The PMI Registered Education Provider (REP) program is a training provider certification program run by PMI for providers that issue Professional Development Units (PDUs) for project management training courses. The REP program was created to enhance the ongoing professional development of PMI’s members, PMI-credentialed members (PMPs, PgMPs, CAPM holders, and so on) and other project management professionals. By attending a course presented by a PMI REP, a project manager can be assured that the course in question adheres to Project Management Institute quality standards, and that the hours spent in that course can officially be attributed toward a credential holder’s required quota of Professional Development Units.
Becoming a PMI Registered Education Provider (REP)
Project management trainers can apply to become a PMI Registered Education Provider in order to give PMI-approved training courses to PMI credential holders. This is an expensive process (costing thousands of dollars, plus there is a renewal charge) during which PMI will go over the courses that you are interested in providing and verify their quality. In order to become a REP, a trainer or training organization must:
- Be a legal and mature entity that offers project management training
- Provide evidence of quality product design, delivery and content
- Demonstrate that course content is consistent with PMI standards or offers differing or new concepts that are clearly indicated as such in marketing and instructional materials
- Properly award PDUs for course completion
- Offer proper REP marketing representation.
Becoming a REP will demonstrate to potential students interested in taking courses covering PMI material that the courses have been given the PMI stamp of approval. Another plus side to becoming a REP is that you will appear on a list of Registered Education Providers on PMI’s website. You also earn the right to advertise yourself or your company as a REP, and to use the REP logo on your course materials. This can be helpful, as people have a tendency to believe that if you go through the process to become a REP you must be a quality provider.
On the other hand, PMI has certain restrictions on what PMI-based material REPs can present; for example, they minimize the number of PMI artifacts you can use as slides (I believe three is the maximum, but I could be wrong). So PMI can exert some control over your PMI REP-certified presentations. Furthermore, the process is very expensive, which isn’t a big deal to large training organizations, but prohibitive to smaller companies or individual trainers.
You don’t need to take courses from a REP to earn PDUs
It is not necessary to take classes solely from PMI REPs in order to earn PDUs. If you look up the various categories where you claim your PDUs, you will notice that you can claim PDUs under Category 4 – “Other Provider”. You will need your registration form, a certificate or letter of attendance, and a brochure or course materials outlining the subject matter covered and the qualifications of your instructor so that PMI can perform an audit of that course if they so desire; this is to make sure that these other providers are in fact providing quality project management education outside of the Registered Education Provider boundaries. In order to claim PDUs from a REP, all you will need is their PMI REP code.
Likewise, if you are a training provider, you do not need to be a PMI REP in order to conduct training. If you are a training provider that offers legitimate project or program management training, one hour of training that you perform can be used toward the earning of one PDU. Make sure the project managers that you train have the documentation listed above, should your course be audited by PMI.
I’ve taken courses from PMI REPs and from non-REPs, and I have found the courses from both sources to be of good quality. Courses from PMI REPs are likely to be somewhat more institutionalized; as becoming a PMI REP is an expensive process, it is the larger training organizations that tend to become registered.
If you’re taking a course from a non-REP, you will want to make sure that the training provider is legitimate, that the course is relevant and of good quality, and that you collect the required information from that provider should your PDUs be audited. Otherwise, I would use whatever providers are cheapest and most effective in order to earn your PDUs. And don’t forget that there are other ways to earn PDUs – for example, by attending PMI meetings, by volunteering or by training others.
Thanks for explaining it in simple and better way. Can you please tell me how much fee is involved to become PMI R.E.P.
Thank you
Hello Mohammed,
There are different fees from PMI depending on what category of R.E.P. you are – a provider, a global provider, or a training provider. You can find the various fees listed here.
Hope that helps!
Thanks for explaining it in simple and better way. Can you please tell me how much fee is involved to become PMI R.E.P.
Thank you
Hi Lloyd,
The fees for the PMI R.E.P.s program can be found here. Thanks!
Hi Brain,
Thanks for the helpful info. It’s pretty obvious that an organization doesn’t have to be a REP to provide PMP training. I had conducted numerous sessions for Non REP organizations where students enrolled for the PMP exams and passed it.
Once I told one of the universities that there is no mandatory requirement to be a REP they wanted me to show that it is specifically mentioned at PMI site. I did try to find relevant info but couldn’t locate it. If you have any information from PMI site that will be really helpful.
Thanks
Sohel
Hi Sohel,
It is true that you don’t have to be a PMI REP to provide PMP training. I believe you do have to file it under a different category (Category B rather than Category A, which is for PMI REPs and other PMI-related education), but it doesn’t really matter as long as it best you PDUs, does it?
I can’t find any information on PMI’s web site regarding the fact that you don’t have to be a REP; I guess the only thing I can see is that they do have a separate category where people can earn PDUs from people who are non-REPs, so obviously it does exist!
Thanks for your question, and best of luck.
Hi Brian,
Greetings from all our us.
I am working in a small start-up, in Bangalore (India), we provide PMP training.
We are NOT an REP. I know we can provide PDU under category 4 (other providers), but my doubt is how to provide it ?
Is there any specific format (or) any certificate has to be provided, if you could explain this point in detail it will really help us very much.
Regards,
Hello Vijay,
I am afraid I am not a provider of PDUs, so I am not personally sure how you might provide PDUs. However, I believe that your clients would file their PDUs under Category B. They would perhaps have to show some sort of proof that they have completed this project management training should PMI request it, but I do not believe it would have to be anything format – perhaps a certificate or even a line item?
Thanks!
Hi Brian,
can u just explain me the difference between a R.E.P and a Non- R.E.P?
Thanks
Dear Vijay
Nice to know of the start up. How is your experience ? do you intend becoming an REP one day ? Can I have your phone number.
Ramesh
Hello Ramesh, all the best with your work toward possibly becoming a PMI REP! I hope it all works out for you.
Thanks!
Hello Vishnu,
PMI REPs (Registered Education Providers) pay money to PMI to offer “formal training” from PMI – that is to say that these training providers are registered with PMI as official trainers. Meanwhile, non-REPs can offer project management training and use PMI’s process groups and the like, but are not “official” with PMI. This means they use a different category for offering PDUs (REPs offer training through Category A; non-REPs offer training through Category B).
Hope this helps.
Hi,
recently I asked a friend of mine how to give PDU’s to participants to any courses involving PM or Six Sigma for example, anything related to management domain. How much does it cost for a REP training company to release PDU’s?
Thanks for reply
Hello Sara,
I do not think that as a REP company you would need to pay to release PDUs. Basically, you would register with PMI as a PMI REP. Then, when you would give a course, an hour of training with your company would then result in an hour of project management training under the PDUs from registered PMI REPs category. The people you would train would simply indicate that they had taken those hours of training from your company when filling out their PDU forms, and then they would count toward that category. They might, however, at some times require some sort of document or certification from you to indicate that they had taken that training from you, should PMI ask for proof of training.
I hope this helps!
Hi Brian,
My University is trying to be PMI REPs. We need assistance in filling the REPs application and would like to know if you have expertise with that or someone who can help us with that.
Thanks,
Vishal
dear Brian
I read your article regarding get PDU from nor PMI REP
and you mention that we can claim PDU under category 4 , actually I couldn’t find this
will you please guide where we can find this category
I have attended course in PMP with non PMI-REP training center.
and they gave me certificate that I completed 40 hours in pmp certification preparation program.
is PMI will accept this certificate/PDU
Please advise
regards