TOPIC: PMP passed from 1st attempt, preparation and lessons learned

Hi,

passed PMP exam from the first attempt on 16th of March, all domains above the target. Feels very good

How I prepared:
1. Participated in 4 day PMP preparation course in class - went through the PMBOK (very fast, no time for discussions), got some recommendations on the exam, must know things, covered questions/areas that are not covered in the PMBOK.
2. Read PMBOK once. While doing tests or something was unclear - always got back to the book to re-read required information ( in such a way I actually read PMBOK second time). Also made notes in the book and added sticky notes to find key info fast.
3. Took all preparation exams - free and premium from this PMP exam simulator. I think this was really helpful ( and I definitely recommend it ):
-learning - especially when you go through answered questions - it shows what still to be repeated/learned
- got understanding what kind of questions to expect on the exam (they really sometimes are quite tricky and not straightforward)
- get feeling how it is to answer questions during 4 hours
4. When I was learning I tried to reflect processes and knowledge of PMP to my experience - that helps to remember and understand some things ( at least in my case).
5. Also used additional material ( books, YouTube) to clarify some specific things.

My lessons learned:
- do not prepare for too long. I have heard recommendation of 1 month - not sure I would be able do that in 1 month. For me it took 2,5 month - which I think is little bit too long - last half month I felt quite tired being all the time in learning mode.
-another recommendation I have seen many times - in the exam before you start answering questions - spend first minutes to draw Process Group and Knowledge Area mapping table - I have done it, but never used in the exam. From other side may be doing so in the exam helps to get calm and focus on exam itself...
-this is more like personal feeling - if in simulator there is part of "easy" questions and part "complicated" questions then in exam I had mostly those "complicated" questions - therefore it still felt that real exam was harder than simulator exam.

Congratulations Alla!

And thank you for sharing your experience and lessons learnt.
Talking about the length of time needed for preparation, I think studying full time or doing so while working at the same time can be quite different.
That being said, it also depends on the habits or studying methods of each individual.

I wish you all the best for your new experience as a PMP Certified.

Congratulations, Alla and thank you for sharing your lessons learned!