Passed the PMP Exam with AT/AT/AT with 2 weeks of studying!
Background: IT project manager of 7 years at one organization. Prior to that, I worked in IT Support. There are few to no formal standards for running a project here. I knew what a basic project plan, an issues log, a basic one-to-three-sentence scope statement, and some PMP terms were before studying for the PMP. I did take and pass the Scrum cert 5-6 years ago, but it was never applied to anything - it was an easy 2-day class and an easier exam (everyone passed the class). Basically, my knowledge relevant to this exam was very basic.
Start date, Target Date, Revised Date: Started studying on May 25, 2026. I put off getting the PMP exam for years. Was told by other PMs (who don't have the PMP) it wasn't worth it, it was super hard, etc. Woke up and decided, eff it, let's get it. I scheduled the exam for June 24th. Enough time to schedule another one if I failed. I thought it would take me a month to study. I changed the date to June 9th after completing and doing well on the 2nd full practice exam on SH (77 and 78). I didn't want to lose momentum, which is why I rescheduled.
Study materials
AR's Udemy course - for the PDUs and to help understand basic terminology and concepts. Watch the entire course once on 2x speed. I did take notes while watching, but never looked it after I completed the course.
AR's Ultra Hard 200 questions on Youtube - watched on 2x once. Paused before he went through the answers to try it on my own. Recommend this because it exposes on how to read questions and how to eliminate answers. Took notes on why I got the wrong answers. Good for learning and developing the correct mindset.
AR's 50 Mindset principles - watched on 2x. Pause before he went through the answers to try it on my own. Good tips and tricks that remind and reinforce the mindset, especially after watching the 200 Ultra Hard videos.
DM's 150 PMBOK 7 questions and answers on Youtube - Same as the other videos, watched on 2x, paused to try the questions prior to him going through the answers. Good for understanding mindset and how to read the questions. Good for learning more definitions and concepts in the PMBOK. In hindsight, you could probably do either DM's or AR's or do some of AR's questions with some of DM's questions.
DM's Cheat sheet on Youtube - watched on 2x. Good for refreshing materials that I've watched and learned. Good for filling in that time when I'm waiting in line somewhere or have some downtime where I'd usually be doomscrolling lol
Third3rock notes - Good for quick reference and lookup if I missed a practice question where I didn't fully grasp a definition or theory. Also good for quick, easy reads while walking or waiting. Read through them once.
YouTube shorts - Through each day, I would be recommended a YouTube short from AR or DM. They were one-question videos, good for a quick, random 1-minute study.
This subreddit - Some practice questions were posted here and people answered them which helped. Also, the knowledge transfer from those that passed the exam guided me in how to study for this exam. I wouldn't have known to focus on SH, AR's, or DM's youtube videos without everyone here. Thank you.
Study Hall Plus - A must. It helped me get exposure to exam-like questions. Doing more questions is better. The expert questions are bleh - I wouldn't focus too much on them. Understanding why I missed a question, then making notes on it, practicing it in spurts (mini-exams, practice questions), and doing full mock exams for more exposure to questions and to measure and build stamina all contributed to my success. I did 2 full mock exams: 77% and 78%. Finished both exams with roughly 60-80 minutes left. Took those a week apart. Mini Exams and Practice questions (some were retaken after several days to prevent memorization) yielded an 81-82% average. I went through around 50-80 questions a day on SH alone.
Personal takeaways - My main issues with the questions were that I didn't read the question and answers properly and carefully enough, and overanalyzed some. I tended to skim the questions because a lot of them were about context, but I missed some key words. Same with answers - I ruled some out too quickly because I didn't read the full answer.
Exam:
Day before - I took a full practice exam on Sunday afternoon. Went easy on Monday. Reviewed around 20 questions that I had bookmarked in SH throughout the day. Watched 2-3 questions on Youtube from AR and DM. Made sure I read questions AND answers correctly a few times in a row (identified who is involved (team, stakeholder, sponsor, customer, vendor), what the problem is, what is the methodology and phase) - did this because it was my biggest weakness.
Exam center is a mile from where I live (got lucky). Got up at 6AM, went for a quick 15 minute walk, reviewed my quick tip/cheat sheet notes, took a shower, and got there at 7:25. There were 10 people ahead of me. The check-in process per person is about 2-5 minutes. It started with one admin checking people in, then moved to 3. You're not allowed to bring anything other than the locker key to the locker where you store your stuff and your ID. This center was hosting the PMP exam with other exams unrelated to the PMP. They had a few rooms. The rooms were neither too cold nor too warm. I wore a hoodie and felt comfortable. Could've gone without and still felt comfortable. Wear something comfortable for you (PJs, shorts, sweats, whatever). The monitors are 24-27" widescreen, and chairs have backrests that go up to mid to upper mid back. You have options for noise-canceling headphones, and I chose to use one. You're given a erase marker and a few blank laminate pages if you want to write things down. Not allowed to erase anything.
The test - the question length was shorter than the questions from Study Hall (no paragraphs). To me, it seemed easier. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the hardest, Study Hall would be a 10 (harder than AR's Ultra Hard questions which were about a 5-7). The exam was around a 7-8. Didn't seem like there were any SH expert-level questions. Exam questions were not vaguely worded. Most, if not all, the questions had answers that could be reduced to 2 options. I had no calculations, no drag-and-drop, no charts. A couple of select-2 or select-3 answer questions. It is all about the mindset and how PMI wants you to act. It is NOT about memorization and definitions.
Test breaks - you get 2 10-minute breaks, one after each section (60 questions). The timer starts the moment the exam proctor comes to get you. You lose 10-30 seconds the moment the proctor gets you, walk out the exam room and the proctor checks your ID. You can lose 10-30 seconds when returning from break. They scan you and check your ID before you go into the room, do their thing on your workstation (authorize/sign in?), then by the time you sit down and start, you may have lost some seconds. I advise you to come back after 7-8 minutes.
Timer - I finished the exam with 40 minutes left, and this was after I went back and reviewed my bookmarks/flagged for review after each section. I did change some answers after reviewing. It wasn't because other questions gave me hints; it just allowed me to look at it again with a fresher view/mind.
TLDR: Took me 2 weeks of intense studying. I spent at least 2-4 hours a day studying (mostly after work and in the evenings). Averaged 100+ questions a day - questions from SH and from YouTube (AR and DM). Do as many questions as you can. Learn why you got questions wrong. Learn how to read the questions. Apply principles that you learned from AR, DM, and the questions you got wrong.