PERT study plan
PERT · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Project Network Modeling and Activity Sequencing
Construct activity-on-node and activity-on-arrow diagrams from written activity lists without external references
Classify every node in a given network as merge, burst, or normal, and label the numbering convention used
Detect and correct dangling activities, looping logic, and redundant dependencies in 5 seeded-error networks
Assign predecessors and successors for a 20-plus activity project and state each relationship type explicitly
Your checkpoint
Hand-drawn AON and AOA versions of the same 20-activity network, with a legend defining node notation, dummy arrows, and every relationship type used
Project Network Modeling and Activity Sequencing & Three-Point Estimating (Optimistic, Most Likely, Pessimistic)
Insert finish-to-start, start-to-start, finish-to-finish, and start-to-finish relationships with lags into a network and compute resulting early dates
Distinguish leads from lags and predict how each shifts downstream early start dates
Compute the three-point expected duration and standard deviation for 15 activities using standard PERT formulas
Explain in writing why the most likely estimate is weighted four times in the expected-duration formula
Your checkpoint
Lag-adjusted network diagram plus a table of optimistic, most likely, pessimistic, expected duration, and standard deviation for 15 activities
Three-Point Estimating (Optimistic, Most Likely, Pessimistic)
Calculate expected duration and activity variance for 25 activities to two decimal places with no arithmetic errors
Contrast PERT three-point estimating with deterministic CPM durations and state when each is appropriate
Derive path-level expected duration and path standard deviation from activity-level values
Identify inputs where the most likely estimate is skewed toward optimistic or pessimistic and justify the direction of the resulting bias
Your checkpoint
Spreadsheet or worked worksheet covering 25 activities with expected duration, variance, and rolled-up path totals, checked against hand calculations
Critical Path and Float/Slack Analysis
Perform complete forward and backward passes on a 15-activity network and record early start, early finish, late start, and late finish for every activity
Compute total float and free float per activity and identify which activities consume which float
Identify the critical path and verify that it has the longest total duration and minimum total float
Interpret a negative total float result and state its schedule implication in plain language
Your checkpoint
Fully computed activity table for a 15-activity network with the critical path highlighted and total float and free float shown for all activities
Milestones
Week 2: Build a correct AON network with mixed relationship types and lags for an unfamiliar 15-activity list in under 25 minutes with zero logic errors
Week 4: Score at least 80 percent on a 20-question timed diagnostic covering network modeling and three-point estimating, with all float and expected-duration calculations shown
Week 6: Correctly compute schedule probability for 4 of 5 target dates, including the path standard deviation and z-value, in a 30-minute timed set
Week 8: Score at least 85 percent on two full-length timed mock exams, with every formula applied from memory and no unanswered items