Earning PDUs

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PDU Overview

Professional Development Units (PDUs) are at the core of PMI's CCR system and are required to maintain PMI's professional credentials including PMI-SP and PMP (the CAPM credential has a 5-year life and then expires). PDUs can be earned from a wide range of activities (including self-study), but you can only start earning PDUs after you have passed your exam.

You will typically earn one PDU for each hour spent in a planned, structured learning experience or activity. Fractions of PDUs may be reported in 0.25 increments.

Most PDUs are required to be earned through education and training (including self-directed study), where one PDU equates to one hour of training. In addition, a limited number of PDUs may be earned through service to the profession; 'giving back'. 

Education

• A minimum of 60% of PDUs is required to be earned in this category to place more emphasis on developing employer-demanded skills ( there is no maximum, up to 100% of PDUs is allowable).
• Education PDUs are aligned with the PMI Talent Triangle™.
• 1 PDU = 1 hour of training.
• A minimum number of PDUs must be earned in each section of the Talent Triangle™; Technical Project Management, Leadership, and Strategic and Business Management categories. But all need to be related to scheduling and project controls (eg, strategic planning). 

Giving Back

• There is a maximum number of PDUs that may be earned in this category (none are required).
• Activities remain the same: Volunteering, Creating Knowledge, and Working as a Professional.
• Within the overall total, there is a maximum number of PDUs that may be earned by Working as a Professional.

The requirements for PMI-SP are shown in the infographic; click on the graphic to download the full-size PDF for 30-PDUs (PMI-SP): 

Note: All of your PDUs can be earned through training (there is no minimum for 'giving back'). For the 30 PDUs needed to maintain your PMI-SP credential, you could earn 22 under 'technical project management' and 4 each under 'strategic' and 'leadership' elements of the Talent Triangle™ (total 30), and be eligible to renew your credential.

For more information download the CCR Handbook.

Earning PDUs

PDUs are based on what is relevant to you career development; there is no requirement to restrict their source to PMI approved events or organisations such as R.E.P.s any quality training counts.

Education

Some of the options for earning PDUs include:

• Courses or Training. Attending relevant training courses or classes, either in-person or online, is a traditional and effective way to learn. There are many outlets for these activities offered by PMI and third-party providers across the globe, including Mosaic - see our short-course options.
• Organisation Meetings (including conferences). Meetings, activities and local events related to the profession (Typically limited to 1–2 PDUs).
• Professional meetings that include an educational component provide an opportunity to learn and also to network. PMI chapters and third parties host these activities throughout the year on a local basis. Your organization may conduct professional events as well.
• Educational sessions at industry conferences. We earn most of our personal PDUs through attending congresses and conferences. One of interest in the Asia-Pacific region is the Project Governance & Controls Symposium. Rather than just attending a congress, if you present a paper you save on fees and get additional PDUs for writing the paper (as well as helping your career profile).
• Online or Digital Media. Self-paced learning conducted online or through varied forms of digital media Technology allows you to cater learning and educational opportunities to your schedule and needs. Many educational webinars, videos and other types of digital content are available online and on demand. Look into the opportunities that are available through these resources.
• Read. Self-directed reading that is relevant to the certification you hold. Reading is a valuable component of learning, and there are countless reading materials pertinent to the profession. There is a wide range of papers on our website at https://mosaicprojects.com.au/PM-Knowledge_Index.php - studying some of these could count as ‘self-directed learning' provided it is focused on a ‘business requirement’ and you fill in the correct forms. This applies to our materials and any other reputable information source including books, articles, whitepapers, or blogs.
• Informal Learning. Educational opportunities focused on structured discussions. Sometimes learning comes through interaction with others. You can earn PDUs by engaging in structured professional discussions with others, for example, while you’re being mentored or participating in a “lunch and learn” session with your organization.

Giving Back

• Work as a Practitioner. Working in your certified role. Each day, your work in a domain area related to your certification(s) allows you to apply your knowledge and skills in a practical setting. Using these competencies actively contributes to sustaining and growing the profession.
• Create Content. Creating new knowledge resources for use by practitioners and the public at large. By developing knowledge resources, you can share your knowledge and insight with others and contribute to their ongoing learning. There are many ways to create new content, such as authoring books, blogs or articles, or creating webinars or presentations.
• Give a Presentation. Presenting on topics relevant to the profession. There are many occasions when you could give a formal presentation to others, sharing knowledge that relates to your certification. For example, you could speak at a PMI chapter event, professional conference, or internally within your organization.
• Share Knowledge. Sharing your domain knowledge to help others learn and grow. By sharing your skills with others, you grow the profession and enhance the practices that are essential to your certified role. Whether you’re mentoring, teaching or applying your subject matter knowledge toward an activity, others will benefit from your experience and perspective.
• Volunteer. Providing volunteer services to non-employer or non-client organizations. PMI has an active community of thousands of volunteers who support the Institute and the profession in a wide range of roles. By volunteering, you can serve on a PMI committee or team. You can also volunteer your domain-related services to other not-for-profit organizations.

When planning your PDU 'gathering', having a ‘mission’ helps. For example if you decided to improve the project stakeholder management within you organisation, time spent learning the Stakeholder Circle tool counts (see www.stakeholder-management.com); if you developed an in-house course, there are a lot of PDUs for the preparation and delivery of the course; if you then delivered a paper at a PM congress or conference on your experience, the paper generates PDUs as does attending other sessions at the conference.

For more information download the CCR Handbook.