PMI® Requirements, Costs & 35 Contact Hours Certificate For PMP® Certification & Where Can You Take The Exam?

Formal Education Contact Hours & Other Requirements for PMI®’s PMP® Exam Approval or (CAPM®)Exam Approval: To be accepted by the Project Management Institute to sit for the Exam you need to fulfill the 35 formal education contact hours of PMP® Exam Preparation Training. Our PMP® Certification Courses are designed for the PMP® Exam Preparation & also prepare you for the Exam. You will receive a Certificate of Completion for the 37.5 Contact hours and our program also includes a practice exam at the end of training so you can assess your knowledge as part of the training.

Some companies today supply less hours of training figuring you can find some other training hours elsewhere. Our goal is to help you pass the PMP® exam and help you get your approval. Our classes are packed with everything you need in order to pass the Exam.

If you are a four year college graduate or greater you need 4,500 hours of project experience, or 7,500 hours if you have less than four’s years of college or equivalent or you have a high school diploma or equivalent. You do not need the title/role of project manager in order to qualify to sit for the PMP®/CAPM® Exam. Call Nereda Haque, PMP at 360-584-8614 or email her if you have any questions and she will help you understand the requirements further.

If you are a PMI® member ($129* is the first time membership fee) then the exam cost $405* for the PMP® credential Exam. If you are not a member the exam costs you $555.* (Cost of It helps to become a member because it's easy to manage your PDU activities after the fact. In order to be able to sit the Exam and schedule it, you must first submit your experience. It usually takes 3 to 5 business days for Exam approval. At that point you will be emailed that you are approved and you can schedule your Exam.

Prometric Exam sites: The exam is taken at a Prometric Testing Center - there is one in Puyullup, and one in Mountlake Terrace in Western Washington. Places in Oregon and Michigan are also listed. In VA you can take it in many locations in MD, WVA, VA, & DC. Go to prometric.com to find exam sites. Please follow the instructions for all other areas. Click on Project Management Institute, then immediately on the big orange button to the right. You may request seat availability first if you wish. That is what most do. The PMP® Exam is a 4 hour Exam.

SmartPath LLC does not include the Exam Fees in their Course Fees. WorkSource customers please contact Nereda for further information.

You pay the Project Management Institute for the Exam Fees after they give you approval to sit for the Exam. Approval takes about 72 business hours. It's best to allow 3 to 4 business days.

Audits: A small percentage of applications have random audits. The audit requirements are usually:

(1) Provide a copy of high school or equivalancy certificate, or college certificate. For example, if you have a Masters degree just give a copy of that certificate
(2) Provide a copy of the PM class certificate
(3) Have signed copies of each project that your hours were composed of. The manager or peer signs the forms, places them in a sealed envelope and signs the seal.

A good practice would be to have your certificates ready and put the people signing on alert just in case, so you get through this as quickly as possible. Expect about a week or so delay.

Summary of The Processes:

The first thing you need is the 35 contact hours of formal education for the PMP® Exam, (which you can get from SmartPath LLC); next you need to submit your experience to the Project Management Institute, then it takes about 72 hours during business days to get your approval. We will help walk you through the processes in class. Register for class now and take the first step to become a certified project manager. All Course/Class content are the same whether it's the Weekend, Boot Camp or 5 Day training that you prefer.

PMI® organization links

(1) PMP® Link: (2) CAPM® Link:

To Find Any PMP® Exam Site in The United States:

Go to prometric.com
Down arrow on the first opposition (Professional etc)
Click on "Project Management Institute"
There will appear a big square orange button on the right. Click on it. Follow the prompts. Look at seat availability. Seat availability changes often, so look over several days and find a date that's good for you, if you don't find one you like immediately. Remember, it works both ways. The Exam seats you see today may also not be available again.

Washington & Oregon & Michigan Prometric Centers: See also prometric.com. Going to prometric.com is the best thing to do as you may find a location closer to you.

Prometric Test Center
22002 64th Ave West, Suite B
Mountlake Terrance, WA 98043

Prometric Test Center
12020 Meridian E, Suite D
Puyullup, WA 98373

Prometric Test Center
454-4800 Kingsway
Metrotown Cambridge College
Burnaby, BC V5H 4J2

Prometric Test Center
8536 N Wall St
Corner of Country Holmes Blvd
Spokane, WA 99208

Prometric Test Center
1122 NE 122bd Ave, Suite A-107
Portland, OR 97230

Prometric Test Center
14623 SE. McLoughlin Blvd
Portland, OR 9726

Michigan & Close By Prometric Centers

Michigan and Close By Test Centers

2301: Prometric Test Center
3910 Burton St SE, Suite 101
Grand Rapids, MI 49546

2306: Prometric Test Center Kerry St
2500 Kerry St, Suite #100
Lansing, MI 48912

4903: Prometric Test Center
19435 West Capitol Dr, Suite L04
Brookfield, WI 53045

2302: Prometric Test Center
Lake Superior State University
906 Ryan Street
Sault Ste Marie, MI 49783

2331: Prometric Test Center
2851 High Meadow Circle, Suite 160
Auburn Hills, MI 48326

2305: Prometric Test Center
3290 West Big Beaver Rd, Ste 160
Troy, MI 48084

2312: Prometric Test Center
(Additional hours available at 2321
37727 Professional Center Dr, Suite # 130
Livonia, MI 48154

0057: Prometric Test Center
3820 Packard St, Suite 210
Ann Arbor, MI 48108

1811: Prometric Test Center
3005 Grape Rd, Ste A
Mishawaka, IN 48545-1776

3203: Prometric Test Center
770 Lake Cook Rd, Suite 200
Deerfield, IL 60015

0034: Prometric Test Center
20 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60602



*PMI requirements at the time of writing

See all about SmartPath LLC PMP® Certification Classes.