Top Requirements for the PMP Certification Course
Your military experience translates to project management success
The Project Management Professional (PMP) certification issued by the Project Management Institute (PMI) and is the gold standard in the project management profession.
According to PMI, through 2027, employers will need to fill an additional 2.2 million project-oriented roles. The PMP certification validates that you are experienced in standardized concepts and skills that are applicable across a wide range of industries. By earning the PMP designation, employers recognize that you are highly skilled in:
People: Emphasizing the soft skills you need to effectively lead a project team in today’s changing environment.
Process: Reinforcing the technical aspects of successfully managing projects.
Business Environment: Highlighting the connection between projects and organizational strategy.
PMP Exam Eligibility Requirements
In order to earn the PMP certification, you must complete 35 hours of formal project management training and meet certain education & experience requirements, which are:
High school diploma/Associate degree with 60 months of non-overlapping project management experience within the last 8 years, or
Bachelor’s degree+ with 36 months of non-overlapping project management experience within the last 8 years, or
If you have graduated from a PMI GAC accredited project management degree program or have the associate level project management certification (CAPM), this can eliminate some or all of the above experience requirements.
What is a project?
Participants must be able to prove relevant project management experience in order to be accepted to sit for the PMP exam.
The good news is that project management is applicable to a wide variety of industries. PMI defines a project as a temporary endeavor, that has a definite start and finish, to create value through a unique product, service, or result. A project will have a team, budget, schedule, and a set of expectations to meet. Each project should differ from routine operations, the ongoing activities of an organization, because projects reach a conclusion once the goal is achieved.
The current exam is based on the PMBOK Guide 6th edition, which outlines project management in five process groups: Initiating (IN), planning (PL), executing (EX), monitoring and controlling (MC), and closing (CL).
Initiating a project sets the vision of what is to be accomplished and ensures that the project aligns with an organization’s strategic mission and objectives. During this process, the sponsor (think management or authoritative body) officially authorizes the project, the project charter is created, the high-level scope is established, and stakeholders/project influencers are identified.
The project planning phase is just that: In this phase, plans are made for how the project will be done before the work is actually started so that the team can think through the whole project process in advance. This phase takes the project scope to a granular level. Of the 5 processes, this is the most robust in terms of written document deliverables and includes items like collecting requirements, creating the work breakdown structure, developing a schedule, establishing budget, determining quality management, risk management, stakeholder engagement, and much more depending on organization requirements.
Executing the project is getting the job done! Generally, the project manager will coordinate resources as the project team ensures deliverables defined in the planning phase are created. In project management, the term resources also includes human resources. Thus, project managers are often responsible for communications management, stakeholder engagement, and team growth and development.
Monitoring and controlling is keeping the project on track. In a perfect world, all projects would go as planned, but that is a rarity. Instead, the project manager needs to regularly assess the overall project performance and make any necessary changes.
Simply put, closing is the formal process of closing a project. This involves obtaining customer or sponsor acceptance, archive records, and hold a lessons learned meeting at a minimum.
Projects can include, but are certainly not limited to: Software development, improving business process(es), building construction, natural disaster relief efforts, expansion efforts, bringing on a new system or updating a system, developing training material, event planning, specific marketing campaigns, and more!
You don’t have to have had a formalized “Project Manager” job title to be eligible to sit for the PMP certification exam. Many military members and their spouses tend to have significant experience and skills in leading and directing project efforts, without having worked specifically as a project manager.
A Project Management Institute PMP credential increases marketability and could help members of the military community showcase their skills to the civilian employment sector.
Contact us!
If you’d like to find out more about PMP eligibility requirements and Mission43’s PMP Certification Course, reach out to our education specialist today!