In this article, I explain four effective strategies to help aspiring project managers confidently prepare and pass the PMP examination.

Strategy #1 - Use the PMP Exam Content Outline (ECO) as your Project scope or Product Backlog. 

Let’s start with the PMP Exam Content Outline also known as the ECO. The ECO is the blue print for the exam and lists all the tasks within three domains; People, Process and Business Environment. Just like you would want your project to either have a scope or a backlog of stories, it is important that you use the ECO as the defined project scope to build your study plan. Not only does the ECO list all the tasks and sub tasks, it also shows the percentage of questions from each domain that you will be tested on. 

Strategy #2 - Be deliberate with your preparations and build a structured PMP Preparation Plan. 

This strategy is especially important if you are self-studying. The 35 tasks in the ECO can easily take 70 hours @ 2 hours per task. And you need to set aside time to test and retest till you are confident of being exam ready which may take up to 40 to 50 hours. In this scenario, you will be needing at least 120 hours of study time. So, if you are able to put in 2 quality hours of study every single day, you may be able to cover the entire material and be exam ready in 8 weeks  and if you are able to put in 4 quality hours of study time every single day, you may be exam ready in 4 weeks. 

Strategy # 3 - Focus on the Quality of the prep