the current version of the PMBOK® Guide's content, a focus is placed on removing
redundant information, and to add clarifying statements where needed. Significant
enhancements were made to improve readability, and terminology was updated only
to present them consistently in a verb-noun format.
About the Project Management Institute (PMI) The PMI was founded
and incorporated in 1969 and has published a number of standards related to project
management, including the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®) guide. The
PMI maintains two colleges: the College of Performance Management and the College
of Scheduling. In addition, the PMI maintains a membership of more than 515,000
individuals, including more than 800,000 PMP-certified individuals across 175 countries.
Visit the PMI Site
Complete PMBOK® Knowledge Areas and Associated Project Management Processes
The list below outlines the ten Knowledge Areas of the PMBOK® - Sixth Edition
(latest version), along with their associated 49 management processes. These processes
are used throughout the Initiating, Planning, Executing, Controlling and Monitoring,
and Closing segments of a project.
Project Integration Management
- Develop Project Charter
- Develop Project Management Plan
- Direct and Manage Project Work
- Manage Project Knowledge
- Monitor and Control Project Work
- Perform Integrated Change Control
- Close Project or Phase
Project Scope Management
- Plan Scope Management
- Collect Requirements
- Define Scope
- Create WBS
- Validate Scope
- Control Scope
Project Schedule Management
- Plan Schedule Management
- Define Activities
- Sequence Activities
- Estimate Activity Durations
- Develop Schedule
- Control Schedule
Project Cost Management
- Plan Cost Management
- Estimate Costs
- Determine Budget
- Control Costs
Project Quality Management
- Plan Quality Management
- Manage Quality
- Control Quality
Project Resource Management
- Plan Resource Management
- Estimate Activity Resources
- Acquire Resources
- Develop Team
- Manage Team
- Control Resources
Project Communications Management
- Plan Communications
- Manage Communications
- Monitor Communications
Project Risk Management
- Plan Risk Management
- Identify Risks
- Perform Qualitative Risk Analysis
- Perform Quantitative Risk Analysis
- Plan Risk Responses
- Implement Risk Responses
- Monitor Risks
Project Procurement Management
- Plan Procurement Management
- Conduct Procurements
- Control Procurements
Project Stakeholder Management
- Identify Stakeholders
- Plan Stakeholder Engagement
- Manage Stakeholder Engagement
- Control Stakeholder Engagement