Customer Reviews

PM FASTrack: PMP Exam Simulation Software, Version 5.2.0

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

Well, I was frustrated when I purchased this product that there were only a handful of reviews at time, and promised I'd add mine after taking the test. I had heard that Rita was supposed to be 'the standard' for this software so I went ahead and puchased it. Now I have taken, and passed the exam (and did quite well!) and proud to call myself a PMP.

Back to the software. I rated three stars because there were definitely things which I thought were really helpful:
- the 'cleverness' of the question that try to trick you, so it helps to teach you how PMI might try to trick you as well
- becoming familiar with the online version of the exam and what to expect on test day, like constantly seeing a timer count down
- still feeling at the end of the day that I liked my wrong answer better, which motivated to try to keep learning 'the PMI way' of doing things

But there were also things I didn't like:
- although a question bank of 1300 sounds huge, when you take 200 at a time you can definitely start to learn the questions. this was a big problem, because it was hard to distinguish whether my score was going up because I was learning the material, or because I was learning the questions that were re-appearing. i took the regular practice test four times, and the "super" version (supposedly 200 of the hardest questions) the day before the exam.
- the ability to test by knowledge area or process group didn't seem to be a value add to me, because, in my opinion, part of the challenge of the exam is trying to figure out which section the question is addressing.
- still feeling at the end of the day that I liked my wrong answer better!

My sudying also included reviewing ESI notes from various classes taken over the years. And a short ESI prep class one month before the exam (not a "boot camp") which is where I learned about this DVD. Truthfully, as one other reviewer added, you need to know the Guide to the PMBOK backwards and forwards. It is commonly understood that not everything on the exam is contained in that book, but you must know what takes place in process groups and knowledge areas, all of the inputs, tools & techniques, and outputs, etc. etc. etc.

This software will certainly help you identify your weak areas, and you must practice taking the test (as it is like preparing for a marathon!) but the 'question creep' was a concern for me.

Rita's book was recommended by many members of my local PMI chapter. However, most of those people took the test prior to the PMBOK 3rd Edition and the publication of the 5th Edition of this book.

I bought the book, the flashcards, and the FASTrack software based on these recommendations, and I did not study the PMBOK itself very much. I think this was a mistake.

I passed on the first try, but I scored 10% lower on the actual test than I did on the PMP test simulation in FASTrack taken 2 days before the test. Additionally, the areas I scored poorly in did not correlate with the results of the FASTrack simulation.

There was subject matter on the test that was not covered in the book or in FASTrack (or was covered in very little detail). In a few cases, the book particuarly mentioned that a term was usually just an incorrect choice on the exam when I had it as an exam question.

I do recommend this software as a tool for getting used to the format of the exam and for providing numerous questions, but I do not recommend it as an accurate predictor of your score. I contacted FASTrack support a few weeks prior to the exam to ask what score I needed to make consistently in FASTrack to ensure I would pass the exam. The answer was that Rita recommends an 85% pass rate in FASTrack to ensure a 61% pass rate on the exam. I think that is an outrageous margin of error, but, after taking the exam, I find it to be truer than I expected.

Be sure to cover the PMBOK thoroughly and, in retrospect, I would buy an additional study guide to ensure any gaps in information are covered.

I brought this software because I really got a lot out of Rita Mulcahy's book `PMP Exam Prep, Fifth Edition: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam' which I think is excellent.

This software contains a range of exam simulations which are also very helpful in preparing for PMP exams.

I gave the product only two stars because the software is time bombed (it expires and cannot be reused beyond one three month extension) and can only be installed twice (designed to support two machines). I had a hard disk crash and needed to reinstall but they (the software developer) would not allow me to do this without eating my second install which I had planned to use for my desktop (as I travel and wanted the software on both). This is, in my opinion, archaic customer service and an unacceptable license limitation for a software product in this price range.

This simulation software worked perfectly for me. It contains tests based on PMBoK Chapters and the five Process Groups. It is possible to take any approach to test your knowledge, and find out your weak points and decide what is needed to study more. Each question has detailed answers, that make the whole package extremely useful when preparing for Exam. You can start with 50 or 100 questions tests, see your timing and score, and have estimate score for the 200 questions test. Wehn you feel yourself stronger and ready to go for the 200 questions, you just try that. After the Exam I'd realized this is a good simulation that helped me a lot. I really hate to "memorize" and desperately need to understand any little piece to feel comfortable. To prepare for PMP Exam I'd used: PMBoK, PMP Exam preparation (Rita's book) and The Fast Forward MBA in Project Management by Eric Verzuh. For tests used only this software. I can not compare with other exam materials, but these worked perfectly for me. All the preparation was smooth, pleasant, and more important: efficient. It was so because of Rita's materials. Keep in mind these materials helps to learn for PMP exam, they do not make anyone a better Project Manager! Nothing can replace real work experience, struggling with deadlines, dealing strong personalities, understand and manage unspoken agenda, face over the night deadlines, etc. If I should start over again, I would go for same materials without hesitation.

Before I gripe, let me tell you this. Overall this CD Question software is by far the most widely used by students attempting to get their PMP Certification. A lot of people pass the exam after having used this CD.

Here are my issues with CD:

a. Installation is a pain: They have added very tight security measures to prevent copyright infringement. What this has done is made it extremely difficult for people who bought the software legally (and paid a boat load of money $234-$299) to install it on their machines. I am a computer savvy guy and it took me over 2 days to get this installed. I was 10 days away from taking the exam and I wasted two days because of the installation issue.

b. Customer Support is very bad: Their CSRs are rude and exteremly unhelpful. Their Customer Support hours of operation are 9-5 M-F. So if you are trying to get help installing the software after office hours you are out of luck. Even when do they contact you, you get the feeling they are talking to a criminal who has stolen their software and is trying to get it installed for free. All this after having paid $234- $299 for the CD.

c. The quality of the questions are not bad. But there are a lot of repeat questions. I did about 700 questions and by the time I took the 3rd PMP practice exam there were about 40% repeat questions. On the day of the exam I did 50 questions and 45 of them were ones I saw before. Many of the questions, I didnt even have to read through them thoroughly and I still got them all right. So watch out for that.

I would strongly suggest using multiple sources for questions, so u dont get used to one style such as Rita's. The PMP exam is a little different in style in the way the questions are worded.

There are other sources for questions that are cheaper and have better customer service such as Crosswind. One of my friend is using them and I have seen the questions and they are fairly good. Its new, so its not all that tried and tested. My friend hasnt taken his exam yet.

Again to be fair, I did use this CD and it helped me pass the exam. I am giving this software a rating of 2 due to the installation issues and the high cost of the software. At this cost I expect exceptional custmer service and care and seemless installation (while protecting the companys copyright concerns)

This software requires activation and can only be installed on 2 computers. My company purchased this software for me, and my first attempt to activate it failed. I then gave the CD to another person in our company and asked them to try to get it activated, and it also failed. When we contacted the tech support number, they told me that because two different people tried to activate the software, we violated their EULA agreement, and would not assist further getting our software activated. We are completely fustrated by the whole process, I would recommend seeking other (less restrictive) alternatives for exam simualation software.

The simulation software has good features and allows you to track your progress, but your success using the software is not a direct correlation to your success on the new 2005 exam. It is a good idea to read the PMBOK third edition until you are blue in the face and use other study material before taking the actual exam.

After reading the other reviews I was a bit hesitant, but I took the plunge anyway.

I scored within 2 % points on the simulated tests in this package as I did on the real PMP (and passed 1st time). Net is that this is a good model of the PMP. If you can pass here, you should pass the PMP.

2 primary advantages: 1) I could take tests and see where my weak areas were, then spend time learning that material, 2) I could take practice tests and pass, so I knew I could do it.

There are some differences between this and the PMP, but you will pass. Get the book and this software, and forget the training classes costing thousands!

The FASTrack software is an excellent complement to Rita's PMP Exam Prep and can significantly reduce the amount of time required to prepare for the actual exam. For me there were three benefits.

First, taking 100-question exams allowed me to identify where my knowledge gaps were. After analyzing my results and seeing where I was having problems, I could focus in on a particular process group or knowledge area (Closing and Procurement were my sticking points). This saved a lot of time I would have otherwise spent re-reading the sections that I already knew.

The second benefit was that I became familiar with the types of questions that would be asked on the test. Often times there are multiple correct answers, but only one is what the PMI considers 'best'. Becoming 'Zen' with the PMI and answering the questions from their perspective is critical to passing the exam, and the sample questions are very similar to those I saw on the actual exam.

The third benefit is that I was able to recreate the testing environment. I could lock myself in a room for 3 hours, and force myself to take the 200 question test mimicking the exam conditions as much as possible. Because of this I felt very comfortable walking into the test center and was able to attack the exam and not let it overwhelm me.

CAUTION: It is very tempting to to take test after test after test. It becomes very satisfying as you get more comfortable with the way the questions are asked, but I found I learned very little by taking the tests. To be sure, when I got a question wrong and looked at the correct answer I might glean something from it, but the majority of my learning came from reading Rita's exam prep and the PMBoK.

What worked best for me was to read the exam prep first, then re-read the chapters where I didn't do much of the content in real life (like Procurement) in much greater detail. Only once I really felt comfortable with the material did I take a 100-question exam and identify my gaps. From there I focused my efforts on those areas, re-reading sections or entire chapters when necessary, then take another 100-question test.

I agree with several of the reviewers that the 1300-question knowledge bank means you'll get the same questions thrown at you, so it's in your best interest not to use them up too fast. Somewhere in there make one of your tests the full 200-question exam so you can get a feel for what the real exam is like.

One final word of warning - the actual PMP exam will no longer tell you the percent you got correct. The overall test gives a Pass/Fail rating, and you get a Proficient/Somewhat Proficient/Not Proficient for the five process groups plus Ethics. That was somewhat disappointing, but more than made up for by the 'Pass' at the top of the page. :)

I took my PMP exam on Aug 2, 2007. Here's the pros and cons for this software:

PROS
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1. Questions test your knowledge of each process group and knowledge area.
2. It helps you get used to tackling situational questions
3. It helps you get your mind around how to answer tricky questions
4. It tracks your scores for each exam and shows where you are weak
5. You can practice questions on certain concepts or even try the "SuperPMP" mode which is harder than the regular PMP practice exam.

CONS
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1. Questions are randomly selected for each exam which means there is a good probability of seeing the same question more than once. Problem with this is that it doesn't help gauge an accurate test score b/c you might just remember the answer for that question from memory and get a higher score.

2. No way to take practice exams w/o questions repeating.

3. Some questions do not work with Windows Vista.

One imp note: Contrary to popular opinion, I found the actual PMP exam TOUGHER than the the practice exams from this software!! I took 5 of these practice exams and scored till 92% but got a much lower score on the real exam.

I would still recommend this software to everyone...try out the SuperPMP exams and see how you do...quite a few questions on the real exam were much more difficult than I expected.

And yes, I did pass...so its all that matters! :)