If you are applying for the PMP exam, there is a 50% chance you will be selected for a PMP audit. Therefore, preparing for the PMP audit is best before applying for the PMP exam.
You may have many questions, such as: What is the PMP audit, what happens in this process, or how can I complete the audit, etc?
The audit is just a tool for PMI to ensure only eligible candidates apply and the information they submit is correct.
The audit is an easy process if you have all your documents handy.
In this blog post, I will provide all the information necessary to understand the PMP audit process and what you should do to complete it successfully.
What is the PMP Audit?
As per the PMI, “The submission of an application indicates your agreement to comply with the terms of the audit process. All applications are subject to an audit, although only a percentage are selected for audit. The selection of an application for audit is random.”
Simply put, the PMP audit is a process where PMI asks you to submit some documents to verify your submitted claims. The documents may include your educational certifications, experience certificates, 35 contact hours training certificate, etc.
Here the PMI verifies that the information you have provided to them matches the documents you have provided them with and the authenticity of these documents if they are genuine.
Once you are selected for the PMP audit, you will have 90 days to send them these documents. Once the PMI receives them, they take approximately one week to review the submittal. If they are satisfied, they will pass your audit; if they are not, they will ask for further clarification.
If you pass your audit, your one-year eligibility period starts from when you pass your audit. Now you have one year to pass the PMP exam.
However, if you fail the audit process, your exam fee will be returned with a deduction of 100 USD as an administrative fee.
What is the Purpose of the PMP Audit?
This audit process aims to improve the process of becoming a PMP. It discourages fraudulent applicants from applying for the exam, increasing the credibility of PMP certification holders.
The PMP audit process ensures only eligible candidates apply for the PMP certification exam.
Percentage of Aspirants Selected for an Audit
You might be wondering what percentage of applicants are selected for an audit.
The honest answer is nobody knows. However, it is a general perception that around 10% of applicants are selected for an audit.
I have been blogging for around six years and noticed a trend. Five or six years ago, I got hardly any mail from people selected for an audit asking for help. However, these days it is not so rare.
There are two reasons for this. The first reason is that the PMI has increased the percentage of people selected for an audit. The second obvious reason is that more and more people are applying for the exam, so the number of auditees has also increased accordingly.
The process is still the same; I have seen very few people fail the audit.
When You May be Selected for the PMP Audit
Once you complete your application and submit it, you will know if you have been selected for an audit.
If you are selected for an audit, the PMI will email you detailed instructions. The instructions will include a list of documents you must submit to them and a printable form to include the job description that you will get signed by your boss, etc.
If you are not selected for an audit, you will receive an email from PMI with a code. With this code, you can schedule your exam from the Prometric website.
The PMP Audit Process
If selected for an audit, simply login to your PMI dashboard and download the audit package.
You can print the form and send it to your previous supervisors to sign. Please note that after signing, they will have to close the envelope, seal it, and return it to you.
You will make photocopies of your certificate of education and 35 contact hours certificate. Keep all envelopes and other photocopies in one big envelope and send it to PMI through courier or regular mail.
That is it.
How to Successfully Complete the PMP Audit
The PMP audit is a straightforward and fairly easy process. They ask you to submit documents showing your educational qualifications, experience, and the 35 contact hours of training. Once you submit these documents, you are done.
However, please keep the following points in mind while applying for the PMP exam:
- Keep your present and one previous supervisor informed about your application process. Inform them that PMI may contact them via email to verify your work experience with them and whether you have the required experience.
- Try to get your 35 contact hours training program from a PMI REP training provider. These providers are PMI approved, and their content is pre-approved. If you get training from any other resource, you may have to prove that the training content was aligned with the PMBOK Guide.
- If you are a degree holder, you should have three years of experience; if you are a diploma holder, you should have five years of experience. You don’t need to show them all your experience. Start with the most current and give them the latest five or three years of experience. It will save you time and effort.
- In any case, do not provide any incorrect information. If caught for this offense, the PMI may ban you for life.
If you follow the above advice, I believe you will not face any problems passing the PMP audit.
How Not to Fail the PMP Audit
I have seen some professionals fail the PMP audit. A few failed because of their mistakes, and there was no fault with others. Therefore, here I will provide a few tips to help you pass the PMP audit with minimal hassle.
The first important tip: It is all about the experience. In the job experience, you should write how you were involved with projects. You must not list your activities but rather explain how you were involved with initiation, planning, executing, monitoring and controlling, and closing process activities.
You must have been involved with a complete project lifecycle, i.e. from initiating to closing process group. If you lack experience in any domain, you cannot apply for the PMP exam.
The second tip: Do not put in excessive hours per year. Generally, 2,000 hours per year is acceptable. However, if you are giving 4,000 hours per year, it is a red flag. If you have overlapping experience, count the experience of one project only. Do not count both.
The third tip: If you have much more experience than required, do not give details on everything. If you are a degree holder, give the most recent three or four years of experience. You can give more if you cannot complete the hours in all domains, but keep it to a minimum.
If you are a diploma holder, try to keep it for around five years or the years it takes to complete your experience in all domains.
If you give them experience for projects over 10 or 20 years, it might be difficult for you to find your old supervisors and their contact details. Just complete the experience requirements, and you are done. You are not applying for a job here, so you don’t need to put all your experience and job title.
If you cannot contact any of your previous employers, go back and give the details of previous projects whose supervisors are still available. Please note that you cannot go back more than eight years, so all this experience should have been earned in the past eight years.
However, if your experience is just three or five years and any supervisors from previous employment are missing, try to contact their replacement or the company’s management and inform them about your audit process. Don’t forget to inform PMI about this issue as well.
The last tip: Send the paperwork through any renowned courier service provider which provides you with a tracking code. Couriers can lose items in transit, and if you don’t know about it, it will cause problems.
So send the package through a renowned courier and get the tracking code, and you can see when the package is delivered to the PMI.
In Which Ways Can I Fail the PMP Audit Process?
There are three ways you can fail the PMP audit process. These are as follows:
- When the situation is beyond your capability (no fault of your own)
- You decide not to proceed with the audit
- You have provided incorrect information to the PMI
Case-1: When the Situation is Beyond Your Capability
Often, an applicant fails the audit, and it is not their fault.
For example, you are not able to contact your previous supervisor. The company is closed, or the previous supervisor has left the organization. In this case, you cannot verify your experience and fail your audit process.
This is the case of a failed audit at no fault of your own. In this case, your fee will be returned minus a 100 USD processing fee. You will also not get any suspension period, meaning if you can solve the problem, you can apply again immediately.
Case-2: You Decide Not to Proceed With the Audit
If you do not respond to the audit process and decide not to proceed, you will fail it.
Here you will get your money back minus the 100 USD processing fee. However, you will not be able to apply for the PMP certification exam for the next year.
Case-3: You have provided incorrect information to the PMI
The PMI caught you providing them with the wrong information, and you made them believe that the information was correct.
This is a fraud, and in this case, you will fail your audit and may be banned for life from applying for the PMP exam.
In this case, you will also get your money minus the 100 USD processing fee.
Conclusion
The PMP audit is the scariest part of the PMP exam preparation. However, if you understand the process well and prepare yourself in advance, you don’t have any reason to worry about it. The key point is that whatever information you provide to the PMI should be genuine and backed up with supporting documents. You should not worry about it; you will have enough time to complete the process. If you are selected for the PMP audit, follow the instructions, and you will be ready.