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In the eligibility of the PMP certification it mentions "35 contact hours", I have searched on this for my local region and it seems to be that some training centers listed on the PMP site would provide with a certificate certifying these hours.

Is it really necessary to join a training center and get this certificate?

Can't I just study the books myself and appear for the exam?

I know I have already added couple of questions above, but would be great if someone can take one more.

They also state - "4 years into managing projects and 4500hours of leading teams."

4500/24 is 188 days - is that right calculation to go by? Also if someone is just leading teams chances are they are not yet managers (atleast by designation) and thus how would this 4years of managing projects be accomplished?

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Your best source of information is the PMP Handbook. If you are going to go for your PMP take the time to review and understand what is required, doing so will help maximize your chances to succeed.

In the eligibility of the PMP certification it mentions "35 contact hours", I have searched on this for my local region and it seems to be that some training centers listed on the PMP site would provide with a certificate certifying these hours.

Is it really necessary to join a training center and get this certificate?

Can't I just study the books myself and appear for the exam?

Page 8 of the handbook specifies that the contact hours have to be "formal training", so intuitively NO you can't just self-study the PMBOK. It is not necessary to join a training center, there are any number of vendors, community colleges and universities out there offering pretty much any kind of training you may be interested in. Just make sure that they are "real" training organizations because there is a good chance you will be audited and if you don't have good documentation (i.e. some kind of certificate saying you took the course, the course lasted X hours and you passed) you will be out of luck.

4500/24 is 188 days - is that right calculation to go by?

Your calculation needs to factor in having a life outside of work in general and the need to sleep in particular. More reasonable is figuring that you work on projects ~5 hours per day (out of an ~8 hour workday) 5 days per week for 48 weeks per year (accounts for vacation, sickness, stat holidays), so you are looking at 45 months of experience.

If you are assume 100% efficiency over an 8 hour work day you are still looking at working full time at 8 hours a day you are still looking at ~28 months.

Also if someone is just leading teams chances are they are not yet managers (atleast by designation) and thus how would this 4years of managing projects be accomplished?

You can manage a project without being a manager per se. There is a significant difference between your role on a project and your title.

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    Sleep? Who ever heard of a PM sleeping?
    – Willl
    Commented Apr 24, 2013 at 12:48
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The 35 Contact Hours should be earned through formal trainings. If you have taken project management specific courses from universities they may be eligible. Since PMP has become very popular credential there are many training providers that offer trainings targeted towards earning these 35 contact hours as well as passing the PMP exam. This means these trainings are based on PMBOK Guide which is the reference book for PMP exam.

It is strongly recommended that you take these trainings from Registered Education Providers( REPs). The training content from these providers are evaluated and reviewed by the PMI and hence they are authentic. The good thing is that there are few good online/multimedia based trainings available now. The are convenient and cost effective.

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The 35 contact hours for project management education needs to be formal, you cannot achieve it through self-study on your own. However, PMI does not specify the training must be achieved through classroom face-to-face training. In fact, there are many online PMP courses which provide you with the 35 contact hours certificate with remote study. You do not need to choose a REP training institute but choosing a REP will ensure that your certificate will be readily accepted by PMI.

A recent online survey of 100 PMPs who have recently passed the PMP exam indicates that ~82% of them get their certificate through online courses. Of course as this survey is performed online, there may be a bias.

PM PrepCast seems to be the most popular course.

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No, its not necessary that you get these 35 contact hours from a training institute. There are other ways of gaining these 35 contact hours towards PMP eligibility criteria as per PMI handbook. Go through the handbook thoroughly for every information on PMP examination. Though personally I recommend going through formal training through an REP. For that again, you need to check PMI website for the list of REPs. Online training is the best way to undergo this training as they are quite convenient and easy on pocket. I took my PMP training from Simplilearn which is an REP and took many practice tests which were quite useful in gaining confidence. Good Luck!!

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You need those 35hrs of training. There are few ways to get them:

  1. Either by formal education - MBA, etc.
  2. Or by REP training institutes

You should have proper documentation / evidence to support your choice. That's why many participants prefer to take the REP way so that they get trained and also get a certificate for 35hrs of learning.

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Even I was thinking the same way that is it necessary to have 35 Contact Hour Certification for PMI Certification, so after some time I got to know that well you need to have this 35 PDU certification. As I was searching some institute preferably online, I found one i.e wiziq.com, providing the 35 hour as well as course materials such pdf and that too at $49 and got some discount too.

Now I have been preparing for the exam, will give sometime next year.

Here is the link http://www.wiziq.com/course/21501-project-management-professional-pmp-pmbok-5-certification-training

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Many of my colleague have use the PM Prepcast to satisfied their 35 hrs of PM requirement and to study as well. I personally used the podcast to study while I was driving and I do recommended it. Of course you will have to purchase the package but it is worth the money. pmp exam dubai

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  • Hi Katerina, welcome to PMSE! As you added a link to your answer, would you like to disclaim the relationship between the link and your answer? If you have any relationship with the company on the link, a disclaimer statement would be required. Tks!
    – Tiago Cardoso
    Commented Apr 3, 2014 at 22:26

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