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What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification

Submitted by Ciprian Adrian Rusen on 19 May 2010 - 10:17pm

In April 2010 I managed to obtain my PMP certification and Ive found out that I
am one of the 360.000+ certified project managers in the world. Thats quite a large
number (and Im not counting other project management certifications) and, while Read Our Awesome Book
reading this, it made me feel a lot less unique and outstanding. I then started reading
about the reasons why others get this certification and I was pretty disappointed.
What Ive seen all over the Internet is that many people claim false benefits for this
certification. Thats why I decided it would be time to share my own view on what you
will earn from being PMP certified and try to demystify some of the benefits that are being sold to us.

1. There Will Not Be More Market Demand for You

This is one the most popular arguments people market as a benefit for getting a PMP certification. What
PMP (or Prince 2 for that matter) certifies is the fact that you have a standard set off knowledge and
skills. These certifications do not prove the fact that you are a great project manager. They certify that
you know the standard for getting the job done. And while the demand for project managers might be on
the rise for the last couple of years, it doesnt mean there will be more demand for you, as an individual.

What a PMP certification will do, is help your resume be ignored less often during the candidates selection
process. When a company notices you are a PMP certified project manager, it will consider you might
meet the standard requirements for the job. And yes, they might call you and you might succeed in
getting the job from a large pool of competitors (some of which are certified too). But that wont be due Content Tags

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What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification | the Corporate Geek
to the certification itself. Your experience, personality & preparedness for the interview process will get
you the job. A PMP certification will only increase your chances of being called for an interview. Nothing Best of the Web Best Practices
else. Blog Books Business Culture
Certifications Communication
Giveaway Jobs Lessons Learned
2. You Will Not Get a Higher Salary Poor Project Management
Presentations Process
Many would have you believe that being a PMP means getting a raise or a higher salary in general. I Improvement Project
consider this to be false. As I said before, being certified means you know the standard for doing project Management Project
management. If you have obtained the certification at the right time in your career, which is 3 to 5 years Management Basics Tools
work experience in project management, then chances are you learned something new during the
certification process. The new knowledge will help you be more successful with your projects and this
might get you better performance evaluations which, of course, may mean a higher pay-check. But this
will not happen very fast, it will take time and you will have to actually improve your performance as a Follow us on Facebook
project manager. If you dont, no employer in this world will give you a raise just because you are PMP Find us on Facebook
certified.
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If you have obtained the certification at the wrong time in your career, after more than 5 years in the field Like
then you are likely to already know the standard. And guess what? There will be no tangible
improvement in your project management work because you didnt really gain knowledge. And your 97 people like Corporate Geek.
salary will remain the same.

On the positive side though, what is likely to happen is that your company will sponsor your certification
costs. Some companies will allow you to expense your exam fee, others will even pay for your training to
become certified. If your company is willing to do this, then go for it by all means, and do this at the
right time (3 to 5 years work experience) to maximize your gain.
Recent comments

3. You Wont Be Considered a Successful Project Hi thanks for the alternative1

year 2 months ago
Manager Hi Richard,1 year 2 months
ago
Many will say that PMP (or Prince2) certifications reflect achievement and, as such, people will start to Change jobs and you will get1
consider you a successful project manager and you will have better job opportunities. I could not year 4 months ago
disagree more. Success & achievement cannot be proven by a standard certification. It doesnt matter I am working as production1
the field you are working in. year 4 months ago
Recently a PRINCE21 year 5
It might be a personal achievement, as in learning something new and getting an internationally months ago
recognized certification in the process, but it will not convince others that you are a successful project PMs are the most pointless1
manager. Achievements are obtained through hard work and real life results. If you dont have results, if year 6 months ago
http://corporategeek.info/what-you-will-not-earn-pmp-certification[2/19/2015 1:01:45 PM]
What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification | the Corporate Geek
your projects are average, people & companies will not change their opinion of you. In my country, there is an 1
year 6 months ago
Another aspect you should be aware of, is the fact that PMP or Prince2 certifications are mostly recognized Prince2 was born for IT and1
by other project managers. If you tell somebody whos working in a different field, most probably he/she year 6 months ago
wont know what PMP or Prince2 are. However, other project managers will be involved in the recruiting Dear all,1 year 6 months ago
process for their companies & they will know what your certification means. Actually where I disagree at1
year 7 months ago

4. You Wont Build Your Self Confidence

This is marketed as a soft but important benefit of becoming PMP certified. Each time I read this, it makes
me laugh. When has self confidence become dependent on a certification? If you are a professional with
at least 3 years of experience you either have self confidence or you dont. If you dont have it, then you
need to focus on something else, not a PMP certification. Finding a good coach that believes in your
potential, understanding the things you are good at, working on projects that will help you grow - these
might be the things you should focus on to help build your self confidence. No certification in this world
will give you a true, long lasting boost in the confidence department.

Conclusion - Be Clear On the True Benefits

I am not saying that you should not get certified. In the end, Ive chosen to be one of the many certified
project managers because it provided value to me. It managed to help me structure all knowledge in a
logical framework, made me aware of certain tools which can help in better planning or controlling of my
projects, etc. What I am saying is that you should not believe all the false benefits people use to sell this
certification. Take the time to think things through, identify the true benefits of going through this effort
and, if you think it pays off in the long run, then go get certified. Forget the marketing speeches that you
bump into on the Internet!

Before you close this page and browse to something else, I am very curios to know your thoughts on the
subject. By all means, do leave a comment using the form below and share your opinion on this topic
with me and the world.

Related content:
Tips and tricks for getting PMP Certified
Head First PMP, 2nd Edition - Review based on Personal Experience
The Prince2 Certification in a Nutshell

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What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification | the Corporate Geek

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Permalink Submitted by Ram on 28 October 2010 - 6:19pm

I completely agree with you. I also noticed quite a few people got their certifications with the help of
BrainDumps/Cheatsheets etc. They might be certified PMPs, but how far they will do good to projects
with this certification, i don't know.

With or without PMP certification, one can do a better project management if he/she can communicate
well and get things done on-time. It's a practice and experience nothing more. There is no doubt that,
PMP certified candidates are short-listed in interview selection process and i experienced many times in
real life.

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Permalink Submitted by S.kurdi on 8 January 2012 - 4:42pm

Thank u for this page and topic ..I was thinking ..my self ..why i need to get PMP certificate and
whether it will benefits my career ..

i found this really helpful ..and i agree with you.

also i will get the certificate ;)

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Permalink Submitted by P Sanyal on 19 February 2012 - 3:17pm

Would like to have your views on relevance of this certificate ? Does it hold good for IT projects only.

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What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification | the Corporate Geek

Can a person having background in Interior projects get benefit out of this.??

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Permalink Submitted by Ciprian Adrian Rusen on 19 February 2012 - 4:30pm

This certification is not intended for IT projects. It is very broad and covers general project
management techniques. Only Prince2 is IT oriented.

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Permalink Submitted by J Garcia, PMP, MPM on 14 August 2013 - 11:53pm

Prince2 was born for IT and evolve. I took the following from www.prince2.com, it says.
"PRINCE2 is a process-based approach for project management, providing an easily tailored
and scaleable project management methodology for the management of all types of projects".

I have been reviewing PRINCE2 and actually is a general approach for different kinds of
projects.

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Permalink Submitted by Ahmad Reza Liaghat on 3 May 2012 - 6:44am

thank u for this topic and your time

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Permalink Submitted by AJM on 22 August 2012 - 5:26pm

I am considering becoming certified because I want to make a career change from a project engineer to

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What You Will NOT Earn From a PMP Certification | the Corporate Geek
project manager. I am currently in the commercial millwork industry and there are very few jobs in my
area, especially in my salary range. I have been a PM on projects, but not full time. I need to make a
change (since my company is not doing well these past years) and if having this certification can help
me with options of finding work with GC's or other types of companies, I would do it. Any advice is
appreciated. Thanks.

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Permalink Submitted by Ciprian Adrian Rusen on 22 August 2012 - 5:48pm

On top of what is shared in this article and on the official website of PMI, regarding PMP
certifications, there is nothing to add.

Good luck with the career change.

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Permalink Submitted by Jim Kaufman on 28 August 2012 - 4:05am

and of course you do not have a certification. Anyone who knows anything about it knows it takes a lot
of skills, including courage. You should give it a try and find out.

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Permalink Submitted by Steve Smith on 9 October 2012 - 2:35pm

Those skills should also include reading. Which is something you apparently failed to do. He states
several times that he DOES have his certification. This entire article was written out of experience.
He was not trying to downplay the certification, just to point out that many sites on the internet are
playing it up to be a cure for everything. He's just trying to bring real information out to inform
those that are attempting to get their certification.

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