FAQs
How long does it take to complete a PRINCE2 course?
- Foundation – 2 or 3 days classroom, or 20 hours online;
- Practitioner – 1.5 days or 2.5 days classroom, or 15 hours online.
What is a PRINCE2 course?
A PRINCE2 course is either a classroom, online or virtual course which teaches students the PRINCE2 methodology - a de-facto standard for project management in the UK.
Foundation courses focus on students learning the method. Practitioner courses focus on students learning to apply the method.
How do I get PRINCE2 certified?
- If you hold one of these qualifications, sit the Practitioner exam straightaway:
- PRINCE2 Foundation;
- Project Management Professional (PMP)®;
- Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)®;
- IPMA Levels A® to D®;
- Otherwise, sit and pass the PRINCE2 Foundation exam (1-hour, 60 questions, 55% pass mark);
- Sit and pass the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam (2.5-hours, 68 questions, 55% pass mark).
Are PRINCE2 exams difficult?
The best way to judge if PRINCE2 exams are difficult is by looking at exam pass rates. In the UK, the national average pass rates are:
- Foundation - 97%;
- Practitioner - 73%.
What is the pass rate for PRINCE2 Practitioner?
The UK national average pass rate for PRINCE2 Practitioner is 73%. However, several factors can affect this including:
- Quality of the learning experience and training materials;
- Experience and skill of trainer;
- Commitment and preparation of student;
Since 2012, Knowledge Train’s Practitioner exam pass rates have averaged 83%.
Is the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam multiple-choice?
The Practitioner exam contains two styles of multiple-choice questions:
- ‘Standard classic’ – select one answer from a range of options;
- ‘Matching’ – link each item in one list to the correct item in a second list.
Questions are based upon a fictional project case study.
How many questions are on the PRINCE2 Foundation exam?
The Foundation exam contains 60 multiple-choice questions. The candidate must select one of 4 options. There is only one correct answer. There are 3 question styles:
- ‘Classic’ – e.g. “Which is the purpose of the risk theme?
- ‘Missing word’ – e.g. ‘Identify the missing word. The [?] is responsible for approving stage plans.’
- ‘List’ – e.g. ‘Which two statements about tailoring are CORRECT?’
What is PRINCE II certification?
People often confuse the spelling of PRINCE2. We’ve seen all the following ways of spelling:
- PRINCE TWO;
- PRINCE ii;
- PRINCE2 II;
- PRINCE 2;
PRINCE2 certification refers to the qualifications at Foundation and Practitioner levels.
What is PRINCE2 Agile?
PRINCE2 Agile is a recent development in that it combines the governance and structure of PRINCE2 with the flexibility of Agile.
Certification is similar to PRINCE2 in that it contains 2 qualifications - Foundation and Practitioner. Foundation is a pre-requisite for sitting the PRINCE2 Agile Practitioner exam.
Is PRINCE2 agile or waterfall?
PRINCE2 can be either agile or waterfall depending upon how it is tailored. It is often assumed that PRINCE2 project management is waterfall because it is seen as a traditional project management method. However, it can be used alongside Agile development methods which on their own, do not provide the project management aspects.
What is the difference between PMP and PRINCE2?
PMP® (Project Management Professional) is a qualification popular in the USA from the Project Management Institute. It tests a student’s knowledge of the PMBOK® Guide, the American project management standard.
Compared to PRINCE2 which requires no experience, PMP certification requires considerable hours of previous project management experience.
How can I persuade my boss to pay for my training?
Your organization will benefit if it sends you on a PRINCE2 training course. This article explains how you can persuade your boss to pay for you.
Which version are your courses and exams?
Both our classroom and online courses are based upon the latest 2017 version of PRINCE2. All exams are based upon this version.
Other project management qualifications
PRINCE2 is a methodology – it is not a project management standard. It does not provide many of the most common project management tools and techniques which are found in other bodies of knowledge. It describes who takes decisions and when on a project. It does not describe how a project manager performs a technique.
APM
In the UK, the Association for Project Management (APM) publishes the APM Body of Knowledge (APMBoK) which does contain many tools and techniques not covered by PRINCE2. APM also provides 2 project management qualifications. These are highly recommended as a compliment to PRINCE2.
You can take an APM project management course online. See this page for details of APM Qualifications.
PMI®
In the US, the PMBOK® Guide from the American Project Management Institute (PMI®) is a project management standard. Qualifications which are based upon the PMBOK® Guide include Project Management Professional (PMP®) and Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM®). This article describes the differences between PRINCE2 and the PMBOK® Guide.
Both the APM and the PMI qualifications are a great compliment to a PRINCE2 qualification.