CAPM study guide
CAPM · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)® is the Project Management Institute's foundational project management credential, and PMI describes it as requiring no experience: it is aimed at people who want to show they hold the knowledge and skills project teams demand, across predictive project management, agile principles and business analysis. It suits students, career changers and early-career practitioners - PMI lists roles such as project coordinator, project analyst, project administrator and assistant project manager as common paths - and anyone building a base before a more advanced certification. The exam has 150 questions in 180 minutes; 15 are unscored pretest questions and 135 are scored. Content is weighted across four domains: Project Management Fundamentals and Core Concepts (36%), Predictive, Plan-Based Methodologies (17%), Agile Frameworks/Methodologies (20%) and Business Analysis Frameworks (27%). The CAPM study guide has 4 sections and about 1,414 words.
01Project Management Fundamentals and Core Concepts
A project is a temporary endeavor undertaken to create a unique product, service, or result. Temporary means a defined start and end; unique means it is not routine repetition.
353 words, about 2 min02Predictive, Plan-Based Methodologies
The scope baseline has three components: the project scope statement, the work breakdown structure (WBS), and the WBS dictionary. The WBS decomposes deliverables into work packages that can be estimated, assigned, and controlled; it is deliverable-oriented, not an organizational chart.
379 words, about 2 min03Agile Frameworks and Methodologies
Agile rests on four values - individuals and interactions over processes and tools, working software over comprehensive documentation, customer collaboration over contract negotiation, and responding to change over following a plan - plus twelve principles. The items on the right still matter; the items on the left are valued more.
355 words, about 2 min04Business Analysis Frameworks
Business analysis identifies business needs and recommends solutions that deliver value. The analyst works across the life cycle: needs assessment (current state, future state, gap), business case and benefits, stakeholder identification, elicitation, requirements analysis, and solution evaluation.
327 words, about 2 min