PMP Exam Pass Rate in 2022

Introduction: 

The PMP exam requires comprehensive preparation and presence of mind. It is not just a theoretical test; it is a psychometric test as well. Various factors influence the PMP exam pass rate.   

Overview

The Project Management Professional or PMP certification can make you the preferred candidate for managerial roles. 

The PMP certificate establishes that the certificate holder is skilled in various aspects of project management such as people, process and business environment. The exam is internationally accepted, and the certification is sure to enhance your career prospects.   

However, gaining a PMP certification is not an easy task. The number of people who clear the PMP exam is low. It requires dedication, presence of mind and thorough preparation.    

Factors Influencing the PMP Exam Pass Rate

The PMP exam has 175 scoring questions and 25 pre-test questions with a duration of four hours. The score of the pre-test questions will not be considered for your final score. These questions are used only to validate your exam pattern for tests you may take in the future. 

You will be scored on the other 175 questions. Here is how these scores impact your PMP exam pass rate. 

Passing Score

The exact passing score for the PMP exam is a mystery. The PMI does not reveal the passing score. However, things were not like this always. 

The score used to be 61% until November 2005. It was then changed to 80.6% for a brief period of 2 months. Later, the passing score was reverted to 61%. 

However, PMI hasn't revealed the passing score since 2007. Therefore, 61% can only be considered as a ball-park figure.    

Domain Scores

As mentioned earlier, the PMP exam checks your proficiency in 3 different domains of a project. These domains are people, process and business environment. Each of these does not have equal importance in the project lifecycle. The percentage of questions from each domain reflects this. Here is a blueprint of the questions to help improve your PMP exam pass rate.

Instead of a percentage, you are told your proficiency level in each domain. Different proficiency levels are - Above Target, Target, Needs Improvement and Below Target. The first two levels indicate that you have certainly cleared the exam. Even if you get a Needs Improvement or Below Target on one domain, you may still have cleared the exam if it is in a domain with a lower percentage of questions.  

Weightage of the Questions Answered

A common misconception about the exam is that all questions have equal weightage. The questions in the PMP exam have different weights depending on their difficulty. A tough question has higher weightage than an easy one. The PMP exam pass rate depends on how many tough questions you answer.  

Work Experience

The PMP exam tests your abilities in handling various aspects of the project. The more work experience you have, the easier it will be for you to answer these questions.