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APM PPQ - Project Professional Qualification

APM Project Professional Qualification (PPQ)

The PPQ is an upward progression from the Project Management Qualification (PMQ) on the route to becoming a Chartered Project Professional (ChPP). 

The APM Project Professional Qualification 2nd edition assessments are carried out online and are based on a pre-seen case study. The sample case study - Whiteline - is 28 pages long and requires the candidate to assume the role of project manager and to fully understand the situation.  There are three assessments: a scenario role-play assessment, an oral exam assessment and a written report.

The MSC approach to preparing you for PPQ is to devise a flexible arrangement of online webinars that fits your needs; flexible in terms of allowing you to spread your learning over one or more courses and to defer if there are pressures of work.

For those who have passed PMQ recently , the extra knowledge required for PPQ is small.  Additional material is included in the MSC BoK7 PMQ Study Guide and also presented in two webinars on Ethics and Professionalism, and Differences between BoK6 and BoK7. The PPQ challenge is to adjust to the new assessment criteria - critically evaluate, critically analyse and demonstrate - a major step-up from those in PMQ.

For those who have not passed PMQ or who feel rusty about their knowledge , you are recommended, prior to PPQ, to take the online PMQ accelerated training spread over two days, but not take the PMQ examination.

Support from the MSC will be provided online to develop skills of critical analysis, critical evaluation and demonstration. This will be done through:

  • evaluation by the MSC tutor of written work submitted by the delegate - based on the APM Sample Questions, plus
  • individual or small-group tutorials conducted by webinar to discuss written work, develop oral, case study analysis, report writing and presentation skills - all based on the APM sample assessments.
  • access to the MSC MOODLE site containing podcasts, quizzes, copies of presentation slides used for PMQ. Extra material will be developed for PPQ.

PPQ Online Classroom

This course is available to those who have recently reached PMQ or equivalent standard. Four days are scheduled with sixteen online webinars; eight sessions are devoted to going through the PPQ syllabus, two devoted to a discussion of ethics, and the case study - the remaining six sessions are devoted to PPQ examination preparation. Written work may be submitted to the tutor for assessment. 

Total cost is £950 + VAT.

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Download APM documentation

APM documentation can be accessed here:

https://www.apm.org.uk/qualifications-and-training/project-professional-qualification-ppq/

FAQs

Our PPQ online course is about giving applicants practice in developing the skills of demonstration, critical analysis and evaluation. Delegates need to have PMQ material at their finger-tips. We update them on the changes to the PMQ syllabus from BoK6 to 7 and talk about ethics and professionalism. From the October 2024 PPQ course we will include additional topics from the new PMQ.

Then it is very much about using the sample case study with the illustrative types of assessment - scenario role play, oral exam and written report - all carried out online in small discussion groups.

This approach has proved very successful with high pass rates and a top mark of 89%. APM have just reaccredited the MSC for the next four years to offer PPQ.

Passing the lower-level qualification, the Project Management Qualification (PMQ), is not a necessary pre-requisite for taking the PPQ; however, an equivalent level of knowledge and understanding should have been reached.

The case study used in the assessments describes a project situation which is usually a mess - not properly organised. You are asked to take on the role of project manager and in the light of your knowledge and experience to critically analyse and critical evaluate the situation. So APM send out the assessment case study four weeks prior to the assessments. This allows the candidate to read the case study thoroughly and prepare themselves for the assessment questions. So we recommend that at least six to eight weeks is allowed for preparing for and then attending the training course, and finally taking the assessment.

There are three PPQ assessments lasting a total of 2 hours 35 minutes, all based on a pre-seen case-study:

  • Scenario - role-play - 20 minutes plus 10 minutes preparation.
  • Oral exam - 50 minutes.
  • Written report - 60 minutes plus 15 minutes preparation.