Earning professional development units (PDUs) to maintain your PMI credential takes time, effort and money, but at least it provides you with the rewards of continuous learning and growth.

Reporting those PDUs on PMI’s new online CCR system is easy. PMI’s CCR and Customer Care teams recently compiled a list of frequently asked questions, and offer the following tips to help you navigate CCR policies and the online CCR system.

 Understand Discrepancies

You may see a discrepancy in the number that appears in the "Earned Claims" versus "Applied" PDUs total. The “Earned Claims” includes all of the PDUs that were entered onto your transcript during the cycle. However, when the amount of PDUs you enter exceeds the maximum amount of PDUs allowed for that category, you will see a discrepancy in your total. Thus, the “Applied” PDUs field only includes the total number of PDUs approved for that cycle.

Refer to the CCR section of your respective credential handbook for maximum caps on PDUs per category.

Another reason you may see this discrepancy is if you transferred PDUs from your last cycle.

Enter PDUs for Category 2H Based on Time

Category 2H allows you to enter PDUs for your work as a project professional. You may claim 2.5–5 PDUs, depending on which credential you hold. Be mindful to enter PDUs for Category 2H according to time period, not on a project basis.

Report Chapter Meetings (Category 3)

You usually can earn 1-2 PDUs for attending a PMI chapter meeting. In order to report these under Category 3, click on the “Report Component 1-2 PDU Event” button. You will need to type in the component name or ID number. To find this information, click on “Find a Provider” and search the system. If reporting multiple sessions, type in the number for each individual session so that the system doesn’t read it as a duplicate claim.

Understand Category 5: Volunteering

You can earn PDUs under Category 5 when you volunteer your time and skills. Being part of a project management office within your organization does not qualify as a volunteer activity. Your compensated work as a project professional should be claimed under Category 2H.

Further, if you serve as a volunteer coach or mentor to someone, you should claim this activity under Category 5C. If you are being coached or mentored by someone, you should submit this activity under Category 2SDL.

View the PDUs You Plan to Transfer to Your Next Cycle

Depending on which credential you hold, you can transfer 10-20 PDUs earned during the last year of your current cycle to your next cycle. If you want to see how many PDUs transferred from the last cycle, click “Previous Cycle.” Your transferred PDUs are another reason you may see a discrepancy between your “Earned Claims” and “Applied” PDU total.

If you are transferring PDUs to your next certification cycle and you would like to see how many carried over, click on the “Transferrable” button right on the screen.

Understand Your Cycle Date beyond Renewal

If you renew your credential before the cycle end date, your new cycle will still start on the anniversary of your credential's grant date. For example, if you currently have a CCR/certification cycle from 1 June 2007 to 31 May 2010, and you renew your credential in February 2010, your new cycle will begin on 1 June 2010, not on the date of your renewal.

Check the Status of Your Claims

Claims will appear in the “Unapproved (In-Progress & Rejected)” section of your PDU activity page as soon as you submit them. Click the plus sign to the right of any claim to see more details about the claim status.

If the claim status is:

• “Submitted,” that means the claim is in the review process;
• “Additional Information Needed,” you will see a status note about what additional information is needed;
• “Rejected,” you will also see a status reason explaining why the activity was not approved.

Remember that you will receive an e-mail notification whenever a claim is submitted, and another e-mail once the claim is approved, rejected, or more information is requested of you. If you are not receiving these notifications, check that your preferred e-mail address is up to date. Go to PMI.org and click on “Go to My Profile” on the left side of the screen. Then click on “Contact” and update your information.

Find Information in Other Resources

• Review your respective credential handbook for full information on the policies and procedures of the CCR program.
• E-mail PMI’s Customer Care with specific questions about your CCR cycle or transcripts.

Recently, PMI has made updates on how to report PDUs. PDUs are now based on the PMI Talent Triangle.

• Component ID Number (4 digits):  C049 
• Component Name: Greater New Orleans Chapter 
• Component Contact Person: VP of Education