How do I manage the PMP Exam Time?
Careful!
You only have 1.27 minutes to answer each exam question. Practicing this pace before you enter the exam room is a critical success factor.
The PMP Exam time limit is 230 minutes.
During this time you have to answer 180 often difficult questions about situations in project management. It's stressful and demanding, you only have 75 seconds to select the correct answer, and every wrong choice counts against you!
Here's how to respond to this situation constructively:
Have a plan and practice the plan.
In this plan, you must define the number of questions you answer per hour, when you take breaks, and what to do if time is running out. Here is what such a plan can look like:
Sample PMP Exam Time Management Plan
- First part til the first (mandatory) break
I will answer as many easy questions as you can and leave difficult ones for later. Important: Do NOT forget to mark them. I will "mark" as few questions as possible. - Break
At some point, a popup comes up announcing the break (which starts as soon as you do commit it). Now it is time to go back to the marked questions and answer them, cause you can not go back after the break - Next Part
Same procedure as with the first part, until the break, comes up., - 2nd (mandatory) Break
I will take a 10-minute break. Be sure to be back in Time! - Final Part
Assure to have answered all the questions. Also the hard ones. If you have to guess, then guess and mark it for later. Do not leave a single question unanswered. - Final 25 minutes
I will go through all unanswered questions and hazard a guess if I have to. I will ensure that NO question remains unanswered.
Go ahead... Take the above sample as a basis and define your time management plan.
But then you also have to test if your plan works.
You don't want to wait until you are in the exam room to learn that your approach doesn't work for you!
To practice your plan you are going to want to sign up for an online exam simulator that offers at least 5 complete exams. Now go ahead and take your first fully timed exam and see how well your plan does. Adjust accordingly. Repeat.
By having and practicing a plan you relieve exam pressure.
See you in the next and final lesson of this Chapter.
Markus