You may already know that your PMP PDU quota of 60 every 3 years must be maintained, or else you lose your PMP. I see a lot of people who have procrastinated and now they have to put their lives on hold (and usually spend a lot of money all at once) to keep their certification.

Don’t let that happen to you.

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For most of us, getting our PMP credential feels like the end of a long journey.

Then we realize that this PMP credential has to be maintained. Those 60 PDUs (20 per year) can seem like a not only time-consuming but also expensive requirement to keep those three letters next to your name.

It’s not as hard as it seems.

While PDUs a presented first as training hours, it doesn’t have to be just paid training.

• Working full-time in project management earns you 5 PDUs per year, of the required 20.
• Volunteering for your local PMI chapters earns you another 5 PDUs per year.

Already, half the PDUs are accumulated. What else is there?

• Get involved with your project management community. Most PMI local chapters offer activities such as luncheon conferences, meet-and-greets, and the like. You can claim (some of) the time spent at those events. For example, my local PMI chapters organizes a conference to present the changes to the new PMBOK. That’s worth 1.5 PDUs. You can easily grab between 5 and 10 PDUs per year.
• Learn online. Be on the lookout for free webinars on project management. Many training companies will offer 1- or 2-hour free webinars that can help top off your PDU requirements.
• Write. Publishing an article in a journal can get you between 10 and 30 PDUs.
• Blog. There is talk in the community of getting blog posts recognized for PDU claims.
• Talk. Presenting at your local PMI chapter meeting can get you 5 PDUs.
• Read. Self-directed learning means one hour of reading related to project management give you 1 PDU, up to 15 PDUs per 3-year cycle.

Not so hard, is it?

If you keep up with the news and the events in your community, you’ll get all the PDUs you need, without having to spend extra money for project management courses.

For more info

Mateusz Jasny from Project Management in IT has a great table with all the details regarding PDU classes and limits.

The PMI has a very detailed (if a little dry) guide on PDU reporting and rules.

pmStudent.com offers this free monthly newsletter “Maintain and Leverage your PMP”.

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I’m excited about a few new FREE resources I’ve put together for the pmStudent.com community. One is for new and aspiring project managers, the other is for helping PMP-certified project managers leverage and maintain their credential. I hope these are valuable for you and where you are at in your own career.

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