What's new with the PMQ? - Lunch and Learn

Ruth:
Hello everybody and welcome to this Parallel Project Training Lunch and Learn session. My name is Ruth Phillips, I’m the Head of Training Delivery at Parallel, and I’m really delighted that you can join us today. We’re going to go through what’s new with the APM PMQ qualification, and I’m joined by my colleague Carmen Campos, who’s one of Parallel’s Senior Training Consultants. She’s going to take you through all of the content, and we’d love for you to ask any questions that you’ve got. If you could put those into the comments box, we’ll take all of them at the end of this session. So that’s all from me for the moment-over to you, Carmen.
Carmen:
Thank you very much, Ruth, and thank you for the introduction. Hello and welcome, everybody! We’ve been getting a lot of questions about the new PMQ, and we thought it would be a good idea to run this session to clarify what exactly has changed with the new PMQ exam.
We’ll cover the same topics and start by looking at what the PMQ is, as we appreciate that there may be people here today who are unfamiliar with it. We’ll also explain where the PMQ fits within other qualifications. More specifically, we’re going to talk about the new PMQ itself.
We’ll begin by comparing the old and new PMQ, talking through each of the specific changes. We’ll show you what’s in the new syllabus, introduce the new types of questions, explain the exam structure, and discuss the timing of the transition. After that, we’ll give you some insight and tips on how to best prepare for this exam. Finally, we’ll explain the different options that Parallel Project Training provides to support your preparation for the new exam. We’ll finish up with a round of questions and answers, but as Ruth said, if you have any questions during the presentation, please feel free to put them in the chat, and we’ll make sure to address all of them toward the end.
On that note, let’s begin with what the Project Management Qualification (PMQ) is. Some of you may be familiar with the Association for Project Management (APM). You’ll know that they offer a range of different qualifications, and the choice of qualification will primarily depend on where you are in your career. So depending on what stage you are in, there is a number of qualifications that provide a nice route towards Chartered status, which is the highest standard.
The PMQ in particular is a knowledge-based qualification aimed at people who already have some experience in project management. The expectation is that someone with about two to three years of project experience who wants to formalize and consolidate their knowledge and understanding of project management principles and skills would likely consider this qualification.
This is a widely recognized qualification and has always been a valuable certificate to hold. In fact, from September, the PMQ will become one of the recognized assessments that people could use as a path toward Chartered status.
But today, the focus of the session is really to explore what’s new in the PMQ. So, first of all, I’m going to give you a high-level comparison of what’s different. Some of you may have done the PMQ before or are thinking about preparing for it.
At a high level, the key differences are:
The syllabus - The content in the previous PMQ exam was based on the APM Body of Knowledge 7th edition, whereas the new PMQ syllabus is aligned with the APM Competence Framework.
Exam format and structure - Before, if you took the PMQ exam, you had to answer 10 questions within 3 hours and 15 minutes in one sitting. Now, the new exam is shorter and split into two parts, with an optional 30-minute break in between.
Types of questions - Previously, all 10 questions required long answers, but now the format includes a mix of four different types of questions.
Pass mark - Previously, you needed to score 55% or more to pass. The new exam has an adjusted pass mark, meaning that depending on the difficulty of the paper, the pass mark will vary.
There are also some subtle changes worth pointing out. One change is the clearer guidelines on who the qualification is aimed at. Previously, the guidance wasn’t as specific, but now it’s recommended for people with at least two to three years of project experience. However, I want to emphasize that this is just a recommendation, not a prerequisite.
These are the high-level key differences. Now, let’s delve into each of them in more detail, beginning with the content.
As I mentioned, the new syllabus is now aligned with the APM Competence Framework. For those unfamiliar with the APM’s Competence Framework, it outlines the key competencies necessary for effective project, program, and portfolio management. Out of the 29 competencies in the framework, 24 have been pulled out, which are applicable specifically to project management. The remaining five are more relevant to program or portfolio management.