PRINCE2 Project Management - Training & Consultancy

Project
Management

Student Area

Project Management & PRINCE2™
Student Area

This section of the site is designed for students who are attending a course, with useful pre-course information.

In due course we will also add useful information for students who have completed a course and are applying what they have learned.

Training Centre Location - Public Courses

PRINCE2™ public courses are at:

Conference Centre
Kingsley Village
Fraddon
Cornwall
TR9 6NA

Tel: 01726 861111

The Conference Centre is located on the Kingsley Village complex, just off the A30, 10 miles east of Truro. Just turn off at the Fraddon Services junction and follow the signs.

Training Centre Location Map

Practical Arrangements for Public Courses

Courses starts each day at 9.00 and finish at around 5.00.
The training centre is open from 8.30.

On Friday for PRINCE2™ courses the Practitioner exam starts at 10.00 and you will be finished by around 1.30.

Lunch is provided and there is a varied choice each day, vegetarians are catered for. They will do their best to cater for any special requests (within reason !) during the week.

Hot drinks and mineral water are available throughout the day.

There is plenty of free parking available on site.

The Course - PRINCE2™

The course is hard work but interesting and enjoyable.

You will gain useful new knowledge and skills.
When you pass the exams you will get a valuable professional qualification.

There are two main course objectives:
To get a practical understanding of the method and how to apply it.
To prepare for the Foundation and Practitioner exams.

The course is aimed at anybody who may be involved in PRINCE2™ projects - as a project manager, team manager, project support or in other roles.

It is flexible and if you have any particular concerns your course tutor will do his / her best to address them.

The style is interactive, questions and discussion are encouraged.

It is highly practical, a lot of time is spent on case study exercises, where you will work in small teams.

There is plenty of time allowed for exam practice and you will have the chance to do practice papers.

Course Timetable - PRINCE2™

This is an overview of the main themes and topics for each day.
You can download a more detailed timetable below (MS-Word format).

Day 1 - Getting a Project Started.
Introduction, Business Case, Project Management Team.

Day 2 - Planning a Project.
Planning Techniques, Project Initiation Document, Risk, Quality.

Day 3 - Controlling a Project.
Progress Controls, Managing Changes, Closing a Project.
Foundation Exam.

Day 4 - Practitioner Exam Workshop.
Review of PRINCE2™, Exam Technique, Practice Exam Papers.

Day 5
Practitioner Exam.

Evening Work.
If possible you should do some exam revision each evening - mainly working through practice exams. You'll be given some suggested practice questions at the end of each day. This is not mandatory, as it is recognised that you may have other commitments. However if you can allow an hour or so on some evenings for revision it will help you.

PRINCE2™ Course Timetable

Pre-Course Reading - PRINCE2™

You will receive a copy of the PRINCE2™ manual before the course, together with a pre-course study pack. You will need to spend around 10 hours on preparation before the course.

If you have any questions make a note of them. You can then ask your course tutor to resolve any questions during the course itself.

There is also more about the method in the PRINCE2™ section of this website, so go there if you want to do further pre-course research.

The Exams - PRINCE2™

There are two exams - Foundation and Practitioner.

They are set independently by the APM Group and lead to nationally recognised professional qualifications - the PRINCE2™ Foundation and PRINCE2™ Practitioner Certificates.

A number of practice papers for both exams are included in the course materials and so you will get the chance to practice before the exams.

According to exam board rules you need to pass the Foundation Exam before you can take the Practitioner Exam.

A new format for the PRINCE2™ Practitioner exam has been introduced by the exam board. The old style essay questions have been replaced by new types of question based on "objective testing". This exam will apply to courses from October onwards. More details below.

The Exams - PRINCE2™ Foundation
The Foundation Exam is a one hour multiple choice paper with 75 questions. It is "closed book" and so you are not allowed to refer to any notes.

The pass mark is 50 % - 38 / 75. The exam is mainly a test of your knowledge of the method, particularly terminology.

Most candidates pass this exam - the pass rate nationally is 97%.

You will take the exam at the end of the third day of the course. It is marked by your course tutor and you will be given your result on the day. If you fail to pass first time you will have the chance to re-take the exam the next day.

Click below to download a short practice Foundation paper.
(20 questions - MS-Word format)

Sample PRINCE2™ Foundation Paper

The Exams - PRINCE2™ Practitioner
New Style - Objective Testing
The new Practitioner Exam is a three hour multiple choice paper with 9 questions, each with 40 marks, based on a project scenario. It is "open book" and so you are allowed to refer to the PRINCE2™ manual but NOT any other notes or material.

The pass mark is 50 % - 180 / 360. The exam is mainly a test of your understanding and application of the method.

You will take the exam on the final day of the course - Friday morning. It is marked independently by the APM Group and you will get your result within 4 weeks. If you fail to pass first time you can re-take.

The exam board have published an FAQ document for the new exams which you can download below.

PRINCE2™ Objective Testing Exam FAQ

For more information about courses and consultancy contact:
Steve McIntosh on 01736 797122 or 07976 519757

Project Management Books