PMI-ACP® Exam Changes in 2018?
I’ve been getting a number of questions about possible changes to the PMI-ACP® exam. This is understandable, since the newly released A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) – Sixth Edition included an agile appendix and came bundled with the new Agile Practice Guide. Also, the Project Management Institute (PMI) has listed a 2018 “exam update” for the PMI-ACP credential on their Registered Education Provider (REP) website. Despite this, there are no changes that will affect someone who is studying to take the PMI-ACP exam.
One Change to the PMI-ACP Exam
The only change to the PMI-ACP exam that will occur in March, 2018 is a minor lexicon update to harmonize the terminology between the terms used in the exam questions with the new Agile Practice Guide. This simply means that some questions might be reworded to better to reflect the terms used in the guide. You can keep an eye on future PMI-ACP exam changes.
The good news is that if you are studying for the exam this change won’t affect you, since you have not seen the exam questions yet. And even if you have taken the exam before, this change won’t affect your ability to understand or answer the exam questions.
What Hasn’t Changed on the PMI-ACP Exam?
There have been no changes to the PMI-ACP Exam Content Outline, and the questions on the exam will cover the same material as they did before. Your study plan for the PMI-ACP exam should still be based on the topics listed in the PMI-ACP Exam Content Outline, which will not change in 2018.
Studying for the PMI-ACP Exam? What Does this Mean for Me?
Very little. Carry on with your study plan. The current edition of my book PMI-ACP® Exam Prep is still the best guide to the exam. You may also want to read the Agile Practice Guide to familiarize yourself with the terms used, but there is nothing significantly different on the exam.
As chair of the group that authored the Agile Practice Guide, I encourage you to read it since I believe it offers useful guidance for practitioners using agile. However, we did not redefine what a “sprint” or a “backlog” is, and there is no need to worry about your ability to recognize key agile terms and concepts on the exam.
By the way, if you do read the Agile Practice Guide, bear in mind that some topics included—such as hybrid agile—are not tested on the PMI-ACP exam. The exam content outline has not been changed.
Example of Lexicon Changes
PMI is very particular about the consistent use of terms. To give you an idea of the minor terminology changes that we made in the PMI-ACP exam, here’s an example. We removed the underlined word “development” from the following definition to better reflect how these practices are being used more frequently outside the software domain:
Continuous integration: A development practice in which each team members’ work products are frequently integrated with one another
Since a few terms have been tweaked like this, PMI is listing this as an exam change. But in reality, nobody studying for the exam will notice this change, and the exam content outline remains the same.
Why All the Fuss about the PMI-ACP?
You may have noticed that some education providers are using PMI’s announcement of the March 26th, 2018 “change” to encourage enrollment. Perhaps they are genuinely unaware that there is no significant change, or perhaps they are just using the confusion to promote their products.
Either way, there is nothing to be concerned about. You don’t need to change your study plan.
If you have questions regarding RMC’s PMI-ACP® Exam Prep Book and related product updates, please contact us.
PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)® and A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide)—Sixth Edition are registered trademarks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.
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Hi Mike!
I just have two quick questions:
• Will any updates to the book or the software be made available because of the exam change on March 26?
• My application expires in the end of April, I am hoping to sit for the exam by March 20th. If for some reason I do not pass and need to retake it, if I retest in early April, would I get a the new version of the test or the older (current)version since I have already tested against that version?
Thanks and Keep up the great work!
Hi Paul,
The changes are so small they should now affect your studying or prep.
The Only Change
The only change to the PMI-ACP exam that will occur in March, 2018 is a minor lexicon update to harmonize the terminology between the terms used in the exam questions with the new Agile Practice Guide. This simply means that some questions might be reworded to better to reflect the terms used in the guide.
The good news is that if you are studying for the exam this change won’t affect you, since you have not seen the exam questions yet. And even if you have taken the exam before, this change won’t affect your ability to understand or answer the exam questions.
Ken
Hello ,
I’m about to start the ACP certification study. I will support the exam after March 26th. Can I use Mike Griffiths’ text, the Updated Second Edition as a study manual?
Thank you!!!!
Giu
Yes, totally.
Hi,
What about the Griffiths’ second edition (not update) ?
Can I use it to start my study plan even if I take the exam after 26 March 2018 ?
Please see the post by Mike Griffiths https://rmcls.com/changes-will-see-pmi-acp-exam-2018/. The largest change has been in the terminology used in the book and PMBOK guide. If you can you’d be better off with the new book because of that plus we have added more prep questions to it.
Good day,
Is there an eBook version of the “PMI-ACP® Exam Prep, Updated Second Edition”?
if so can you provide the link to purchase.
Thank you
Mohammed
I’m sorry. Unfortunately we do not offer this book in ebook format.
Hi,
I am from India and started preparing for my PMI-ACP certification. If I order the PMI-ACP® Workbook, does it include the Hardcopy shipping cost in the package? Or will it be extra?
Thanks,
Maitri
Hi Maitri,
No it does not. You are responsible for shipping, which will be calculated at the time of order. You are also responsible for any duty or taxes that may be charged.
Thanks,
Ken
how do I log in to use the exam simulator?
You’re on the wrong site. Go to https:exams.rmcls.com
Hello,
The PMP exam will be changing in January 2021. Will the PMI-ACP be changing at that time also or is there a timeline for when it will change again?
We do not yet have a timeline for the PMI-ACP exam change. You can find information about the exam here https://www.pmi.org/certifications/types/agile-acp/exam-prep . I would look for that information to be provided by PMI sometime in 2021.