Rita Mulcahy's PMP Exam Prep: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam

Having just passed the PMP exam on December 28, 2012, I can give you a fresh perspective based on my use of this book for passing the exam. I am the project manager for awareness campaigns, but my knowledge of PMI's thoughts on how to go through project management were not overly developed prior to studying for this exam. So I would say I was starting from the beginning for the more detailed processes like risk management. I used Rita's book and the PMBOK Guide exclusively for four months. My study habits included reading through Rita's book fully once and taking the chapter practice tests, reading highlighted portions of the book the second time around and repeating some of the exercises in each chapter, and the third time around skimming each chapter for my problem areas and retaking the practice exams. During my second go through the book I also read through the 4th edition PMBOK Guide. The PMBOK really helped me with inputs and outputs and Rita's book is great for those of us who are trying to get better in project manager and pass the exam on the first try. Overall, I really don't have any cons for this book because I didn't look at any other books and I passed and passed WELL. The woman printing my results at the testing site told me she was impressed. I was surprised (re: overjoyed), she administers these tests every day and didn't really seem like the cheerleading type. However, please note the following are NOT INCLUDED IN BOOK: Rita does not include quality/grade and accuracy/precision, so make sure you get that knowledge. I did a quick google search online when I realized that was missing (from my online course) and I was fine after that. I loved the content, her conversational style, and thus, I actually ENJOYED studying on the train, during lunch and home. I spent approximately 4.5 hours a day on this book from September - December (with a few skipped days to enjoy life) and left no exercise incomplete. I also took three practice exams the week of the exam (I don't recommend this, but I was rushing) not affiliated with this author and that definitely tied everything together for me. I scored 72 on the first exam, 68 on the second, and 77 on the third practice exam. It helps! Key Points: 1) Do the practice exams. The hardest one turned out to be Communications for me and that's my actual job field! I scored in the 50s the first time on that particular chapter and the 80s the second time. I scored in the 70s and 80s with a couple of high 60s on the other chapters the first time around. I was scoring in the mid- to high- 80s by my last read through the chapters and PMBOK Guide. 2) Memorize what she tells you to memorize 3) Take practice exams not affiliated with Rita's product. I didn't buy fast track - there are plenty of good free exams online. This was the tipping point I believe for helping me see how draining a four-hour test can be if you're not used to sitting that long. 4) Don't read everything out there. I think it's unnecessary and can be confusing. I trusted the author when she advised against that and I think it helped me focus on her book and the PMBOK without worry (I get sidetracked very easily). 5) Do ALL of the exercises in Rita's book and really try to understand why you got the questions wrong in her practice exams and commit those reasons to memory. It really helps you understand the PMI way of thinking for the exam.

One thing I want to say before my review is that I am a master procrastinator and have always waited till the last minute to cram before an exam. This was the case when I was both an undergrad and graduate student and is the case more recently when I took my PMP exam. I only gave myself 2 days to really study so I really had to be careful what prep material I used for my cramming. I chose Rita's book because I have heard good things about it from others who have used it in the past to pass their exams so I decided it would be my prep book of choice. In fact, because of my very short time frame, I only used this book and only very briefly referred to the PMBOK. So in two days, I read this book from cover to cover and made sure I did all of the exercises after each chapter. I also memorized all the PMI processes using the flashcard-like cutouts in the book (very effective). That was enough for me to pass the PMP exam with proficient and medium proficient on each of the five process groups. So here is my overall assessment of this book. If you are looking to just pass the exam this book will do it for you if you read it carefully and do all of the exercises. Does it cover everything in the PMBOK? No, it does not, but it does give you enough info to just pass the exam. If I had more time I would have reviewed all the various inputs and outputs in the PMBOK as the Rita book does not go into that much detail about each one. But then again, overall goal of the Rita book is to get you to understand the concepts well enough so you can pretty easily make an educated guess (that is, at least eliminate two out of four answer choices). In other words, it does not ask you to rely on memorization (though there are some needed) but more on understanding concepts that the PMP exam will most likely test you on (Note that on my exam most questions did not ask straight up memorization type questions but were questions that required an understanding of the concepts in the PMBOK). Oh if you can afford to get Rita PMFastrack v7 DVD then you should get it. I believe it is sold on her website as Amazon does not have the latest version. The reason I say to get this is that this had practice PMP exams that were the most true to the actual exam. If you can consistently get over 70% correct on her practice exams, then you are definitely good to go on the real one. But even if you just have this book and the PMBOK, I think that is really all you need. Good luck everyone!

After first reading the Head First PMP, I ordered Rita. Felt I needed another resource to explore some of the concepts deeper, mainly because I'm new to project management and don't have the experience it seems some people have going into the PMP. This was the perfect book for what I needed. I found all the exam tips extremely helpful, as well as the quizzes at the end of each chapter. I played the process game a bunch of times and did all of the other exercises. My only criticism is similar to what others reported - the material is very dry. The chapters seemed to drag on at times and were challenging to get through. I also thought the language/tone was condescending at times which was actually more amusing than upsetting. Just beware that this is a dry read but it's important to read it all. Another minor thing is there were terms on the exam that were not covered in Rita. Not many, but definitely a few. I don't have any recommendations for avoiding this, but just be aware that this book shouldn't be your one and only resource for studying for the PMP. A bit about my PMP journey ... I took and passed it in early February. I started studying immediately after Christmas 2012 and studied diligently through January. For the first few weeks I was reading Rita and Head First for a few hours a night. Closer to the exam I spent chunks of time on weekends taking practice exams. On the day of the exam I felt prepared, but I also felt burned out and at max capacity in terms of learning new information. If you're putting yourself on a rigid study schedule like mine, I wouldn't suggest extending your study time much more than 6 weeks. I mentioned practice exams above - I took about every free exam I could find on the Internet and believe this was absolutely critical in helping me pass. Although none of the exams seem to simulate the real deal perfectly, it really helped me see where my deficiencies were. Then I'd revisit Rita to reinforce what I'd gotten incorrect. Overall, this is one of several excellent resources I'd recommend.

If you are planning on buying this book, you are probably aspiring/preparing for PMP. This book provides the detailed points wise explaination of the PMBOK. You will have to go through this book atleast twice to understand the concepts. The question and answer at the end of each chapter is extremely helpful in reviewing your understanding and progress. Not to be pessimistic, it is very difficult to pass the PMP exam without reviewing the PMBOK guide. You will have to answer as many questions as possible to get the confidence and for taking up 4 hours exam. This book is defenitely a asset in your preparation. Believe me, the amount spent on each of the resources is worth every penny. The below procedure is what I folllowed to complete PMP. 1st step: Head First PMP - This is a easy book to study and helps grasps high level overview and concepts. 2nd step: Rita Mulcahy - Go through once. You have to complete the excercises and questions at end of each chapter to get familiarity with the kind of questions. 3rd step : PMBOK - Go through once concentrate on concepts, defenistions and terminologies. 4th step: You should now start going through sample questions through various websites. Make note of your weak areas. 5th step: Rita Mulcahy - Now concentrate more on topics which you are weak and glance through others. 6th step: PMBOK - Now concentrate more on topics which you are weak and glance through others. 7th step: Take PMStudy 4 sets of 200 questions each for 12 days and find out what kind of topics do you need to revisit. Good Luck with your preparation.

After looking at other exam prep books, I decided on this one. Several people I know also used this book and praised it. The format and content are just right. I really like the end of chapter quizzes. One tip...do not write on the blank quiz answer sheets. Make three copies of each blank answer sheet. Read each chapter and take each quiz, marking the sheet with an A for the first attempt, then B for the second, and C for the third try. Finish the book, then review the answers that you got wrong in each chapter. Go back and review the material that you need to brush up on, and then re-take the quiz for that chapter. Complete all chapter reviews for the second time. Then do the review of the answers you got wrong on the second attempt, re-read the material again, and take the quizzes for the third try. Once you've done that, you should be ready for the test. The test is very difficult in my opinion. I've taken many technical certification exams, and this one was the hardest. You really must study a lot, and be comfortable with the material. Another study resource that I used to help me pass the test on the first try was an iPad app called "iStudy PMP". It's pretty cheap, and well worth the money. It has a built in review of the material, and has simulated tests which can be timed like the real exam. Good luck!

The Rita book and her format is a well-known standard guide necessary to pass the Project Management Exam. While I don't take away anything from the positives of the book, I feel it's best to clarify several misconceptions about the book based on previous reviews that I feel may not be an accurate interpretation of the book, at least in my opinion. For one, this book is a great book that teaches the concepts that the PM Book 4th edition guide does not explain well. It really goes into depth and explains what is needed to know based on the concepts taught in the PM Book 4th Edition. However, please note - the Rita book alone in itself is NOT ENOUGH to pass the PMP exam. I understand that the PM Book 4th Edition guide is boring but believe me, it is necessary to read that as a supplement to this study prep book and also perhaps use additional flashcards or take an outside course in a classroom or on-line test prep if you don't have too much time before you sit for the exam. There are elements missing in the Rita's book that are explained in the PM Book 4th Edition guide and that are ON the exam. There aren't that many, but there are some. Some other minor issues I had with this book but was able to overlook during my studying for the PMP exam was: a) This book does have a condescending tone. I can overlook that in the business world with colleagues who may not know better, but in a study guide, is it really necessary? Perhaps in the new edition, the tone is turned down a notch, but I sat for the PMP exam in July 2013, before the new test came out with additional material to study and I know there is a new Rita's book - a later edition. b) Rita's Process/Knowledge Chart - the PLANNING column is not helpful in fact, it's confusing. The monitoring and controlling and the Executing areas are helpful to review, but in the third chapter of this book, it is drilled to 'memorize' the planning column and know them in order. if you know the material well enough, you don't have to memorize that column and it's not really in alignment with the PM Book 4th edition so I found it confusing. I mention this specifically because Rita's chart is RE-ITERATED (A PM-ism) many times in this book. c) Finally, Rita has a final chapter in this book that tries to 'tie everything together'. I have to say that it does a poor job of doing so. The reality is, the information presented in this book is good a relevant. The book is 500+ pages long. I read it at least 3 times. But I feel it was missing something - had some gaps. The exercises were ok - I did the majority of them. But in order to pass the test, just using this book and using it alone would not work. So my advice is, yes, it's a good book to buy to help you pass the PMP exam, but should not be the sole and only source of what is used to pass the PMP. I studied from April 2012 to July 2013. Advice is to make sure you have dedicated enough time to learn and study and memorize all of the material you need to for this exam because it is hard and challenging. Also, get additional reference material other than this book alone, it really is worth it. If you can, try to invest in a course in a classroom to study right prior before the exam, do plenty of practice questions and see why and where your knowledge area gaps are, and good luck!

I just passed the PMP exam, and I can definitely say that this book helped tremendously. I have done project management for many years (on small projects), and had taken a series of on-line courses, so I thought I was ready. But when I took one of the practice tests in "PMP: Practice Makes Perfect", I realized that I had a number of holes in my knowledge. Maybe I would have passed anyway, but with the cost of a retest over $300, I wanted to be sure. Just about everything I needed was here, and the few things I had to look up on-line because they were sketchily covered (e.g. PTA) turned out not to be on the exam. I found it easy to find the info I needed, and the charts and drawings communicated well. There is a density of information in this book that I found very helpful. I spent about 30 hrs studying for the exam over about a week (not counting my original on-line course). It was intense, but the book's style and exams are readable and interesting enough that they did not put me to sleep. Yes, the tone can be off-putting, as it sounds like a very experienced PM "lecturing" a newbie. But if you've really been doing everything in PMBOK, you probably are already certified, and certainly don't need a book. For the vast majority of PMs who don't do all the PM processes thoroughly (if at all), the tone isn't too far off. And it's a small price to pay for a lot of info in a dense and accessible package that still maintains a very readable style. Well worth the investment.

I took the PMP on 5/4/2012 and passed in just under 3 hours utilizing this text exclusively. I marked about 20 questiond for review - and the lion share of those were either "tricky" or required serious math. I have 10+ years managing projects (no help on the PMP what-so-ever, in fact my experience was a liability) in IT departments in various companies and thus came to process with considerable bias, particularly because all of my project management experience is in the IT field. Below was my study plan: Allocated 3 months for the effort - during those three months: Mon-Friday read for 45 minutes during my lunch hour. Sat & Sun read for two hours each day in 4 30 minute segments. Read cover to cover - slowly, seeking understanding and avoiding "passing words under my eyes" as we're all prone to do. Memorized the formulas and other data they indicated that should be memorized. Saved attempting the end of chapter questions until the final days of study. Then studied the answers I got wrong - this was VERY VALUABLE. Thoughts on the text itself: 1. Not a boring read and actually held my attention. I enjoyed reading it and enjoyed LEARNING the information. 3. They take the time to explain WHY answers to questions are what they are, which for the PMP is invaluable because the test is all about application of knowledge and not memorization. My best study tips for this exam: 1. Study for real. This isn't a Microsoft exam - it's a serious test of the application of knowledge. 2. The test IS NOT about the PMBok. Read it - don't memorize it. You don't need to. 3 Learn the SEQUENCE of the processes of what to do/when/why and what you should end up with when done and nothing the exam throws at you will trip you up. 4.PMP practice exams found on the WWW are useless. They vary wildly in content and teach you nothing. Worse - they may lull you into a false sense of exam familiarity. The real exam questions were nothing like samples I'd seen on the WWW. Good luck, Mark Payne

Tres bon conseils, exercices qui sont un tres bon support a l'assimilation des concepts, et un apercu du type de questions posées a l'examen. Comme l'examen est en anglais, cela permet bien d'intregrer tout le vocabulaire.

This book is amazing. Rita is Amazing!!! I got this the audio book and the fast track exams. IT WONT MAKE THE EXAM EASY THE EXAM IS TOUGH!!! You NEED a lot of PM experience to pass it but this book really plugs the holes and gets you thinking in a PMI mindset that makes the difference. I passed first time and i owe it all to Rita. The prep course i paid for through the knowledge academy was useless and not a touch on what you gain in this book.

Ho passato l'esame al primo tentativo studiando solo su questo! Chiaro, completo, semplice e anche piacevole da leggere, non mi stupisce che sia il libro numero 1 per la preparazione del PMP

Rita's book had come highly recommended by a number of PM/PMP peers (and almost every other review I had seen). I had no hesitation ordering this book once I was approved to write the exam. Having successfully completed the exam around 7 hours ago :), I can honestly credit the material in this book for being the reason I passed. Of course, you need the PMBoK as your basis for learning PMI's best practices, but Rita's book is your basis for understanding PMI's best practices. The PMP Exam Prep book is aligned to PMI's material, and takes it another step further by helping you to understand how to approach the exam, what assumptions to make for the exam, exercises, practice questions and numerous tips and tricks along the way. I trust that a new edition will be released to match PMI's 5th Edition release of the PMBoK, so make sure you have the corresponding edition for the exam version you are writing to. I spent four months with this book and the PMBoK together. I have zero regrets about this purchase - money and time well spent!

I passed the PMP exam end of May after two months of preparation. Besides the online version of the PMBOK Guide (available for PMI members) I attended a prep class and used Rita's book for preparation. It quickly helped me to get some structure in the topics to learn. I did all the test exams at the end of each chapter before I actually started to work through the book. After each chapter I repeated the test with significant better results which was quite motivating. The memory games for the processes and the EVM helped a lot. The way the book is written is very good and the reommendations are really helpful. If you really follow the instructions consequently, you should be well prepared for the exam.