Dear All

I took the new PMP exam (on Sep 15, 2011) and today I have received my result that I have passed the exam :).  I want to dedicate my success to my lovely wife AQ***** for her enormous support during the preparation :) .

I am first time posting anything on the forum to share my experience and lessons learnt about the exam preparation, as it was great help for me to visit this forum and learn from other people sharing their experiences.

I registered for the exam for Aug 28, 2011 as I was planning to take the old exam. But I was not that much satisfied with my preparation so I rescheduled the exam for Sep 15, 2011...

Follwing is a brief description about how I prepared for the exam and my lessons learnt :)

Initiation :

To start preparing for PMP, do you know what is the most important thing ?  In my opinion, it is WBS !!!  WBS???? how??? Ahan!! by  WBS I mean " Wife's and Boss' Support" ;)  Being a Married Professional we are already having complains from wives that we are not giving them proper time and  Bosses are as usual demanding late sittings, extra work etc. So to start preparation you must take these 2 stakeholders into confidence that you are going to prepare for the exam and it will be so nice of them if they agree to give you some free time [ seems easy but trust me it is not ;)  ] ....

Planning:

You must Plan according to the time available. I prepared for 1.5 months (initially I thought it will take 1 month to prepare but then I re-scheduled and took half month more). I bought Head first, Rita 6th Edition and PMBOK 4. I started with PMBOK but then decided to start with Rita and then study PMBOK. I didnot have time to study 3 books so I planned to concentrate on Rita and PMBOK (I didnot find Headfirst helpful to develop thought process as required by PMI).

Execution:

I studied Rita 1 time(also solved questions at the end of each chapter). Then I Studied PMBOK 1 time. After having studies 1 time Rita and 1 Time PMBOK, I started doing Rita Fast Track(knowledge area wise). I used to revise (highlighted text) Chapter from Rita and PMBOK and then solve corresponding knowledge area questions from Rita Fast Track. 1 week before the exam I revised the PMBOK4 and took free exam of PMStudy. Memorized Page 43 of PMBOK4. Tried to memorize ITTOs but I found it time consuming and decided to spend the same time for revision of PMBOK4.

Monitoring and Controlling:

During the preparation I kept visiting PMZILLA forum to get tips and lessons learned. It was really helpful to get an idea of focus areas. Also I used to take tips and discuss progress of my preparation with my friend who is already PMP certified. Offcourse, dont forget to keep satisfied 2 major stake holders (your Wife and Boss), as they might loose patience and get off the track anytime during the prepartion ;)

Closing:

1 day before the exam I stopped preparation. Only revised formulas and Page 43. On exam day I reached the centre at 8:00 am as my exam time was 9:00 am. I went to washroom before starting the exam and i believe that it was the most wise decision at that time by me ;) As the exam was new and by that time there were no postings on the forum about type and lenght of the questions so I was not sure that how long it will take and whether I will be able to take breaks or not. I found questions close to Rita Fast Track Questions. Few questions were straight forward and mostly questions were 4 to 6 lines. I marked only 5 questions (Didnt change any of them later on). I took 3 hours 45 minutes to complete the exam with no break ( As I was enjoying doing the exam and didnt want to break my concentration). Also I didnt review my answers as I answered thinking that I was selecting the best choice I could have everytime I review them. After finishing exam a screen appeared saying that it will take 4 to 6 weeks to receive the result. So after waiting almost 3 weeks, I received my result that I have cleared the Exam :) Now as closing part I am writing "Lessons Learned" :)

Material Used:

Rita PMP Exam Prep, Sixth Edition: Studied 2 Times.

PMBOK: Studied 3 Times.

Rita PMP Fast Track Questions: (I will recommend to read explanations of  answers too). I found it close to real exam or atleast it prepared me well for the real exam.

PMStudy: 1 free test (it was ok but I did not find it close to the real exam) 

ITTOs: Try to Memorize ITTOs but dont waste much time if you are unable to memorize them easily. DO NOT WORRY AND TENSED IF YOU HAVE NOT MEMORIZED ITTOs (it was my biggest worry and fear before the Exam).

In last, I want to thank everyone who shared their experiences and lessons learned on the forum as it was a great help for me to prepare and Pass my PMP Exam :)   Good Luck for Everyone Who is preparing and planning to take the Exam :) My best wishes with all of you :)