PRINCE2 - Studying and Preparing for Practitioner Exam

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kwalford
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All,
Personally, I think that you can pass the Foundation via home study only but the Practitioner exam is far more suited to a class room course. The reason being is that you can gain knowledge and experience from the tutor, along with learning from others within the room.

Anyone taking a Prince2 course, should study prior to the course as there is a lot to learn during a weeks course.

Kit.
stonesfan
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As has been alluded to PRINCE2 is very dry to learn.

For those who are studying it, there's a complete 101 page sample of a PRINCE2 project set of documents here:

http://www.skillpower.co.nz/wp-content/ ... roject.pdf

Its actually quite useful to see all those documents and tools in a real life scenario.

For those who are working on projects no matter what size its maybe a good idea to start basing what we do on a daily basis on some of the PRINCE2 elements. This is probably especially relevant for those of us wanting to achieve practitioner certification. You can use the documents listed above as a basis to form your own.

Going to have a go at putting together a comprehensive 'Project Product Description' for a project to kit out a new building with IT equipment. If you use it (correctly!), surely that's the best way to learn it?

Cheers
topbanana
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Are there any other mock papers out there for the Practitioner, paid for or free? I think I know the subject enough to pass, what I find difficult is understanding the questions in amongst the clutter and picking out the key components of the question. It's getting frustrating as I think I may well have failed my 2nd Practitioner exam today, I believe I nailed the reason-assertion questions, but fell over on some of the others. The best way I find to learn is to do papers, I'm not learning the questions, more understanding how to answer them so if I can do more I think I will be better prepared next time round if I need to resit
Thanks
stonesfan
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Topbanana there are 2 practice exams on the apmg website. Am not going to give the link out, part of learning Prince2 is using initiative to find things like this yourself ;) One is a calendar project and another is a restructuring project.

How are you studying for these exams? A good study guide can be bought for around £20 of which includes clear advice on how to tackle the exams. Written by David Hinde.

Prince2 Practitioner can be passed without too much drama if you prepare correctly.
topbanana
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Passed it, I don't know who was more surprised! Looking to follow on now whilst I have an opportunity to use some time, I'm thinking about Agile as it is appearing more often in job specs.
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dhaughey
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Congratulations on passing your PRINCE2 Practitioner exam.

If you are thinking about Agile, it's worth looking at the Certified Scrum Master course. As you probably know, it looks at an Agile approach to managing projects. I did the course and found it very useful. I have PMP and PRINCE2 certifications and Certified Scrum Master provided me with some new techniques that I've adopted on my projects, such as burndown charts and daily stand-ups.

Duncan
topbanana
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Thanks for the reply, I'm looking to find a course provider in the South West, probably sooner rather than later whilst the Prince2 knowledge is still fresh. Happy to receive any training provider recommendations.
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dhaughey
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I did my PRINCE2 training with QA, who provided an excellent experience. The only downside perhaps is that they are expensive. My training was funded so I didn't have that worry. They have training locations in the South West.

Duncan
stonesfan
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Congratulations Topbanana. Did you manage to find those practice exams by any chance? They were the best prep of all for me.

Take a look at APMP too. From initial experience this exam covers quite a lot of what Prince2 doesn't cover.
topbanana
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I used the David Hinde book which had plenty of practice questions at the end of each chapter, well worth the money. For anyone looking to do an intensive course I would consider a break between Foundation and Practitiner, it's a lot to take in and a couple of weeks between the two IMO is a better option as resits are up to £300 per exam.

Looking at Agile for Prince2 now, just need to find a course provider.
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