PM Competence Certification and Recertification Procedures

Certification process

To evaluate candidate performance each candidate

• is assigned two assessors for certification as Certified Project Director (IPMA Level A), Certified Senior Project Manager (IPMA Level B) or Certified Project Manager (IPMA Level C), where one assessor is generally from the same industry as the candidate;
• is assigned one assessor from the examination team for certification as Certified Project Management Associate (IPMA Level D).

No assessor should be related to the candidate in any way which might influence their judgment as an assessor (e.g. as supervisor or subordinate in an associated organization or project organization or as the candidate’s instructor in project management). The candidate must notify the director of the certification through the PMAC-AMPC CB office without delay of any conflict of interest. The candidate may reject an assessor by providing a written statement of his/her reasons.

Each stage in the certification process may be completed in French or English. The documents (Certification Guidelines and forms) are available in the respective languages.

Assessors evaluate the candidate’s performance and forward the application to the director of the certification for final decision at the end of the relevant certification stage. The assessors may, at any stage, obtain information from the listed references or, with the candidate’s consent, gather additional information on the project or make further evaluations at the location.

In addition to the candidate, only persons employed by PMAC-AMPC CB may take part in the interview. The general public may not attend.

If a candidate is not accepted for the next stage of certification, he or she is notified in writing by the assessors, stating the reasons for rejection. The director of the certification division reviews the application for formal correctness and notifies the candidate of the decision and any reasons or instructions for the next stage.

The director of the certification division is responsible for any postponements of deadlines within the certification process. Management may issue guidelines. The candidates are notified in good time of the deadlines for submissions, examinations and interviews. If a candidate fails to meet a deadline or attend an examination or interview or withdraws without good reason, he or she is held to have failed certification. The certification files, which include the examination results (IPMA Levels D, C), the summary project report (IPMA Level C), the project report (IPMA Level B) and the project director's report (IPMA Level A) are kept at the office for ten years.

Deferrals

No provision has generally been made for deferring any stage in the certification process. The director of the certification division is authorized to approve any such proposed breaks. A temporary break should be limited to a maximum of one year in length. If the break is intended to last for longer than one year, the entire certification process must be repeated.

Evaluation of candidate performance

The evaluation of the candidate's performance comprises the elements outlined in the sections below.

Certified Projects Director (IPMA Level A)

Certified Senior Project Manager (IPMA Level B)

Certified Project Manager (IPMA Level C)

Certified Project Management Associate (IPMA Level D)

Conditions for passing and retaking certification

Condition for passing

Adequate performance is required to complete each certification stage.

Continuing certification at a different level

After each certification stage the assessors may

• reject a candidate;
• recommend that the candidate continue certification at a lower level,

and candidates may

• withdraw,
• apply to continue certification at a lower level.

After stage 2 for IPMA Level C a candidate may also apply to continue certification at IPMA Level B. The short project report for Level C can replace the project description at IPMA Level B. It will, however, then be evaluated as for IPMA Level B.

The following rules apply for continuing at another level:  <

New assessors are assigned to a candidate continuing at another level. The costs according to the schedule of fees for continuing at a lower or higher level are borne by the candidate.

Retaking certification

Candidates who do not achieve certification will be allowed to repeat the process for the first time at the next round of certification. If the candidate is again unsuccessful, he or she will be allowed to repeat the certification process for the second and final time after a period of at least three years. The candidate must complete all certification stages in each repetition.

Certificate and Recertification

Holders of the certificate are entitled to use the title Certified Projects Director or Certified Senior Project Manager or Certified Project Manager or Certified Project Management Associate for the period of validity of the certificate. Anyone using this PMAC-AMPC CB title without holding the appropriate certificate is liable to criminal prosecution.

The certificate is issued by the PMAC-AMPC CB certification office.

All certificates are valid for five years. It is important that once certification is achieved, the certificate holder review the recertification process as it requires recording CPD’s (Continuing Professional Development) over the five year certification period. Three months before expiry, certificate holders are notified of this fact by the PMAC-AMPC CB office and informed of the requirements for recertification.

Recertification requires the candidate to complete a required number of CPD’s. The re-certification process, number of CPD’s required, and type of CPD can be found at this link: Recertification