Customer Reviews

PMP Exam Prep, Fifth Edition: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam

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I bought Rita Mulcahy's 5th edition PMP Exam Prep book on the advice of a PMP-certified PM who had used her earlier book to pass the previous version of the exam. She spoke highly of Rita. I have no idea why.

Not only did I buy this book, but I also took and completed her online course in order to obtain the 35 credit hours required to sit for the exam. Don't waste your money on the online course. It's nothing but a rehash of the book, word for word, with little "next" and "previous" arrows instead of pages. But just so we're clear, these comments are about the book itself, not the online material. (Reviewing the online "course" would include an entire litany of different complaints!)

How do I hate this book? Let me count the ways. First, the presentation and organization of the material is disorganized and overly complicated. The book includes a LOT of detail, so much that it's hard to discern what's useful and what's extraneous. Yet, in spite of this I still had exam questions (such as PTA calculations) that the Mulcahy book doesn't mention, let alone explain in depth. This book takes the "quantity over quality" approach to PMI material.

Most study aids conveniently arrange the material in a logical format by process groups, knowledge areas, inputs, tools and techniques and outputs. Rita's book doesn't and it's detrimental to learning the material. Instead of telling you what the PMBOK lists as inputs and helping you understand them so you don't have to just memorize them by rote, she instead includes a large number of worthless exercises to have you "guess" what you might need. The same goes for tools and techniques, and outputs. While that's a delightful "pie in the sky" approach to organic project management, I found it a complete waste of time as an exam studying approach. And this from a book that claims to be a "course in a book for passing the PMP exam" no less!

In much the same fashion, Mulcahy proudly touts her "Process Game", an exercise where you cut up a bunch of processes from paper and arrange them into process groups, correctly ordering in the Planning process group. Again Mulcahy overcomplicates and obfuscates the entire process in two ways: 1) Half of the processes in her "game" aren't the same names that the PMBOK uses and 2) She randomly throws in additional "subprocesses"! Here's the thing, if you simply buy a real study book, and you learn that all of the processes occur in the standard PMBOK order (Integration, Scope, Time, Cost, Quality, HR, Risk, Procurement) in each process group where they appear, the rest of it falls into place. I found that this "game" actually confused me more, and made it tougher for me to learn. Once I trashed the pieces and stopped trying to learn it the overly-complicated "Rita way" everything came together for me.

More disturbing than the overwhelming volume of material, some of which I found totally irrelevant and all of which was terribly organized, I found the condescending, snarky, downright rude tone of the book insulting. I've been a professional project manager for many years and I think that the approach that RMC Project Management takes in this book of belittling the student is completely unprofessional. It distracts from the material and served no purpose. I don't understand why a business would insult its customers as routinely as RMC Project Management does in this book.

I studied for the PMP for several months, on the side. I didn't have a chance to take a week off to prepare solidly. About three months into using the Rita Mulcahy book and online system, I was so frustrated that I went out and started looking for other books instead. I found "The PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try" by Andy Crowe of Velociteach and started reading that. VERY quickly I realized that Crowe's book presented the material well, logically, and without all of the extraneous fluff and insults that characterized the RMC book.

Using Crowe's book, I finally was able to pull all of the elements together that I needed for the exam. If I felt I didn't understand an area or feel 100% comfortable with it after reading Crowe's book, I went to the RMC book and researched it further. I found that after reading Crowe's book, I was able to pass the Rita Mulachy book's quizzes with 85%-90% scores. Something I wasn't able to do when I was reading the Rita Mulcahy book!

The ONLY thing that this book does better than the Crowe book is that the Rita questions are confusing, annoying, frustrating and frequently seem contradictory. This makes them very much like the PMP Exam! The questions from this book are tougher and prepare you better for the exam than the Crowe book. It's a shame the trademark snarky Rita Mulcahy tone comes out in so many of the answers. Snide remarks like "Did you forget that...." in lieu of real explanations appear far too frequently in the answers section of this book. I still don't get the point Mulcahy is trying to make while she unprofessionally insults the readers of her book.

In short, I only recommend this book for the exam questions, and even then, only halfheartedly. I passed the exam solidly on my first try just a few days ago, but credit for that rests solely on Andy Crowe's material. I don't think I would have been able to say that if I had just used "PMP Exam Prep" by Rita Mulcahy.

I have recently read a few PMP books cover to cover, and I thought I should share my experience with other readers with an intention to help them to find the right books. A brief review of what I think are the top three PMP books follows:
1. This book: The PMP Exam Prep.
It is a very good book if you are either taking a course from the author or from an instructor who is using this book as a text book. There are lots of exercises. Unfortunately, this is not a self contained book. Topics are not covered with enough depth. Also there is a poor flow and a lots of hopping from topic to topic. Moreover, it's outrageously high priced. Too many cross references and overhyped.
Overall I recommend this book of you are using it in a course.

2. The PMP Exam by Andy Crowe; Velociteach.
This is a great book and relatively self contained. You can study this book and pass the PMP exam. There are a only a few topics, which are not covered in adequate depth. In this and the preceding book, The coverage is organized around the knowledge areas while the exam objectives are organized in order of the process groups. That breaks the exam objective coverage into pieces, and may cause confusion.
I recommend this book if you are looking for a self contained book to pass the PMP exam.

3. PMP In Depth by Paul Sanghera, Thomson Course Technology.
This book has just hit the market and is relatively unknown. But I found this a rock solid book. Almost all the topics are covered with adequate depth. The material is presented in a logical learning sequence and the presentation is very cohesive: no hopping from topic to topic. It's an easy and interesting read. All concepts are clearly defined and expalined. This makes it a great book for both the PMP and the CAPM exams. I feel that the communication management could have more coverage. Although for the exams, the current coverage is enough.
The material is organized in order of the project lifecycle (the process groups) consistent with the way the exam objectives are organized. Furthermore, exam objectives covered in a chapter are explained in the beginning of the chapter. This makes the exam preparation easier and confusion-free.
I recommend this book for the PMP and the CAPM exams, and also if you just want to build a good understanding of the project management basics.

When I started studying for the PMP, I started w/ Rita Mulcahy's book "PMP Exam Prep." After a few days of trying to learn the material her way, I gave up. It was almost as bad, dry, and confusing as reading the PMBOK guide itself. I did some research, read the reviews from Amazon and decided to try Andy Crowe's book. Whew, what a relief! The material is laid out in a way that it just makes sense and I would recommend the book (and have) to anyone who wants to learn the material. The book is really good at teaching the ITTOs, sequencing, and the processes and knowledge areas that you have to know for the exam. The material is easy to read and the repetition really does help you learn the material! HOWEVER, the tests provided at the end of chapters, at the end of the book, and on the provided website will give you a very big false sense of security! I was easily passing the provided tests with 80-90%s. When I purchased Rita Mulcahy's exam prep questions software ($$$), my percentage correct rate went from 80-90%s on Andy's tests to 50-60s with Rita's exam questions. When I finally was getting to really understand the process and procedures, and passing Rita's questions in the 80-90%s, not only did the questions Andy provided almost seem ridiculously easy, but I knew I was ready for the test.
HOWEVER, even though I knew the material cold, and could easily answer what ever Rita or Andy could throw at me, I only passed the PMP with a 78%.
Bottom Line: learn the material from Andy Crowe, test using other materials/merchandise.
P.S. even though the test was only 200 questions, when the first three questions of the exam is stuff you've never heard of, it makes for a very long day...
Good luck and I hope this info helps you!

Just wanna clarify the editions (from RMC):
These new editions of Rita Mulcahy's worldwide best-selling PMP exam preparation products are aligned with the PMBOK® Third Edition 2005 (the gold one), and are specifically written for people who plan to sit for the PMP® examination on or after September 30th of 2005.

I literally just passed the PMP exam a few hours ago. My resources were:
1. Having approx 4 years of PM experience (I'm 32 years old)
2. Rita's PMP Exam book
3. PMBOK

How I studied...

1. Went through Rita's book (and referenced the PMBOK when Rita stated to do so)
2. Took the exam at the end each of the chapter. I marked which ones were incorrect but I did NOT check for the explanation of the right answer. I ANSWERED ON AVERAGE 73%
3. Went through the Rita's book and referenced the PMBOK a 2nd time.
4. Took the exams at end of chapter again. Averaged 87%
5. Noted questions I got wrong/right from both exams and learned WHY I answered wrong.
6. Took the PMP Exam
7. Passed it today!

First of all, please understand that PMP Exam has no finite definitive subject matter boundary (I mean, it can be based on anything and everything in the context of project mgmt) which means the more books you read the better are your chances because there is really no single book that can cover all of project mgmt topics in detail, if it did it will run into several volumes, so essentially each of these books try to focus on topics that they believe are most relevant and give you the best shot at exam preparation in the shortest time possible, anyway obviously some books are better than others in this.

For example, the topic of Point of Total Assumption is not mentioned in PMBOK or in Rita Mulcahy's book, so if these are the only 2 books you referenced for preparation and you never came across this topic in your regular profession then chances are you will not know this topic, so what?, (you may be thinking) that's one question right?, wrong; the exam may have none or on the other hand not one but chances are several questions just on this topic alone. Incidentally this topic is covered in "THE PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try" by Andy Crowe, PMP, this one also mentions EVA which is not there in Rita's book, but Rita's book for example has the topic of PERT Variance which is not there in other books, on the other hand none of the 3 books above mention the "Achievement Theory", you will find it in "PMP: Project Management Professional Study Guide" by Kim Heldman.

None of the 4 books above address some of the topics in detail like for example "Risk Probability" or "Break even point" or "Split Orders", you will have to refer the book on "Preparing for PMP Certification Exam" by "Michael W. Newell, PMP, ENP" for these.

Your preparation also depends on how much time you have actually spent managing projects and in which industry environment, obviously the exam would be easier for those who have been there but on the other hand if you've been a project mgr for too long then chances are that you have picked up some wrong habits and you will answer questions based on your instincts and personal experience as opposed to PMP recommended practices, so this may or may not work to your advantage.

I guess I am diverting, so enough about exam preparation (I spent roughly 3 weeks) and the actual PMP exam (I passed in my first attempt and did reasonably well) but getting to the crux, should you invest in this book ?, my recommendation would be "Yes", this prepares you best for the exam (It will reference PMBOK Guide by page numbers and in my opinion PMBOK is one other book that you need to read, don't skip because no other book comes close to capturing all of the inputs, outputs and tools & techniques of each process in a comprehensive pictorial fashion), the practice test questions are challenging, situational, long & wordy and will make you think & analyze.

Andy Crowe's book is an easy read, nicely captures all of the relevant information, the questions can be made more challenging though. I did not try his website "InSite" that comes with the book.

Kim Heldman's book (I am referring to the previous edition, don't know about the latest) is again another good book but it's not in the format of the other books, it's not arranged by knowledge area but by project mgmt processes. This may take some time getting used to but it is a good book.

I passed the PMP test on my first try on September 25th 2006. My preparation material:

1. The PMP Exam: How to Pass On Your First Try(Andy Crowe)
2. PMP Exam Prep, Fifth Edition: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam(Rita Mulcahy)
3. PM FASTrack: PMP Exam Simulation Software, Version 5 (CD-ROM)(Rita Mulcahy)
4. PMBOK

I initially started out by using Rita's as my primary preparation material. I switched to Andy's midway and came back to Rita's. Rita goes through a lot of exercises and tries to make you think of the solutions in a logical way. I felt that you need a little background on all the processes before you start out with this book. This book doesn't clearly state input, tools & techniques and outputs-I think it goes back to Rita trying to show everything logically. It could throw off some people who would just pick this book for passing the PMP. It would be better if you read PMBOK or other book that clearly shows all processes with the Input/Tools & Techniques/Outputs, before you get to this book. At the end, this is an excellent resource for the PMP test.

I read the PMBOK 2 days before the exam just to see if there's anything the other books missed and there was none.

This 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 this book, the flashcards, and the FASTrack software. Based on feedback from people that took the old version of the test after using Rita's book, 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 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 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 book but I do not recommend it as a stand alone study aid. 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.

As you read the reveiws about this book, ensure that they were submitted AFTER the publication date of this book. Based on my experience, I suspect the previous version of the book was better aligned with the actual test than this one.

I passed the PMP test today achieving my 11th certification, the most of them are IT related but PMP is a great knowledge asset for any professional, IT or not. Now that I have everything fresh in my mind, I want to share my experience with you: As a general rule for certifications, I always get two books, I fully study one, complete all the questions and then I take all the questions on the second book. In that way, I know the first book gave me all the necessary knowledge. For this journey I got "PMP In Depth: Project Management Professional Study Guide for PMP and CAPM Exams - In Depth" (Paul Sanghera) as my 'primary book' and "PMP Exam Prep, Fifth Edition: Rita's Course in a Book for Passing the PMP Exam" (Rita Mulcahy) as my 'questions book'.

If you don't know it yet, the whole PMP certification is organized around 9 knowledge areas (scope, time, cost, hr, procurement, risk, quality, integration and communication management. Each one has multiple related processes that are applied at different stages of the 5 phases of the project lifecycle (initiation, planning, execution, monitoring/controlling and closing). For example, you plan your costs during the planning phase and you control your costs during the monitoring and controlling phase of the project. Both cost processes belong to the cost management area of knowledge. So Rita's book is organized around this 9 knowledge areas while Paul's book is organize around the 5 phases of a project lifecycle.

I started with Paul's book four months ago (4hs every weekday, 11hs each weekend day). This book is fascinating! (please keep reading), because its organization follows the natural life of projects facilitating the learning process, it clearly shows inputs, processes and outputs for each project task, but it doesn't give you always a clear idea of where you are in reference to the knowledge areas. If the other hand, Rita's book is a complex reference to previous and subsequent page numbers, getting you to jump back and forth to understand how a project actually occurs.

I carefully studied Paul's book, I review every single detail on it, memorized every process (inputs, tools/techniques and outputs) and completed every question as well the 175 questions of his final test. I was confident of my knowledge, so I moved on to complete the questions in Rita's book. Misery! Rita destroyed every single hope I had of passing the test successfully! She made me feel that I have been wasting my time with Paul's book: I failed almost all her questions! It was probably the biggest book-related disappointment in my life, although Paul's book is easy to read, and well organized, it doesn't cover significant areas of the certification that are again and again presented in the test! While going thru Rita's questions I discovered that Paul has missed 2 absolutely essential areas required by the test. Let me tell you which ones: Cost management and communication management. The test has multiple questions related to these areas; if you don't know them you will certainly fail! I can't believe that Paul missed them, I consider that very irresponsible and not fair for students trusting his book.

With this fiasco, I went thru Rita's book and learned the remaining knowledge so my advice to you is: Study from Rita's book! Although it is organized around the 9 knowledge areas and they don't really follow the project lifecycle, but it is the way the test is organized and she covers all the topics of the test. To prove it to you (if you are skeptical and confused with so many light or emotional book reviews) I carefully took notes of the areas that Paul missed (I hope he reads this): Problem solving techniques (expectancy theory, motivation theory, McGregor's XY theory, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Herzberg's theory and motivation agents), communication channels and formulas, PERT and PERT related calculations, cost estimation (can you imagine running a project without cost estimation?), project manager powers (formal, reward, penalty/coercive, expert and referent), outputs of contract administration, administrative close procedure applicability to each project phase. Besides this Paul's questions are extremely easy, the test questions are an extremely hard compared to them, therefore Paul's give you an inaccurate sense of test preparation level. I have also documented multiple important errata in his book and spent significant amounts of time verifying that they are actual errata. For instance: Paul's makes references to the cost baseline countless times in his book, but cost baseline is nowhere to be found (it is not even in the index), work performance is missed as an output of the directing and managing the project execution in the process chart, but is it cited two pages later; the administrative close procedure is an output of the close project process, he points out what the procedure should contain, but it never says when to execute it as he does it with the contract closure procedure.

It is just a very unreliable book for the test. So my advice to you, PMP student is, start with Rita's book and complete every single one of their questions, they look "too demanding, I can't believe the test is that hard" but the test is hard! Then if you have time and can buy Paul's book go directly to his questions and final test. But please, don't do it the other way around.

I just took the PMP exam yesterday and passed (this was still the 2004 exam...the 2005 exam begins after September 26, 2005). Rita's book is an excellent resource and essential for passing the exam, period. Although the 2004 exam had a lower bar to reach than the 2005 exam, my passing score would have been good enough for the 2005 exam, too.

Rita offers many exam tips and exposure to topics not addressed, or not addressed well enough in the PMBOK Guide. That's not to say that the PMBOK isn't essential; it is. You'll be well served by following Rita's advice on reading her book 3 times, doing the practice exams until you score 90% or better, and read the PMBOK Guide until you're well versed on inputs, outputs, and tools for each knowledge area. It will seem like a lot to memorize -- and it is! -- but the more you memorize and ingrain the material, the less flustered you'll be during the exam.

Don't cram for the 2005 exam. Get a plan together that has you studying consistently for several weeks at the least, and several months is even better. Even if you are a project manager already and have been for years, unless you use PMI's methods and are very familiar with their philosophy governing project management, you will do a disservice to yourself by cutting short your exam prep time.

Finally, good as Rita's book is, it won't cover everything you need to know. She has an exam prep CDROM that has many test questions. I found that companion CD to be very helpful, as it allowed me to test my knowledge with a bank of questions I hadn't seen 3 times before.

Good luck!