Program Management Professional (PgMP)

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Program Management Professional (PgMP) Details

Certification Industry: Project Management

Certificate Name: Program Management Professional (PgMP)

Certificate Issuing Authority: Project Management Institute (PMI)

Certification Price: US$800.0 (Member) | US$1,000.0 (Non-member)

Certificate Validity: 3 years

Program Management Professional (PgMP) certification is a level higher than Project Management Professional (PMP). This credential is aimed at advancing the expertise of senior managers responsible for the fruitful achievement of goals by strategic business models. Working on numerous projects in a coordinated manner requires excellent leadership and direction. To take up a senior position, a professional requires certain qualifications, experience, and competence. This recognition is given by PgMP certification. It helps in grouping related projects to formulate a program and provides knowledge to implement successful program management.

Average Salary Range For PgMP

USA : $79,330 - $102,010 Per Year (Source)

India: 20,10,239/- INR Per Year (Source)


Who Should Apply For PgMP?

To qualify as a potential PgMP, a practitioner is required to synchronize similar projects with the business operations to achieve the objectives of the firm. Senior project managers, portfolio managers, senior management professionals, and functional heads can apply for the PgMP certification.


Benefits of Doing PgMP

  1. Differentiation Factor
    In order to be PgMP certified, a candidate is supposed to be a PMP. Therefore, a PgMP certification assists in gaining a competitive edge over a project manager.

  2. Skill Development
    Since the qualification criteria for PgMP credential requires high experience and a pool of qualifications, it further helps in the advancement of present skills along with developing new skills to achieve the desired goals.

  3. Higher Pay
    In comparison to project managers, program managers are entitled to higher pay and a better position. It fulfills the esteem needs of the practitioner. They are also recognized as specialist program managers.

Program Management Professional (PgMP) Exam Details:

Preparation Cost of PgMP

The overall cost for the certification depends upon the PMI membership status of the candidate. Moreover, it is also dependent upon whether the examination is center-based or paper-based.

Examination Fee

Center-Based Testing (CBT)/ Paper-Based Testing (PBT)

US$800.0 (Member) | US$1,000.0 (Non-member)

Validity of PgMP

The PgMP certification is valid for exactly three years from the date of the certification. For instance, Paul got his certification on 10 July 2018, then it will be valid until 10 July 2021. However, the credential can be renewed by earning 60 Professional Development Units (PDU) in the duration of three years, and on the third anniversary, a new renewal cycle begins. In the field of Program Management, One PDU is equivalent to one hour of structured Learning.

How To Take The PgMP Exam

Eligibility Criteria
  1. In case of a Four-Year Degree:
    6,000 hours of project management experience and 6,000 hours of program management experience.
  2. In case of a High School Diploma/ an Associate’s Degree:
    6,000 hours of project management experience and 10,500 hours of program management experience.

Examination Details

  1. It comprises 170 multiple-choice questions out of which 20 are pretest(unscored) questions.
  2. The standard method of conducting the test is Center-based. However, under certain circumstances, Paper-based testing is also available.
  3. The allotted examination time is four hours with no scheduled breaks.

Time Taken To Prepare For The Program Management Professional (PgMP) Exam

The time taken to prepare for the exam does not necessarily depend upon the program experience of the candidate. Despite all the advanced skills, a candidate is supposed to prepare whole-heartedly utilizing certain study aids. It is important to leave a significant amount of preparation time before taking the test.


For more details, log on to the official PMI Website.

  • I got PgMP (PMI) exam cleared in under 3 months
    July 26, 2020, 03:07 AM

    To keep it simple and short, below is what I did to clear my PgMP exam in under 3 months.


    1. Pre-read SPM (Standard for Program Management, 4th edition). This will help you have a feel of subject and different domains to have initial understanding. Read this bible at least 30 mins a day to start with and slowly increased to 1-1.5 hrs. It is very imp to keep yourself focused each day else the journey will not be easy, I kept telling myself "Be STRONGER than your STRONGEST excuse". This kept me focused. I would hate myself if for any reason I missed reading completely or didnt read enough, but this happened very less and I could bring myself to track soon.


    2. Enroll for a PgMP training - This is very imp. This will largely help you to be focused and makes things bit easy to understand from experts. A mentor can be quite instrumental and I recommend to go through a professional trainer. I went through AddonSkills and highly recommend Kailash's training. Other IMP aspect of going through professional trainer and course is that you will get extensive help on application writing. This is complex part and with a trainer's help and guidance it can be made much easier to clear the application review process.

    A trainer exactly knows areas of importance and tips to make complex part understood in a much easier way, not to mention you can clear all your doubts. You will also get access to various custom videos and study materials to prep in a much better way.


    3. Practice Tests/Mock Tests - This is another IMP aspect which you should have access to from your professional trainer or course. There are not many out there which are reliable and have a healthy set of questions. Attempting questions as you go through each domain will validate your knowledge and understanding and will further help you find gaps and prep better on these areas.


    4. Your own notes + ECO (Exam Content Outline) + PMBOK - These are IMP too, make your own notes in your own sentences and keep revisiting them. Keep enhancing these, this will come quite handy when nearer to exam. Go through ECO, especially Closing phase steps and Stakeholder engagement steps, dont spend much time on ECO though. Refer to PMBOK for Risk (response strategy), Earned Value (formulas), Procurement (diff contract types), Communication (channel calc) related areas

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    Vikram Bir Singh