PMP Exam Prep, Eighth Edition - Updated: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam

I just successfully passed my PMP Exam on the first attempt. It took me four months to achieve this goal once I set my mind to seriously preparing for it. Keep in mind, that I was randomly selected for PMI's 20% Audit of my application, so this added about 2 months to my prep time. I cleared the audit with no issues, but it did take time due to the process. This book is the single biggest reason that I was able to pass on the first try, and I strongly recommend using it as your primary source for preparation. Each chapter corresponds to a chapter in the PMBOK 5th Edition, so I would read each chapter in Rita followed by the PMBOK Chapter. Once I completed each set of chapters in the 2 books, then I would move onto the next chapter. I would highlight key concepts in both books as I read them. Once I made the first run through each book, I went back through Rita again, and answered each of the review questions at the end of each chapter. I also reviewed each corresponding chapter of the PMBOK, but focused on the key concepts' that I previously highlighted only in both sets of books. I also purchased the corresponding Rita Flash Cards and reviewed these when I had a few minutes of down time at my Kids' soccer practices or on my lunch hour. This reinforced the concepts in the Rita Book and PMBOK. Finally, I took 4 x full length practice tests and answered a total of about 2,000 practice questions (using PMP apps on IOS that you can purchase at a reasonable price) prior to the exam. 4 days prior to the exam I went through my highlighted areas in each Rita Chapter again. 2 x days before the test, I took a full length practice test (one of the 4 I previously mentioned). The day before the test, I went through the flash cards again. All of this helped me successfully pass. I spent no more than 2 hours per day studying due to job and Family constraints. Plus, after 2 hours, i would lose focus. The bottom-line is that this is a very difficult test, and you must thoroughly prepare or you will fail. However, this book is great focal point for your preparation, and if you follow it and thoroughly prepare, then you should be able to pass on the first try. I use this book regularly in my job as a good reference.

I passed the PMP exam last week (first try) and I don't believe I would have passed if I hadn't used this book. It is very well written and was super helpful. Some background, I have 20+ years of experience managing software development projects of all sizes and complexities and would consider myself a highly experienced project manager. I've learned how to deal with all manner of issues. I wanted to get the PMP credential to add to my resume. The PMP exam does not test you on your real-world experience, however. It tests you on how well you understand the principles and practices that are documented in the PMBOK. This is key to understand. It is a BEAST of an exam. 200 questions in 4 hours with, what felt like, trick questions sprinkled throughout. Each question is multiple choice and many of them have four very valid answers as choices. You need to learn how to answer the questions the way the PMI expects you to answer them. They have a very specific and rather rigid way of expecting project managers to approach the process of managing projects. And, this is where Rita's book came in. She makes it clear what the PMBOK expects a PM to do. She explains the various process groups really well and provides many tips and hints on what to expect on the exam. I had already taken a PMP class and took about 3 months to read the PMBOK, a few hours a week. In the last two weeks before the exam I studied Rita's book, reading a chapter a night. The weekend before the exam I took a full practice test and memorized formulas and definitions. There are a lot of practice questions in the book and these were also really helpful, although, I found her questions to be easier than the exam questions. (Again, this exam is rough.) I would have liked more practice questions but fortunately had some from my PMP class. As for the exam itself, in my case, the majority of the questions were situational ("what should you do next if xxxx has happened"). These are tricky since you need to answer the way the PMP expects which is not necessarily what you would do at your company. There were probably less than 8 questions (out of 200) that required any math or memorization of a formula and NO network diagram questions. I had memorized all the formulas and how to calculate critical path and float, per Rita's guidance, but that didn't turn out to be required, at least on my exam date. That was disappointing since these are the easier questions. However, I passed. Phew! This book really helped.

イープロ●ェクト、パーフェクトマスター、虎の巻などの問題集をやったが、不合格。 問題集と本番試験がかけ離れている為、勉強し直しを決意してRita本購入。 Rita本を読みつつ、PIMBOKで内容を確認を徹底しました。（合格） 本番試験は日本の問題集のように直接的な問題とはなってないですね。

In unserem PMP-Vorbereitungskurs wurde uns von der Seminarleiterin dieses Buch als hilfreiche Lektüre empfohlen. Ich hatte mir daraufhin das Buch auf Amazon bestellt. Ich war zu Beginn über den Umfang der Lektüre (ca. 600 Seiten) schockiert. Wenn man sich aber die Zeit gut einteilt, dann schafft man es aber nach einer Weile ganz gut durch die Lektüre. Der von anderen Rezensenten als aggressiv beschriebene Schreibstil von Rita ('Hast du das wirklich verstanden?' oder 'Viele Leser würden die Frage nun mit ja beantworten, jedoch ist die korrekte Antwort nein, weil...') hatte mich nicht gestört, sondern dazu geführt, dass ich mich intensiver mit bestimmten Themen beschäftigt habe. Andernfalls hätte ich doch manches vielleicht viel zu schnell überlesen. Das Buch fordert immer wieder dazu auf, sich eigene Gedanken zu bestimmten Projektmanagement-Themen zu machen und diese niederzuschreiben. Das ist insbesondere hilfreich, um Wissenslücken identifizieren zu können. Mir hat auch 'Rita's Process Chart Game' sehr gut gefallen. Hierbei zerlegt man den Process Chart in seine Einzelteile und versucht dann die einzelnen Schritte den Prozessgruppen richtig zuzuordnen. Hierdurch habe ich einen sehr guten Überblick über den Ablauf eines (idealen) Projektes erhalten. Im Buch sind sehr viele Übungen und beispielhafte Examensfragen enthalten. Hierdurch bekommt man ein Gefühl, ob man das jeweilige Thema verstanden hat oder ob man es nochmal besser wiederholen sollte. Rita legt sehr viel Wert darauf, dass man nicht ellenlange Aufzählungen auswendig lernt, sondern dass man die Zusammenhänge versteht. Ich hatte das Buch einmal durchgelesen und bin dann in die Prüfung gegangen. Die Prüfung bestand aus 200 multiple choice Fragen, die innerhalb von 4 Stunden zu beantworten waren. Ich fand die Prüfung nicht einfach, konnte aber dank Rita's Lektüre viele Fragen durch mein Verständnis der Zusammenhänge (s.o.) richtig beantworten, so dass ich nun ein zertifizierter PMP bin. Es hat mir nicht nur geholfen, die PMP Prüfung erfolgreich zu absolvieren, sondern auch mir aufzuzeigen, wie eine ideales Projekt geplant und gesteuert wird. Von mir eine klare Kaufempfehlung.

I would recommend Rita's PMP Exam prep book if you have limited time to devote to passing the PMP exam. Rita's PMP Exam prep book is written to help you become a better project manager from the PMI point of view, and as a result, makes it easier to pass the PMP exam. From my experience, memorizing to pass the PMP exam is equivalent to "accepting a medium risk of passing". Three key takeaways from Rita's PMP Exam prep book: * Adapt the book to your reading style; not vice versa. * Develop the Rita's PMP Exam prep book "PMI-ism" thinking as you read along; I believe it is a fail-safe option to passing the PMP exam. * Practise answering questions by asking "What process (e.g. Develop Charter, Define Scope etc.) does this question relate to?" as it enhances the probability that you select the right answer. PS Make sure you use the latest edition of Rita's PMP Exam prep book!

Te guia paso a paso por cada capitulo del PMBOK ofreciendo una visión practica, no solo de los contenidos del PMBOK si que ademas te enfoca los distintos tipos de preguntas que se hacen en el examen de certificación. Por eso, creo que es un libro muy recomendable para los que quieran aprobar el examen necesario para esta certificación.

The book was my best choice for my PMP preparation.