PMP / PMBOK Guide FAQ 11 – How to Study for the Formula / Calculation Questions?

Perhaps one of the most dreaded type of PMP® Exam questions is the calculation questions. To the majority of project managers, calculation is usually performed automatically through project management softwares. However, in the real PMP® Certification Exam, only an on-screen calculator is provided. The PMP® aspirants need to memorize all the PMP® formulas and apply them as appropriate. This articles provides more resources on learning and mastering PMP® formulas than what is included in the PMBOK® Guide.

PMP® Formulas in the PMBOK® Guide

One of the most popular article on my blog is: PMP® Formulas and Calculation for PMP® Certification Demystified which is a summary of all the PMP® formulas mentioned in the PMBOK® Guide. This post provides a 1-page summary for PMP® aspirants to memorize all the formulas. If you have strong mathematical skills, you will be able to understand and apply the formulas to PMP® Exam questions easily.

Note: since the PMP® Exam is more than what are included in the PMBOK® Guide, you may need to know more formulas than those listed in the post above.

PMP® Calculation Reference Resources

The following is a collection of some of the most popular PMP® calculation reference resources which may provide you with additional training, explanation and practice questions for  you to master all the PMP® formulas.

• PMP® Certification Mathematics [book + CD-ROM]
  [List-price: US$31] This book is published by McGraw-Hill. It provides in-depth explanation on every mathematic concepts covered in the PMBOK® Guide / PMP® Exam. Relevant calculations, practical problem-solving strategies and step-by-step explanation on all sample questions are also included to help PMP® aspirant to tackle the PMP® calculation with confidence. A CD-ROM is included in the book that provides additional PMP® practice questions in a format that resembles the real PMP® Exam.
• Learning PMP® Formulas the Easy Way [slides]
  [Free] This is a set of slides (45 in total) uploaded by Mark Troncone, PMP®. It provides a step-by-step approach to help PMP® aspirants to learn the formulas needed to pass the PMP® examination. By following through the steps in the presentation, you will be able to create your own PMP® formula brain-dump that helps you to memorize and understand the meanings of the PMP® formulas.
• Numerical Problems for PMP® [e-book]
  [List-price: US$7] This book is authored by Keshav Kumar, PMP®. It includes 50 numerical problems for the PMP® exam with detailed answers and explanations. The level of the questions is relatively more difficult than the real PMP® exam. By solving and understanding these questions, PMP® aspirants will be more confidence to tackle the real PMP® calculation questions. What’s best is that the first 10% of the e-book can be downloaded as a free sample.
• PMP® Forumlas Braindump for PMBOK® Guide 5th Edition [youtube]
  This 14-minutes longvideo was created by Richard Kraneis, PMP®. In the video, he taught about the key concept to understanding PMP® formulas in an interactive. The video also guides the viewer to create a braindump as part of the learning process. His particular method of “charting” would help PMP® aspirants to understand the PMP® formula questions better.
• PM Exam Formulas Study Guide [PDF]
  [List-price: US$29.99] Authored by Cornelius Fichtner (the same author of the acclaimed online PMP® Exam Prep course which I used to clear my PMP® exam – the PM PrepCast™), the PM Exam Formulas Study Guide includes lots of learning resources: a Formula Guide, a Formula Pocket Guide and a total of 105 sample PMP® calculation practice questions. They are all in PDF format.. If you are still struggling with PMP® formulas or you want some more guided descriptions on how to apply them with PMP® practice questions, you are advised to explore the PM Exam Formulas Study Guide.

Hope that these additional PMP® Calculation resources can better equip PMP® aspirant to tackle and pass the PMP® Exam with confidence!

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