I came across the PM Prepcast while reviewing options for further PM training I ordered the PMBOK guide and had a quick flick though to get an overview of the content and topics covered. After reviewing online comments and sample videos on you-tube I decided upon the PM Prepcast PMP Elite course which included the exam simulator.
I printed off the list of PMP Prepcast videos and highlighted them off as I viewed them. My aim was to spend a few hours each day to review. I was not working at the time however I was looking after kids along side the grandparents. In the end typically spent 3-4 hours on as solid day, some less focusing on the video material. It took about 7 weeks to get though the videos as i was taking notes at the same time. Taking notes meant I paused a lot so a video took about twice the time but it did allow me to think about the concepts more. I tended to have the PMBOK guide open to have a heads up on the ITTO so i could structure my notes but I didn't review the book then.
After the notes I started some general quizzes, 30-50 questions but quickly realised that I needed to go to the practice exams to get a feel for where I needed to focus study on. I did an exam about every 3 days and followed it up with a review of the marked questions and those answered incorrectly. This took about 3 weeks and I made my PMI application during this time as well. I marked questions which i wanted further explanation of the answers. While doing the practice exam I structured them as per the online PMP exam whereby I would take a break after 90 questions for 5 min to go to the bathroom and have a quick drink and a bite to eat. While I couldn't pause the timer I kept the breaks quick.
Practice exam results were:
PMP Exam 1 84.5%
PMP Exam 2 89%
PMP Exam 3 85.5%
PMP Exam 4 83%
PMP Exam 5 86.5%
PMP Exam 6 84.5%
PMP Exam 7 82.5%
I did find I struggled for time more and more as I went though the practice exams but I think it was me becoming more complacent and not as focused.
I did not do the 8th exam (ITTO) but did a final quiz to capture most of the unanswered questions which would have been half of this exam.
I was planning to do the example exam from PMI however I could not find it online.
As I reviewed the exam results I identified my areas of uncertainty and consulted the occasional video and the PMBOK guide. While i had intended to read the PMBOK guide or at least the pages I had put post-it notes on i struggled to complete this. I also made a wall chart with each process however I didn't end up really using this to study. I got an email for a weekend training session with Dan but didn't progress due to cost and also the fact it was in the middle of the night for me. Though this enquiry I did receive a spreadsheet of the processes that linked to a tab with more detail. This was a good tool to review the links between the processes, there would be a lot more benefit to make this up yourself though.
I did make a spreadsheet document up that listed all of the project plans and the project documents, I could then identify which process each was originated from and noted the link to the PMBOK guide this was more for my future working systems but was a good help and reference as i reviewed my practice exam questions.
The formula guide from PM Prepcast was good as it saved me time to generate the info myself from the notes and it contained a little more background info. I tried to memorise the chart of all the processes and focused on understanding the connection between the processes which did help with the approach to answers that often eliminated the options that were not related to that process. The final 3 days I reviewed my notes and consulted relevant sections of the PMBOK guide.
I booked my online exam about 1 week out. There were multiple time slots available every 15 minutes for a good portion of each day. The exam guidance notes from PMI and Pearson explained everything to me. The only thing that was unclear was the use of an additional monitor which I had to disconnect as the exam started. I'd recommend signing in about 20 min prior to your start time, this allowed me time to take photos of my surroundings and my Identification. The is a system you can send photos direct from your phone to upload them to your exam profile - all the prompts are provided. After the proctor sorted out my monitor issue i was on my laptop only and she started my exam.
The questions were inline with the PM Prepcast simulator interms of difficultly, structure and timing. There is only the countdown timer so that threw me a bit but the inbuild calculator helped me keep on track. The inbuilt whiteboard was useable and kept the info which was handy.
