A Guide to PMI-ACP Certification – The PMI-ACP ( project management institute – agile certified practitioner) is a certification that verifies agile professionals from PMI. It is a means to get recognition for your experience and expertise in agile operations. And as it certifies your agile-practitioner skills, it helps you stand out in the crowd.
Since Agile is a growing methodology in the project management niche, professionals around the globe tend to get certified to foster better opportunities at work. Firms search for skilled project managers; such training and certification help you with that.
The PMI ACP certification methodology tests your aptitude to work in an agile setup with flexible and customizable approaches like scrum.
A Guide to PMI-ACP Certification
PMI-ACP certification process
Now let’s discuss the nook and corners of the PMI-ACP certification process, as in what you need to study and how to prepare for the exam:
● Prerequisites: education, training, and experience
The PMI ACP certification requires experience, a high school diploma or equivalent and 21 active hours of a relevant formal agile certification course, and a general project experience with project teams of at least 2000 hours in the last five years.
● Nature of the test: multiple choice questions
The project management PMI test includes 120 questions. You will have to answer them all in three hours. Although you don’t get pre-set breaks, you can take breaks if necessary.
Topics covered: PMI ACP exam content outline
The project Management PMI exam covers various topics you can explore in the PMI ACP examination content outline. Here we are providing you with a summary list so that you can get an idea:
- Postulates and Mindset of the agile framework
- Value-driven delivery of a product
- Detection and solution of problems
- Accommodative planning
- Team performance
- Constant improvement
- Team engagement
- Role of different stakeholders
It is advisable to check out the PMI ACP examination content outline for complete details.
Mode of test: online
The PMI ACP certification test is an online, computer-based, flexible test in this context. You can either take the test at a dedicated test center or opt for a supervised online quiz from the place of your choice, like home or office. You have to open the webcam, and someone will monitor you online as you take the test.
Difficulty level: hard!
The PMI ACP certification test is one of its group’s most high-standard certifications, so what do you expect? This corporate certification is uniform around the world, across businesses and titles. You are among the most skilled professionals, so you are definitely up for a tough nut. But it’s relatively easy to crack with ample preparation.
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How to prepare: plan well and execute better
The PMI ACP certification test is not a cakewalk; you better have a concrete plan to complete it. As a part of the project management PMI, every phase and each step is a test while you prepare and finally take the test. To finish it in one statement, take the best agile training, make a study schedule, study for the test, practice questions, take mock trials, and you are good to go.
Jobs like project management require skills and perfection, so the training and test must also meet the standards. Let’s have a look at the steps needed to ace this exam:
- Take the best agile training you can find.
- Make a study schedule; you can go for a monthly, weekly or daily target as per your efficiency.
- Read the final comments or the considerations given at the end of the chapters you study. This will help you in many ways; you will get a quick revision, your concepts will be more concrete, and your comprehension will get enhanced.
- Read the study guide that you get with the course. This will help you make the study plan and select high-weightage topics.
- Practice sample questions. Remember when you were in high school, and your teachers used to say there was no alternative to question practice? The same implies here or even in any exam prep. You have to practice an ample amount of questions to achieve the results you expect from the test.
- Take mock tests; these act as simulators. You will get real-time experience, learn time management during the test, and handle pressure. These experiences will steadily arm you to ace the actual test.
- Stay in touch with your study materials. Take screenshots, audio recordings and videos that you can use for a quick revision during the day when you have to wait in queues or whenever you feel like you can study. As the PMI ACP certification syllabus is vast, you must break it into chunks and constantly revise the studied topics.
- Use an exam simulator; this will prepare you like nothing else. Your work profile as a project manager only lets you sit still for as long as 3 hours. So it would be best if you practiced that.
Practice exam techniques such as attempting questions and selecting and eliminating answers would be best. Hot to sit for longer, focus, and not feel anxious. All these skills need practice and nothing else. The best advice you can get is to take mock exams in exam-like conditions periodically until you sit for the actual test.
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9. Refrain from cramming the lessons. As a professional, you might understand that cramming has not helped anyone in application-based situations. Please think of the best advice you would give a high school student to pass their exams with flying colors; you will get your guidance too.
The PMI ACP certification test checks for your understanding and applications of agile techniques; you want to be good at the application of knowledge and experience rather than memorize all the information.
10. Stick to limited resources. To ace such technical exams, you want to revise as much as possible rather than skim through various references all the time. Instead of targeting variety in study materials, target variety in questions that will walk you far ahead in your certification game.
Conclusion
The PMI ACP certification is one of the most aspired certifications any corporator or project manager would wish for, at least in recent times. This certification labels you as one of the best agile-certified practitioners globally. The certificate requires a bunch of prerequisites and a good amount of preparation. It is all about how you take the process in such exams. Good preparation, practice and revision are all you need.
