I worked with the Austin chapter’s CPSM Study Group three times, leading the Domain 3 and 4 sessions. The first year, no one in the group took the exam. The second year, only one person took the exam. In both years, all the study participants expressed their fear that they would never get through the very long list of recommended reading and feel adequately prepared for the exam.
Enter the new Roadmap to Certification (R2C) Immersion Course from SMPS National. If you can commit the class and study time, energy, focus, and cost required, the R2C helps you plan required activities, develop tools, and learn techniques to master the material.
I asked a few R2C program participants to share what they took away from the program that they couldn’t get from a local CPSM study group.
Susannah Culbertson, CPSM, found the R2C much more strategic and intense than a local study group. She also found benefit in the “been there, done that” real life stories.
Shannon Burfeind, CPSM, mentioned access to materials (webinars and articles) that local study groups don’t provide, as well as the chance to network nationally.
The R2C program, however, is not free. Using the example of an SMPS member in Austin, TX, registering for the Spring 2018 course, the approximate costs would be as shown in the table to the right:
In addition, the application and examination fees total $765.00, making certification an investment of $2,296, a hefty amount whether paid by the employee or his/her firm.
The R2C program coincided with SMPS’s creation of the Markendium, a six-book compilation of A/E/C marketing knowledge organized along the lines of our Domains of Practice. At the time of this writing, the Markendium served as the recommended reading list, much less frightening than the old recommended reading list. The Markendium costs $159.00 and the CPSM Study Guide is $49.99.
Another fact about the R2C is that you don’t have to do the program to take the exam. You can study with a local chapter study group—costing significantly less—or study on your own (costing nothing). With these two alternatives, the cost is not much more than $200 for the books.
When the R2C was announced, some chapters thought it would replace local CPSM study groups, that potential CPSMs would all take the course. But for the prospective CPSM, that meant a fivefold or larger increase in the cost to certify, as well as days away from the office during potentially stressful times.
Alternative – Local Chapter CPSM Study Group
Different chapters organize their study groups differently, but most seem to have introductory sessions outlining contents and schedules, sessions on each Domain of Practice, a review session, and a session for practice tests. In some chapters, sessions are every week; in others, every other week. Some groups use slide presentations; others use flashcards. Some use a combination.
In Austin, our after-work sessions included dinner and sessions either in person or through meeting software. They included presentation and Q&A.
In the years where I presented, folks participated in person or by conference call. We took questions during the presentations, and had a Q&A session at the end. Every person who left the group or decided not to take the exam at the end of the group cited the length of the recommended reading list as their deciding factor.
Alternative – Self-Study
When I studied for my CPSM exam in 2003, my chapter had no study group. I sought recommendations on resources from SMPS friends all over the place. They sent lists of recommended reading, two sets of flashcards, and three slide shows—one of which was more than 500 slides in length.
I chose to read the old Marketing Handbook and trust my knowledge from 20+ years as an A/E/C marketer. My employer gave me permission to study for 2 hours/day in the office and bill the time to an overhead code. I read the Handbook from cover to cover. In addition to the paid study hours, the company also paid my application and examination fees. Best of all, I had people in my chapter willing to be mentors, whom I could contact with questions.
My Recommendation
- If you can afford the R2C program, especially if your employer will pay or split the cost with you, sign up. The benefits—both educational and professional (national networking)—will be well worth the cost. Studying with other people is very effective, and the benefits of building your own national network are significant.
- If your chapter has, or will form, a study group, join it—whether you take the R2C or not. Studying with people you know, where you’re not afraid to ask questions, and having the resource of session leaders and presenters, is a great benefit in studying.
- If you don’t have a mentor, get one. Identify someone in your local chapter—or your professional network—and ask if they would do this for you.