As someone who is currently preparing to write the CBAP exam and then the PMP exam next year, I was curious what the re-certification requirements would be once I obtained each certification.
First, here are some basic facts about re-certification
- Your CBAP and PMP status must be renewed every three years from the anniversary date of earning your initial certification
- 60 Professional Development Units (PDUs) are required every three years to re-certify your PMP.
- 60 Continuing Development Units (CDUs) are required every three years to re-certify your CBAP.
- PDUs and CDUs refer to the same thing, continued professional development; each organization uses different terminology
- Each organization has multiple categories of development units and limitations around each, so it is important to ensure you have breadth in your professional development; for more details see the following:
Top 5 Tips
- As soon as you become certified, review the requirements to become re-certified at the end of your 3 year certification cycle. Becoming familiar with the requirements early on will help you to choose which professional development activities to take part in to ensure you meet the requirements and are not scrambling at the last minute to get the development units you need.
- Now that you are familiar with the requirements, start a spreadsheet (or some means of documenting) to record your development activities, contacts and hours/units. Update your spreadsheet every time you complete a development activity or monthly to ensure you capture all your activities, big and small.
- Be aware of the number of development units you can earn for the various activities; for example, by attending a training course such as those offered by Procept, you can accumulate a large number of development units quickly. It’s always a good idea to obtain more than the minimum number of development units required in case your re-certification application is selected for a random audit.
- Another great way to earn development units is by volunteering. By volunteering for the IIBA or PMI or another non-profit organization, not only will you obtain development units but it’s also a great way to network and give back at the same time.
- The last tip is often the easiest to obtain yet commonly overlooked… You can use hours spent working as a Project Manager or Business Analyst towards your development units. Ensure you do this every year (and keep supporting documentation) and this will reduce the number additional development units you need to complete.
Do you have any tips that work for you? If so please share!
