CAPM certification is a certification offered by the PMI (Project Management Institute) based in London. It deals with validating the skills and knowledge gained by the aspirant via CAPM training and self-study regarding project management. The CAPM certification opens up better and more opportunities for the certified professional in the field of project management. It builds the leadership qualities, relationship building, project handling, critical thinking, and other qualities of an individual. Although CAPM is not an uphill or Hercules task, it may seem so sometimes. Below are the details about the examination for certification with CAPM and tricks and tips to clear it a hassle-free in the first attempt itself.
Duration: – The certification test continues only for a time period of 3 hours, within which the candidate is expected to answer all of the questions to the best of his or her knowledge.
Questions: – The questions are 150 in number total, of which 15 include only feedback questions and are not scored for obtaining the certificate.
Passing score: – Although the exact criterion has not been specified by the PMI, scoring well between the ranges of 61% – 70 % should land you on the certificate easily.
Cost of the certification examination: – The certification examination costs different depending on membership. A member of the PMI has to pay less to apply for the certification, whereas a non – member has to pay slightly higher. The certification cost for a member is only $225 USD, whereas a non – member has to pay USD $300.
Prerequisites required for applying the test- The requirements to be met for appearing in the examination are based on the experience of the candidate gained over the years. If the candidate does not have any experience, he or she must possess a high school degree or any equivalent secondary degree and a minimum of 23 hours of project management education. In contrast, applicants with experience should hold at least 1500 hours of formal project management hours along with a secondary degree to be eligible for the CAPM certification examination. Project management education hours are the formally recorded hours dedicated to learning project management course (s).
Medium: – English is the main language of the examination, but PMI also provides aids in 13 different languages.
Preparation to crack the exam on the first attempt:-
– The 5 groups under the CAPM syllabus are: – initiating, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing. These need to be mastered to the utmost level of understanding to clear the certification examination, as these are the basics to project management.
– The syllabus is again subdivided into ten knowledge areas which follow in the hierarchy as – management of project integration, management of project scope, management of project time, management of project cost, management of project quality, management of project human resource, management of project communications, management of project risk, management of project procurement and management of project stakeholder. These signify the underlying processes of project management a project manager should be well versed with.
– Chalk out the time remaining with you and the concepts that need to be covered.
– Schedule a plan and set to study right away.
– Stick to the plan. It is rightly advised to be better than your excuses. In order to be successful, prepare the best you can.
– PMBOK is the best study material for CAPM aspirants.
– Undertake CAPM training courses provided by PMI as well as other training centers online as well as offline as per your convenience.
– Once done with the syllabus once, revise and appear mock tests.
– The day before the certification test, get enough sleep to rest your mind and calm your soul.
– On the day of the exam, do not stress out and check all the necessities before starting the exam.
– Fill out to the best of your wisdom and submit on time.
With the best training material and a properly planned self-study regime, CAPM certification is not too difficult to achieve. Aided with a rigorous practice based on real-life scenarios and time based mock tests, CAPM must feel like a piece of cake. A candidate has varied and improved career options once obtaining the CAPM certificate. Thus, the CAPM certification is one of the best project management certifications.
