Hi All,

I am happy to announce that I joined the Elite group PMP certified project managers. My LL is long so take some time to read.
I took a 4 days session given by my company which gave me 35 PDUs.

Materials Used

1) PMBOK
2) PMP Exam Prep – By Rita
3) Head first PMP

I started with PMBOK but i found it is too dry. So i start with Head first PMP, then Rita and PMBOK. Only Head First may not be enough for the exam. Rita's material is a good one. I tried to go through each chapter in Rita and try the same in PMBOK.

Duration & Study method

Nearly 4 months. I try to finish a chapter within one week. Daily 1.5 hours and in weekend 6 hours. Duration really depends on how much effort you are putting every day. This method will work perfectly if you are in full time work and can spend less time on reading.

Mock Test

Last 3 weeks. Daily at least 100 Qsns. I took two 200 qsn timed exams in weekends and I review the concepts if I was wrong. Rita's questions are closer to the exam. Mock tests gave me lot of confidence. It moved me from Panic mode to confidence mode.
I should say going through the book is 60%, mock tests should take 40% of your time. When you go through the mock test , you will be tuned to the PMI way of facing the question.

On Exam Day

1) I booked the exam at 8 AM. It is proved that our brain is more active in the morning. As the exam center is on my way to office, it is easy to locate. So no dry run.

2) I went through the exhaustive security scan and biometric scan of my left index finger. There only I knew that they don't even give a cup of tea in their pantry. Only drinking water is available.
Oh man I forgot to bring any food items. I think it is better to bring some drink on flask. As I took a heavy breakfast, I didn't care.

3) I only dup the formulas and not duped the process table or rita's process hart

4) Exam started with normal difficulty questions that eases my tension. I was worried about the exam interface as i am having short sight. To my surprise the interface is simple and fonts are big. So i don’t have any problem in viewing.

5) It tried the head phone kind of noise canceller for one hour and i found I am not comfortable. So i removed it after one hour.

6) Before exam I had a strategy of taking 2 breaks after first hour and third hour. But i found the time is running out. So i took a break when i finish 100 qsns. I took 2 hours and 10 minutes to finish 100 qsns. It took only 5 minutes break. Don’t waste your time on too many breaks.

7) I finished my 200 qsns in 3 hours 50 minutes with 4 un answered qsns and around 10 marked qsns. I first try to answer, un answered questions and review the marked qsns. But i didnt change the answer of any of the qsn.

8) Then the timeout message came. Went through the feedback with Zen saint's mindset :-)

9) Once I finish the feedback, i got message i want. Yes, "Congratulations, You passed the exam"

Tips

1) Took a photocopy of Page 61 in PMBOK (table with all processes), ITTO of all KAs and Rita process table. I read it when travelling.
2) I memorize all the KA processes in PMBOK's Page 61 table. I asked my 10 year old son to ask me qsns like, this process belong to which KA or which process group. He liked it as he can tease me, when i don’t know. ;-)
3) With that i try to crack the Rita's process chart. I tried to relate the PMBOK's Page 61 table with Rita's chart and try to mark it with different colors. I really helps me to understand whih process belongs to which KA.
4) Tried to stick to the learning schedule.
5) Confirmed my knowledge with mock tests in the end.
6) Tried to resolve the mathematical questions as much as i can.

Is it necessary to take Notes and use other's notes?

Many in this forum talked about taking notes. I tried but give up after sometime. From my school days, I only mark the important area and study. So I used that method to review. So try the method you are comfortable.

I also try to read Raga's notes and Rofa's notes that i took a printout last year. I tried to read on last 3 weeks but i felt i am wasting my time and give up. So if you want to use, use it along with your material instead of studying last.