5 practical project management certifications

As in most fields, pursuing a project management certification can be as murky as a bowl of alphabet soup. Here’s how to determine which PM certification offers you the knowledge needed for real-world application and promising job prospects.

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CPM (Certified Project Manager)

The International Association of Project and Program Management (IAPPM) has been around since 2003 and is a global project management organization. IAPPM offers the Certified Project Manager credential (CPM) aimed at senior level, experienced project and program managers who already experienced in leading medium to large complex projects. This certification is similar to PMI’s PMP and also has fairly stringent prerequisites to ensure applicants can demonstrate expert level Project management knowledge prior to writing the CPM examination.

Prerequisites for the CPM:

A Bachelor’s university degree or above, or globally equivalent; OR Certified Project Professional (CPP).
Minimum 4 years / 48 months non-overlapping project and program management experience during which at least 5,000 hours are spent leading and directing project tasks in all project and program management domains.
36 contact hours of CPM project and program management training on CPPMGuide syllabus.
Pass the 3- hour CPM Examination, which is comprised of questions based on the IAPPM CPPMGuide Body of Knowledge.

The cost is $370 for the certification, a $70 annual fee, and a $70 annual renewal fee (for fellows, members or associate levels).

IAPPM also offers a Certified Project Professional (CPP) which costs $400, aimed at entry-level project managers or team members and students. This would be similar to PMI’s CAPM. Individuals could obtain the CPP credentials and leverage it towards the CPM certification.