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Courses Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Everyone learns in different ways and has different needs for a course. We have setup the classroom live, virtual live and virtual self paced courses to have minimal (if any at all) differences in content. Given your schedule, how you learn, etc. you might prefer one format over another. For example, if your work tells you go take a class and get through it, a four day classroom live, or virtual live class is likely a good fit. If you aren’t getting support from your work and doing the course on your own, the Saturday (day) courses (classroom or live virtual) work well. If you don’t have consistent amounts of time available then the virtual self paced courses likely will work well for you.

It varies. At the end of the Crosswind course we do an exit exam and interview with your trainer/coach. Your trainer/coach will make specific recommendations on next steps which could be schedule the test, review certain areas, fine tune your brain dump, etc… For example, if you do really well in the exit exam, but have a two week vacation immediately following the course, that is a totally different situation than doing really well and going right back to work. As a general rule most DO NOT have the contact hours of training to apply for the exam before the course, so once it is done and they submit their application, the exam is commonly taken in 2-3 weeks after the course just because of the time it takes to submit your application, get it approved and set a date. We also do not recommend that you take the exam after a few days of work. It is good to have your mind focused on the Exam only. Remember, waiting a few days to have a solid foundation of knowledge will help you on the exam and be a better project manager at work. Cramming your brain to pass a test the day after the class, then forgetting it all, doesn’t help your career long term.

In our opinion it’s an attempt to make you think it’s easy, or to charge you more and make you think they have the answers to the exam. Nothing worthwhile is easy. What most people find out after signing up for one of those test the day after classes is that they don’t qualify to take the test the day after the class anyway. Good luck getting your money back on that! Ask yourself this:

1. Do you already have 35 contact training hours? If no, you can’t submit your application until you do. If the class is what will give you the 35 hours, there is NO WAY you could submit the application, get approved and schedule your test the day after the class.

2. Do you know for certain you will be ready for the test the day after the class? Remember, everyone learns differently and at different speeds.

3. Does the test center, or testing at home process have capacity the day after a class? The truth is most test centers are full a few weeks in advance. Testing at home is generally a bit more open, but it's not a sure thing on short notice.

4. Is it really in your best interest to take the test the day after the class? If you take a few extra days to study, it will likely benefit you. Remember, generally speaking, the test is situational, what is the best thing to do in this case or that case. You can’t simply treat this material like a math test to be successful.

Pass or Free Re-Enrollment & Trainer/Coach assistance. For example, if you come up short on the exam, we work with you one on one, to identify next steps and areas of improvement. Then we get you setup for review of content in courses as needed. In over 2 decades of helping people get ready for the exams, we know how to get you where you need to be for the exam!

10% of applicants will be audited when submitting their applications. If you were truthful in submitting your application, it is simply a matter of getting a copy of your course completion certificate, degree/diploma, and have someone that you worked with on the projects you listed be able to check yes and sign that you did what you did. We then suggest you overnight it to Project Management Institute, Inc. at 14 Campus Blvd, Newtown Square, PA 19073 with a return receipt requested (just to be safe). If you have any questions about the audit process just let us know. We will be happy to help.

We help students with the exam application as needed. First, we discuss the application process in class, and suggest you watch our YouTube video on creating a sample application. We commonly review a sample project description before you start to do the complete application.  Sometimes it can be something as simple as answering a few questions, or reviewing a work description for the appropriate degree of detail. However complex the situation or question might be (short of writing the application itself) we will help get you there.

Once you are approved to take the exam, you have one calendar year to take the exam. You have three attempts in one year to pass the exam. If not successful, you are required to sit out a year. 

If you have a legitimate medical situation that warrants special accommodation, you can request special accommodation on the exam. We have seen people with (medical grade) anxiety, diabetes, brain injuries, thyroid issues, and other situations get longer durations and/or the ability to take medicine and other things into the exam. This does typically take longer to schedule the exam, and does typically require doctor documentation to be sent to PMI for review. 

If you fail the exam, we suggest you reach out to us immediately to ensure you are ready before you go back to the test. We will work with you as needed to get you there. We help you fine tune things like getting the brain dump solid, practice question timing, bridging any knowledge gaps, exam environment issues, confidence going into the test and more.

The goal of any product we have is for it to be COMPLETE AND WHOLE. For example, if you buy our book, you shouldn’t need any other books. When signing up for our course you get our complete study system. That includes a bootcamp manual, flip notes, placemats, exam application checklist, exam readiness checklist, quick reference guides, cross reference guide, flashcards application, 18 hours of audio content, exam simulation with 150+ exams and over 5200 questions, 60+ pm templates in word and excel, access to various videos to support the live classroom, as well as a tip of the day broadcast.

If you sign up before 3PM CST (Central Time) your materials will typically ship that day. Depending upon how close you are to Dallas, Texas, will dictate the duration from there.

Ideally you will sign up before the course with enough time to start reviewing the materials and copying the brain dump. Any familiarity with the material before the class helps, but it’s not a show stopper.

The PMP certification is the standard of certification for those working in project management. Ten years ago it was a nice thing to have when looking for a job. Currently, it is a challenge to even be considered for the higher paying jobs without the PMP credential. We common hear from our students that after getting the PMP credential that the types of calls from recruiters are a different grade of jobs than they saw before attaining the PMP credential.

A brain dump is a personalized memory sheet that contains things that can cause problems on the exam. For example the processes, formulas, various lists. It’s pretty common for a project manager to say I know these. We reply with, Ok, name them and we hear Uh? The key here is in reality we know where to look things up as needed. On the exam there are certain things you just need to have committed to memory to reference as needed. These items are built from what we recommend as a brain dump, then customized to your specific needs, to be copied on laminated sheets (at the test center) or the virtual white board (if testing at home)  at the start of your PMP exam. We would suggest that you can copy this information in 15 minutes or less.

Our classes options, dates and times are available on crosswindpm.com. We have live in classroom courses, live online courses and self paced courses. If you attend our weekday or weekend courses, you are able to attend other sessions to reinforce learning or pickup any topics you might have missed. 

When signing up for our course you get our complete study system. That includes a bootcamp manual, flip notes, placemats, quick reference guides, cross reference guide, flashcards application, 18 hours of audio content, exam simulation with 150+ exams and over 5200 questions, checklists, 60+ pm templates in word and excel, various videos to support the classroom or virtual live experience, and more. Also included is the Crosswind Flex-Class option*** to sit through additional courses as necessary (in case life gets crazy, work gets busy etc.) until you pass the exam, as well as a guarantee that we will work with you as needed to pass the exam.

***If there are courseware updates between your original course and any additional courses you sit in on, there could be a charge for the updated or new courseware.

Our course DOES NOT include the price of the exam itself. That is managed through Project Management Institute (PMI)® once your application is approved. 

The price is $555 for anyone. If you are a PMI® member the price of the exam is $405. If you need to retake the exam, the retake amount is $275. It is not a requirement to be a PMI member, but most do it for at least the first year to get the exam discount. If you attend various PMI events, membership typically will result in a discounted price for the event. 

Yes, Crosswind is a PM Training Alliance, Certified Training Provider (CTP). If you are audited in the PMP® Exam application process, you only need the completion certification as documentation for the Crosswind course.

This means that the course is a live synchronous (virtual) online class. Regardless of where you are, you can log into the class when scheduled, take the course and use your provided study materials. A high speed internet connection is required.

Our preference would be for you to sign up as early as possible. This allows us to ship you the material in advance. Everyone has different experience and levels of experience, so there is no one recipe for all. As a general rule, if you can familiarize your self with the material at a high level before the course it will help you get the most out of your experience.

At the end of the Crosswind course we do an exit exam and interview with your trainer. Your trainer/coach will make recommendations on what they think you need to do while taking into consideration what is going on in your life during that time. For example, if you do really well in the exit exam, but have a two week vacation immediately following the course, that is a totally different situation than doing really well and going right back to work. As a general rule most DO NOT have the contact hours of training to apply for the exam before the course, so once it is done and they submit their application, the exam is commonly taken in 2-3 weeks after the course. We also do not recommend that you take the exam after a few days of work. It is good to have your mind focused on the Exam only. Remember, waiting a few days to have a solid foundation of knowledge will help you on the exam and be a better project manager at work. Cramming your brain to pass a test the day after the class, then forgetting it all, doesn’t help your career long term.

If you don’t pass the exam we work with you as needed to get you ready. There is no extra charge for this as part of the course. Specifics vary as needed. A few examples were working with a student on Saturdays for six weeks to help her work through anxiety issues on the exam. Also, a person that had a medical condition that made a four hour test impossible. We worked with him to coordinate timing, filling gaps in information and to get 8 hours to take the actual exam. This allowed him to take in medicine and testing supplies.

Study Manuals Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

The Crosswind PMP® Exam Manual aligns with general project management principles and the current PMP Exam Content Outline (ECO), which is what the exam references. 

Our Founder Tony Johnson has been in face to face meetings with PMI’s architect of the exam many times. The architect stated that 60 to 80% of the exam COULD reference the PMBOK® Guide. The other 20 to 40% could come from anything used in modern project management. Also, it's worth noting, that just because the PMBOK Guide might discuss something, it doesn't mean that it is in the exam context, or sufficiently detailed if it's a new subject to you. We feel extremely confident in the material we have added to the Crosswind PMP® Exam being appropriate for your exam readiness.

Unlike some books that include only a trial product, The Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual includes a complete exam simulation application that provides you 12 month access to a full 200 Question PMP Exam simulation and ITTO (Inputs, Tools & Techniques, Outputs) questions, 60+ PM templates in word and excel, 60+ videos and more. Also included in the online content are exam application tools and quick reference guides.

Yes, the Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual includes elaboration on the application, as well as a video about completing the application.

The Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual includes 590 printed questions with full explanation and Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual reference, as well as a PMBOK® Guide reference (if applicable). There are a total of 30 questions in each of the thirteen content chapters. There is also an exam simulation application with a complete 200 question exam and ITTOs exam.

Currently we have the book available in two digital formats with another one or two in development. 

We do not have a book in kindle for the PMP and other PMI exams. In the past we have done this, and it did not result in an acceptable customer experience so it was discontinued. The issue related to layout in ebooks. Because of screen sizes being able to be changed it distorted the layout in a number of cases. Locking the layout to attempt to control it, limited the usability. 

The Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual was designed to be the only book needed to pass the exam the first time you take it. Some students feel like they need to look at the PMBOK® Guide because it is the PMI Book. What we normally hear after that is that our book covered the material to the degree needed for the exam, if not more.

The Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual is available at crosswindpm.com as well as amazon, and other popular technical bookstores and locations.

We hear from many students after they pass the test that they hold onto their copy of the Crosswind PMP® Exam Success Series: Bootcamp manual as a project management reference. It is relatively easy to read and breaks things down in a simple to the point format.

Yes! Many organizations use our materials for various courses. Email info@crosswindpm.com for more information on how we make it as easy as possible to start using Crosswind materials in your classroom.

Exam Simulation Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

 The application works on any device with a modern web browser. We have found that with at least a 5.5” screen or bigger you get the best experience. Devices with smaller screens might require scrolling on longer questions which could impact the student experience.

The subscription is 12 months.

You can extend your subscription on our website. 

This is a web browser based application so if any new questions or content become available, we add it and the next time you log in you will have access to the new content.

Our new digital delivery platform allows us to quickly update material as we discover or suspect the need. We are reviewing questions that can be modified, and information that can be packaged to align with these new formats. As we get questions created, they will be integrated into the exam application for any current and new subscribers.

There are over 150 specific tests available. 

Subjects include: 

Business Environment, Roles and Organizations, Resource, Stakeholder, Communications, Agile and Hybrid, Integration, Scope, Time, Cost, Quality, Risk, Procurement

Inputs, Tools & Techniques, Outputs (ITTOs), Reverse ITTOs, Terminology, Reverse Terminology, Calculations and more.

The application includes downloadable files such as quick reference guides, 60+ pm templates in word and excel, various videos, and more. 

You don’t need to install it at all, as it’s a web browser application. You can run it on any device with a modern secure web browser.

Our application has four levels of exam that are accelerated versions. For example, if you have four hours to cover 200 questions on the real exam, PMP Exam Expert Level is a great sample. If you need more time the accelerated version of that test will force you to have to go through the same number of questions, but in less time. Some people read slow (translate: throughly), some overanalyze, some can’t simply commit to an answer. The accelerated exams are the secret for success in that area. We also have untimed exams for those that have medical accommodate and will get more than four hours on their real exam.

The application has exams that are timed to simulate a full exam and also it has exams that allow you to focus on a specific subject in either 20, 50 or 100 question exams. The smaller question exams we have found work better for learning the subjects, then reinforcing with the timed larger duration exams.

The application has over 150 exams with over 5200 questions. There are a variety of 20, and 50 question exams to help reinforce material between meetings or after the kids go to bed, before you call it a day.

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