I am Pramod Shrivastava, a professional with over 11 years of experience, currently working at Accenture. I attended PMP training sessions in March 2020, conducted in Mumbai by ProThoughts. A big thanks to ProThoughts for the splendid training on PMP Certification. The group activities & quick quizzes truly helped me to understand all the concepts clearly. I have attended several pieces of training before but I don’t recall any of them having such a strong impact. The discussions were truly inspiring.
Why did I opt for PMP certification?
In my current role, I was responsible for playing different roles in different processes which made me realize that I need to learn all the efficient & effective ways I can pitch myself & adopt the right processes. My main aim while earning the PMP Certification was to gain a great hand of knowledge to become a better project manager. And, also to get equipped with the best project management software out there as well as tools and techniques which are required to successfully complete any project. To go ahead with my career growth, PMP Certification seemed the suitable & correct choice.
How did I plan for the PMP exam?
Initial Study Plan
My main focus was to clear the PMP Exam on my first attempt. After completing the classroom sessions, I finished my first round of reading all Knowledge Areas from Rita Mulchahy’s exam prep book in four weeks, followed by mock tests.
Application Process & Study Approach
With ProThoughts’ guidance, I applied for my PMP Exam, and my application was approved in just five days. At the same time, I completed my second round of reading the RMC book in the next 15 days. During this initial 25-day period, I studied two hours on weekdays and four hours on weekends. Feeling confident in my preparation, I booked my PMP exam for June 26.
Mock Tests & Final Preparation
Two weeks before the exam, I took four mock tests from ProThoughts, scoring an average of 65%. While the scores weren’t perfect, I remained motivated. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, PMI canceled my exam just one day before. This was disappointing, and I got caught up in office work. PMI later introduced the option to take the exam from home, but I was hesitant due to concerns about power outages or internet disruptions.
In 2021, I decided to retake the PMP exam, this time with a preparation period of three months. I submitted my application in April 2021. The exam format had changed with the inclusion of Agile concepts, which was a plus for me as I had experience with Agile methodologies. By mid-June, I felt fully prepared and scheduled my exam for June 26. Two days before the exam, I stopped studying to stay calm and relaxed.
On exam day, when I reached the final question and clicked the ‘Submit’ button, I eagerly awaited the result. Seeing the message “Congratulations…” was an incredible moment—I had done it!
Observations
- Preparation: I decided to follow instructions given by the instructor, ProThoughts, and as per Rita Mulcahy’s book. (There are multiple webinars & knowledge videos on the internet which can help you tremendously).
- Highly Acclaimed Study Material: The RMC book & few booklets provided by ProThoughts were the study materials I referred to & focused on. I solved each and every exercise in the RMC book which helped me to grasp the knowledge easily. I appeared for all Mocks and put effort in their analysis which helped a lot to set the logical flow of the mind.
- Study Pattern: On Working days, I used to complete half a chapter a day and on weekends I tried to finish 2 chapters in 2 days. After studying each knowledge area, I used to prepare a mind map to recollect what I studied in the chapter. I waited a while to solve questions after just reading them. Instead, I used to solve questions the next day to understand how much I could retain. After every mock test, I reflected on my wrong questions & worked on filling the gaps in the pain areas. The first 2 readings of the book matter as it is a bit difficult to grasp all the knowledge and concepts. I slowly picked up confidence from Mock Exams and worked on weak links. Studying right after my training really helped me.
- PMP Exam: Too many questions came based on agile principles and scenarios and overall the exam was easy as I scored ‘Above Target’ in all processes.
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About DASSM Exam
While preparing for the PMP exam, I came across the Disciplined Agile toolkit through ProThoughts’ social media channels. I found it highly relevant to my job since it helps organizations choose the right Agile framework for project implementation.
Curious about the course, I inquired at ProThoughts. I was so excited and happy upon finding that the ProThoughts Expert Mr. Ashish Sadekar was conducting the training. As a result, enrolled for the course while my PMP exam dates were just after the DASSM course. After clearing PMP, I was highly confident and immediately started preparing for the DASSM Exam but this time I referred only to ProThoughts study materials and mock-up. That’s it and I cleared the DASSM certification exam.
A big shout out to the ProThoughts Team and especially Mr. Ashish Sadekar, without whom I couldn’t have thought of cracking a tough exam of PMP and DASSM in such a limited time.
All the Best to all PMP and DASSM aspirants!
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For More PMP Success Story
Hope you found this PMP and DASSM Success story by Pramod Srivastava inspiring and helpful. You can find more such certification journeys penned down by our candidates below:
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