James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Anyone got any project management qualifications? I'm considering Prince2 or PMP, but not sure which.
I've done a bit of Googling and it seems that Prince2 is more confined to the UK but I can't find much else comparing the 2.
Thanks.
[Edited on 20-08-2012 by James]
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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Have been looking into it myself and a Prince2 is the usual if you're planning to stick around in the UK. Otherwise PMP is more widely accepted, especially in the states.
Can, obviously depends on the area you get into, be a dull old job though if it's IT but on the upside you can get an extremely good salary especially if you contract.
[Edited on 20-08-2012 by Dom]
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Whittie
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Registered: 11th Aug 06
Location: North Wales Drives: BMW, Corsa & Fiat
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Prince2 is the only one i've heard of tbf!
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Russ
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Registered: 14th Mar 04
Location: Armchair
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Gavin (henry) on here is one, ask him what he has
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_Allan_
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Registered: 24th Mar 04
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Seth also might have some good info.
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Dom
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Registered: 13th Sep 03
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Seth has done it as well, i believe, so i'm sure he'll chime in with some info.
Either way, it's worth while doing but everyone i know that's done it have basically stated the exams and the studying is a complete ballache (especially if you decide to do the week courses), get reading course/Prince2 material as soon as possible and said that you only really do it for the piece of paper stating the qualification as PM is 95% common sense and 5% Prince2/qualification knowledge.
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A2H GO
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Registered: 14th Sep 04
Location: Stoke
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I've got PRINCE2 Foundation & Practitioner, full time course for a week, about £2k if you pay yourself, work funded all of mine bar £500.
Has it helped? In the realy world, not really, most places won't want you to use the methodology to deliver change/projects, they'll want you to use their ways of working.
Only thing its good for is sticking on your CV to increase your chances of getting a job, in which case just do the foundation course and stick 'PRINCE2 Qualified' on your CV, job done.
Good money in PM contracting, especially in IT(although its a boring job imo). Market average is £400pd.
[Edited on 20-08-2012 by A2H GO]
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Yeh it's more to get it on the CV than to gain the knowledge.
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Just realised I meant PMP, not PMI 
PMI is the name of the institute that runs it.
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pow
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Registered: 11th Sep 06
Location: Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire
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Im looking into doing PRINCE2
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SetH
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Registered: 15th Jul 01
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A2HGO is spot on and has said pretty much what I was going to about Prince 2. It helped me get my foot in the door at HP but it has not helped me in delivering projects. Looking at PM job vacancies it seems to be on the 'required' list on many of them. when I first got into Project Management it was 'desireable'.
With regards to PMP,
I have decided to now go for my PMP and will be studying it between now and February in which I plan to take my Exam.
I work for Hewlett Packard and they have an acceleration program where they deliver a 2 hour webcast session each week as well as email support from mentors. In addition to that I am expected to do 6-10 hours private study per week.
PMP is pretty much the Daddy of Project Management certification. For that reason it is much more difficult to obtain due to very strict acceptance criteria in which you may get audited to verify your work experience and qualifications.
You can google the acceptance criteria but I will summarise :
Graduates
4500 hours of PM experience (2-3 years)
36 non overlapping months within 8 years
PM education (35 hours) - Prince 2 will qualify for this
Non Graduate
7500 hours of PM experience (4-5 years)
60 non overlapping months within 8 years
PM education (35 hours) - Prince 2 will qualify for this
Thus PMP is for experienced Project Management professionals only.
They ask for everything, every PM role you have ever done, full contact details for every manager and client. A summary of every PM job showing key PM Skills and experience attained. You cannot blag this, they can audit you at anytime, even if they initially accept you.
I am not expecting it to be a walk in the park but once I have this plus my Prince 2 and a couple more years experience at HP I should theoretically have my pick of IT PM roles.
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Prince2 it is then 
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SetH
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Registered: 15th Jul 01
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One of my colleagues was audited. He had met the criteria (just) but he had to go on a mission contacting employers/clients from years and years ago in order to obtain their signature on statements etc.
Obviously this makes the PMP certification more valuable but it is a ball ache. I have not looked into what you have to do to maintain the certification yet either.
Prince 2 you have to resit every 5 years.
If you have one of those jobs where extra unpaid hours and travelling is expected then it can become a mission!
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Work will pay for my Prince2 anyway which is good. There are a couple of certifications I want to do in the next year or 2 to beef up my CV.
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SetH
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Registered: 15th Jul 01
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Go for it if you have the chance. Be warned though it is a very dry and boring subject!
I did the week course but self studied for 2 hours a day for 2 weeks prior. then during the week course I was putting in a couple of hours each night.
Quite a bit to cover in the space of a week. A lot of people do the foundation then dwell on the material for a couple of months and go back and do the practioner.
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Gavin
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Registered: 3rd Apr 02
Location: West Midlands
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I've done PRINCE2 Foundation & Practitioner, my work paid for the course as I had move into a new role as a IT PM
Most of its been mentioned above tbh.
I put in about 8-10 hours before the course started going over the pre-material. Then I did about 3 hours per night during the course.
The Foundation exams is fairly easy - multiple choice. But the Practitioner can be a bit of a biatch as it using complex multiple selections - my main issue was the amount of time given to complete the Practitioner exams; 3 hours wasnt enough as you have to read through the scenarios fairly carefully as they alone can catch you out
I felt the course helped structure my thoughts and processes for managing and delivering projects, but it doesnt mean that you'll be a good PM and (as it has already been mentioned) most companies use their own methodologies for delivering project. Like everything else, experience is the key but having a certification wont do you any harm 
quote:
Originally posted by A2H GO
Good money in PM contracting, especially in IT(although its a boring job imo)
I enjoy what I do. I'm more of a technical IT PM so I get to dive into the details of the project 
[Edited on 20-08-2012 by Gavin]
pew pew pew pewwwww
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VegasPhil
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Registered: 16th Jan 05
Location: Fareham, Hants Drives: Octavia VRS
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Prince2 is the one I look for as a recruiter.
Corsa 2.0 16v Vegas - Sold
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SetH
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Registered: 15th Jul 01
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Why?
Do your clients specify prince 2 or?
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mattk
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Registered: 27th Feb 06
Location: St. Helens
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A degree in clipboard management more like
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SetH
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Registered: 15th Jul 01
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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A2H GO
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Registered: 14th Sep 04
Location: Stoke
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James
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Registered: 1st Jun 02
Location: Surrey
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Surely this isn't someone in a trade belittling someone that isn't in a trade. That's practically unheard of
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Aaron
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Registered: 9th Aug 04
Location: Cottingham, East Riding
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So is this something you're actually going to do James? Or is it like your posts which bang on about being a property developer?
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pow
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Registered: 11th Sep 06
Location: Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire
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Aaron
I've signed on to do a week long course at Gatwick on the 17th Sept. Gunna get a Travelodge down there and just smash through it.
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