Preface

ESI International has been helping people to prepare for the project management professional (PMP®)* certification exam since early 1991. Since then, it has become quite clear that most prospective exam takers (ourselves included when we studied for the exam many years ago) ask two questions when they decide to earn PMP® certification

“What topics are covered on the exam?” and “What are the questions like?” Not surprisingly, some of the most sought-after study aids are practice tests, which are helpful in two ways: first, taking practice tests increases your knowledge of the kinds of questions, phrases, terminology, and sentence construction that you will encounter on the “real” exam; and second, taking practice tests provides an opportunity for highly concentrated study by exposing you to a breadth of project management content generally not found in a single reference source.

We initiated the development of this specialty publication with only one simple goal in mind: to help you study for, and pass, the PMP® certification exam. Because the Project Management Institute (PMI®)† does not sell “past” exams to prospective certification candidates for study purposes, the best anyone can do is to develop practice test questions that are as representative of the real questions as possible. And that is exactly what we have done.

As we developed this publication, we have worked hard to make the questions difficult ones yet representative of what you may encounter on the actual exam. Having attained the PMP®, we know it is a difficult exam and one that requires study and dedicated effort.

The result of our effort is the PMP® Exam: Practice Test and Study Guide. This ninth edition—like the preceding eight—contains study hints, a list of exam topics, and 40 multiple-choice questions for each of the ten knowledge areas presented in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge Fifth Edition (2013), better known as the PMBOK® Guide,‡ for a grand total of 400 questions.

And as in previous editions, this edition includes a plainly written rationale for each correct answer, along with a supporting reference list. Our reference list alone took many weeks to compile. If you had nothing but the list of exam topics and the references, you would be well on your way to passing the exam.

You will find a reference to one or more of the five process groups, Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring and Controlling, or Closing at the end of each rationale. Those references are important because they give you an understanding of the types of exam questions that fall within each of these five major project management performance domains.

This ninth edition includes many scenario-based questions, which comprise approximately 50 percent of the questions found on the PMP® exam. It omits many of the purely definitional questions; PMI® has gradually eliminated these types of questions from the exam.

We have included questions specifically related to the PMBOK® Guide’s ten knowledge areas and the various inputs, tools and techniques, and outputs described in the processes and subprocesses of those areas. Additionally, we have reduced the length of many of our questions, to more accurately represent the real exam. Finally, in response to a number of requests we have included a completely original, 200-question practice test; none of these questions are found in the other sections of this book. The online practice test is available at http://www.ittoday.info/pmp/examhome.html.

We have retained the helpful Study Matrix in this edition as well. The matrix is included as an appendix. The matrix, which is based on PMI®’s PMP Examination Content Outline (July 2011), will help you to use the 200-question exam to its full advantage. The matrix provides a way for you to assess your strengths and weaknesses in each performance domain and to identify areas that require further study.

A special note to those who speak English as a second language (ESL): Our experience in teaching project management programs around the world has shown that most of our ESL clients understand English well enough to pass the PMP® exam as long as they know the content. Nevertheless, in an effort to avoid adding to your frustration before taking the exam, we have painstakingly reviewed each question and answer in the practice test to ensure that we did not use words, terms, or phrases that could be confusing to those who are not fluent in English.

Although the language issue may concern you, and rightfully so, the only difference between you and those who speak English as their first language is the amount of time it takes to complete the exam. We know of only one person who did not have enough time, and that individual was able to complete all but two questions. We would suggest, therefore, that if you can grasp the content expressed in this publication, a few colloquialisms or ambiguous terms on the real exam will not ultimately determine whether you pass or fail: Your subject matter knowledge will do that!

Earning the PMP® certification is a prestigious accomplishment. But studying for it need not be difficult if you use the tools available. You may want to include our companion piece, PMP® Exam Challenge! in your study plan if you have not already done so. In an easy flash-card format, it too provides many opportunities to become thoroughly familiar and comfortable with the project management body of knowledge.

Good luck on the exam!

J. LeRoy Ward

New York, NY

Ginger Levin

Lighthouse Point, Florida

---