The Project Management Institute (PMI) offers a professional credential for project managers, known as the Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.
The need for project management staff continues to grow and research predicts that employers will need to fill over 2 million new project-management oriented roles each year until 2027. This means skilled project managers will be in high demand and the globally recognized PMP certification is a way to demonstrate that holder knows what they are doing in project management. The PMP is useful to anyone that helps bring a project to completion.
The PMP certification is regarded as the top project management credential because it proves a person has the specific skills and experience that employers seek; certified PMPs reporting earning up to 25% more than other, non-certified, project management professionals.
The main requirement to gain the credential is real-world project management experience and varies depending on educational achievement:
• Where a candidate has completed a four-year degree in a relevant discipline the following is required: at least 36 months experience leading projects, have completed at least 35 hours of project management education/training or achieved CAPM Certification
• Where a candidate holds a high school diploma or an associate’s degree (or international equivalent) they must have at least 60 months experience leading projects and at least 35 hours of project management education/training or CAPM Certification.
To achieve the PMP credential candidates need to pass an exam. The PMP credentialing examination process stands apart from other project management certification examinations. It is aligned with industry best practices, such as those found in the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing and it is also quality accredited against the ISO 17024 standard.
PMP credential holders can be confident that the credential has been developed according to the best practices of test development and based upon input from the practitioners who work in the field.
It is a vital part of the activities leading to earning a professional credential so it is vital that the PMP examination reflect accurately the real-world practices of the project management practitioner. All the exam questions on the examination have been written and reviewed by qualified credential holders and tracked to at least two academic references. That means that candidates can be assured that the exam is thorough and based on best practices in the industry today. Earning the credential requires commitment and effort but the rewards are tangible throughout a candidates career.
