PDU Credits in Project Management

Earning your certificate in Project Management was a hard-earned feat; however, in an ever-changing world with even faster technology updates, you will need to meet continuing education standards every three years in order to maintain your credentials. Since the PMI certifications, such as the PMP, are globally recognized, these continuing education courses and PDU credits will ensure that you, the holder, remain relevant and competitive.

Project Management Institute (PMI) requires its credential holders to obtain several Professional Development Units (PDUs) for each cycle. To make the courses easily accessible and the entire process less daunting, PMI has a Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program that provides guidelines and other important information about keeping your certification active.

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Maintaining Your PMI Certifications

Once you are a PMI certificate holder, you’ll need to accrue Professional Development Units to maintain your certification. This ensures that you’re learning the latest skills and staying current in your career. For example, Agile is becoming a larger and larger part of everyday project management life, earning PDUs in Agile will not only satisfy PDU requirements but provide valuable knowledge within the changing landscape of project management. To read more on this topic, check out our page for Maintain Your PMI Certification with PDUs.

What is a PDU

PDU stands for Professional Development Units, and 1 unit is equivalent to 1 hour of learning/activity. There are two types: education and giving back to the profession PDUs. Education ones include classes, meetings, and independent reading; while giving back to the profession ones involve activities such as creating content and sharing knowledge. All courses and activities must be PMI-approved and cover all three skill areas of the PMI Triangle. You can find more details on this topic in our What is a PDU (TBD) blog post

Cost of PDU Eligible Courses

PDU eligible courses range from free to several hundred dollars, but these costs are worth it since you’ve already invested in yourself by getting your certification. Someone with a PMP credential earns 20% more than their non-certified peers, meaning your future earning potential outweighs any costs to maintain your certification. Think of these courses as an investment in your future earnings. For more information, check out our blog post on How Much Does a PDU Course Cost.

Continuing Education in Project Management

Accruing PDUs is how a certified Project Manager earns continuing education credits to renew their certifications. Depending on the type of certification you have, the number of PDUs you need may differ from someone with a different certification. We want to provide you with the information you need to know about PDUs, including how to earn them and what courses to choose to make sure you fulfill all requirements. For more information, read our blog post on Continuing Education in Project Management.

PDU Section Overview
Renew Your PMI Certification with PDU Credits

Renew Your PMI Certification

You’ll need to earn a certain number of PDUs to keep your PMI certification current. If you don’t earn enough credits, your status will be suspended for twelve months, at which point you can choose to complete the renewal process or let your credentials expire. On the other hand, if you earn more credits than you need, some or all these PDUs will be applied to your next cycle. For more information on this topic, check out the blog articles below:

PMI Requirements for PDUs

PMI Requirements for PDUs

The PMI PDU requirements are different for different types of certifications. One PDU equals one hour of professional development activities. This type of continuing education is a great way to gain new skills and accelerate your career goals. PDUs also reinforces key project management concept, plus having a wide net of activities and classes you’ve participated in gives your resume a competitive edge.

PMI Requires 60 PMP PDU Credits to Renew Your PMP Certification

PMP PDU Requirements and Renewal

The Project Management Professional certification is the most well-known PMI certification. To keep your certification current, the PMP requires 60 PDUs for each three-year cycle. You can take or attend classes, seminars, other continuing education courses, and professional events to earn enough PDUs for your current cycle and begin the renewal process. The end results is a 25% salary increase for project managers with a PMP certification .

How to Earn PDU Credits for PMP Certification Renewal

How to Earn PDUs

There are many ways to earn PDUs. If you work as a practitioner and have a PMP certification, for example, you can earn PMP PDUs through your job. Other methods include independent reading, attending webinars, volunteering, and taking PMI-approved courses. Do a little bit of each, and you’ll have earned enough PMI PDUs before you even know it!

Report PDUs to PMI

How to Report Your PDUs

Once you have completed your course or activity, don’t forget to report all the work that you’ve done so that you get credit for them. You’ll need a certain number of Education PDU credits for each three-year cycle and a certain number of Giving Back PDU credits. These should add up to equal the number of total PDUs required to keep your certification active.

PMI Talent Triangle

The PMI Talent Triangle

The PMI Talent Triangle is a set of skills that project managers must have to be well-rounded, efficient, and competent at their jobs. There are three new skill groups or categories as of 2022 – business acumen, ways of working, and power skills . Each type of certification requires you to complete a set number of PDUs in each category. For more information, click the link below. For more information, click the link below.

PDU Courses Can Relate to Continuing Education in Other Fields

How PDUs Relate to Other Fields

Project managers aren’t the only ones that must take continuing education courses and earn credits (Continuing Education Units or CEUs) to keep their credentials. Professionals in other fields, such as healthcare, education, and insurance, have continuing education and licensing systems to ensure that people are up to date on the latest advances, technologies, and skills. Even though each type of license or certification may call continuing education something different (PDU for PMI’s certifications), the goal is the same – to manage the quality of service in that field.

⦁ What’s the Difference Between PDU and CDU in Project Management
⦁ Understanding the Difference Between PDU and CEU
⦁ Improving Your Project Management Skills

PDU Eligible Courses at Project Management Academy

Earn your PDUs independently or with an instructor. Project Management Academy has both on-demand and instructor-led training for those looking to earn PDU credit. An annual subscription of on-demand training gives you access to our continually updated PDU catalog. Instructor-led training lets you interact with fellow project management PDU earners as well as ask questions and have discussions with experts in the field. Check out Project Management Academy’s list of Recommended PDU Courses.

Online PDU Course Library
Live PDU Course Library