The PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP) is PMI’s certification in project risk management. This guide covers who can apply, how the exam works, what each domain covers, how to keep the certification and a suggested way to prepare.
PMI-RMP at a glance
| Detail | PMI-RMP |
|---|---|
| Awarded by | Project Management Institute (PMI) |
| Questions | 115: 100 scored and 15 unscored pretest questions |
| Time | 150 minutes, with an optional 10-minute break |
| Question types | Multiple choice and multiple answer select |
| Passing score | Not published by PMI |
| Delivery | Test centre or online proctored |
| Languages | English, Arabic and Simplified Chinese |
| Renewal | 30 PDUs every three years |
Eligibility
You need a combination of education, project risk experience and risk management education. The experience must have been gained within the last five consecutive years.
| Your education | Project risk experience | Risk education |
|---|---|---|
| Secondary diploma or associate’s degree | 36 months | 40 contact hours |
| Bachelor’s degree or equivalent | 24 months | 30 contact hours |
| Bachelor’s or master’s from a PMI GAC-accredited program | 12 months | 30 contact hours |
There is no time limit on when the contact hours were earned, but they must come from instruction; self-study such as reading books or watching videos does not count.
How to apply, step by step
- Apply online on pmi.org. An application stays open for 90 days while you complete it.
- Watch for an audit. Some applications are selected at random for audit before payment. If yours is, you have 90 days to send the supporting documents.
- Pay the exam fee. Your eligibility period is one year from approval, or from passing the audit if you were selected.
- Book and take the exam. You can attempt the exam up to three times within the eligibility year. After three unsuccessful attempts you must wait one year before applying again.
The exam format
The exam has 115 questions and you have 150 minutes. Fifteen are unscored pretest questions mixed in with the 100 scored ones, and you can’t tell which are which. PMI describes the questions as multiple choice and multiple answer select. There is an optional 10-minute break after about half the questions; once you take it, you can’t go back to the first section. The tutorial and the end-of-exam survey don’t count towards the 150 minutes.
You can take the exam at a test centre or online with a remote proctor, in English, Arabic or Simplified Chinese. PMI does not publish a passing score.
The five PMI-RMP domains
PMI’s Examination Content Outline weights the domains as follows. Predictive, agile and hybrid approaches appear throughout all five.
| Domain | Weight | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Risk Strategy and Planning | 22% | Reviewing early project documents, assessing the project environment, setting risk thresholds based on risk appetite, establishing the risk strategy, tools and metrics, writing the risk management plan, and engaging stakeholders. |
| Risk Identification | 23% | Running risk identification exercises, examining assumptions and constraints, documenting triggers and thresholds, and developing the risk register. |
| Risk Analysis | 23% | Qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis of risks, and assessing threats and opportunities against project objectives. |
| Risk Response | 13% | Planning risk responses and owners, and carrying out responses and contingency plans, including dealing with secondary and residual risks. |
| Monitor and Close Risks | 19% | Gathering performance data, monitoring residual and secondary risks, updating documents and closing risks, and reporting on overall risk. |
What PMI lists as references
The reference list in PMI’s Examination Content Outline includes:
- Risk Management in Portfolios, Programs, and Projects: A Practice Guide (PMI, 2024)
- A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), 7th edition
- Risk management textbooks by Hillson and Simon (ATOM), Kendrick, Fraser, Quail and Simkins, and Bissonette
Use the content outline, not the old handbook. PMI’s older PMI-RMP handbook still describes a 170-question, 3.5-hour exam. The Examination Content Outline describes the current 115-question, 150-minute exam.
A suggested 8-week study plan
This is our suggested plan for 10–15 hours of study a week. It follows the domain weights and the tasks in PMI’s content outline.
- Weeks 1–2: Risk Strategy and Planning. Risk appetite and thresholds, and what goes into a risk management plan.
- Week 3: Risk Identification. Identification techniques, assumptions and constraints, triggers, and the risk register.
- Weeks 4–5: Risk Analysis. Qualitative methods, then quantitative techniques; work through examples until you can do them quickly.
- Week 6: Risk Response, and Monitor and Close Risks. Response strategies for threats and opportunities, contingency plans, residual and secondary risks, and risk reporting.
- Weeks 7–8: practice exams. Take full-length timed practice exams, read every explanation, and return to the domains where you score lowest.
Keeping your PMI-RMP
The certification runs on a three-year cycle. You need 30 professional development units (PDUs) in each cycle. At least 18 must be education PDUs, including at least 4 in each of Ways of Working, Power Skills and Business Acumen. Up to 12 can come from giving back to the profession.
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