Where to Find Audio and Video Materials for PMP® Exam Prep

Audio exam-prep materials have the distinct advantage of allowing you to listen while driving or stuck in traffic, even on the subway. Being able to take advantage of those opportunities is a huge help when fitting exam prep into a busy personal and professional life.

Unlike audio aids that allow you to absorb information even while driving, exam prep videos don’t. Unfortunately, like audio materials, they also don’t allow for immediate discussion with instructors and other students. They do, however, have certain advantages. Depending on your particular learning style, you may benefit greatly when combining visual text and explanatory graphics with the audio.

In this article we will take a look at both types. This list is by no means exhaustive. The comparisons here may help you in evaluating other available options.

Whichever option you choose, be sure to confirm that the materials have been updated for version 5 of the PMBOK® Guide. If an advertisement says “updated for the new standard,” you must still check, because the advertisements are not always up to date!

Audio Exam Prep Tools

Although a number of these tools exist, most of them at this writing (2013) are not yet updated for version 5 of the PMBOK® Guide.

Veteran PMP® exam prep provider Tony Johnson at http://www.crosswindpm.com has offered a series of audio prep options that apparently have not been updated as of late 2013, but indications are that they will be soon.

Project Management Audio Digest from Praizion Media offers a complete suite of products for online, offline and drive-time study and has been updated for Version 5. The 18-CD set is complemented by flashcards, email mentoring and more.

http://www.boson.com/practice-exam/pmp-audio-training (Look for an update to version 5.)

Conversations on the PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try – This 5-CD set is narrated by Author Andy Crowe, Bill Yates, and Louis Alderman. The CDs provide information students need to know to thoroughly prepare for the test. Process, inputs, tools, and outputs are discussed, and tips and tricks to passing the exam are provided. This is an audio companion to Crowe’s textbook, The PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try. There is an All-in-One kit that includes the audio CDs, textbook, flash cards, quick reference guide, and access to simulated practice exam questions online.

Video Exam Prep Tools

It isn’t unusual for various exam-prep tools to include a video component. Here, we focus on tools that are primarily video-oriented.

PM PrepCast – Suitable for tablets or smart phones, this product includes 140 lessons, averaging 26 minutes each and spanning more than 50 hours of total elapsed time. They are available from the iTunes store. Completion of the course allows you to print a 35 contact-hour certificate that you can use in qualifying for the exam. The requirement for printing the certificate is the passing of the course’s final exam. Included are interviews with prior exam takers about their experience, 300 practice questions, and access to the company’s online discussion forums.

Instant PMP® Video Prep Course and Practice Exams Also offering 35 contact hours, this PMBOK® Guide version 5-based course is priced at $49.95 and available from iTunes includes four full exams, 50 scenario-based questions and includes access to an instructor “any time.” This is a hybrid product in that it offers offline MP3 files as well.

PMP Exam Primer includes more than 24 hours of instruction on 24 DVDs, a 320-slide workbook, a 340-question quiz, 500 exam type questions and 50 “cram” pages.

PMP® Certification Exam Training offers 35 contact hours in two versions, one including 150 extra formula-oriented training questions. 350 chapter tests and nine complete exams are included.