Dear PRM Candidate:

We are eager to announce some exciting changes that PRMIA will adopt in the next few months. These will aid the Professional Risk Manager (PRM™) Exam and curriculum, as well as its relevance and standing in the risk management community.

Our flagship PRM designation syllabus has recently been reviewed by a set of risk practitioners and other professionals and academics through the PRMIA Education Committee. As a result of the review, the study materials for the exam will be updated, as will the related exams. These changes are expected to be completed during the rest of 2013 with the updated material and exams being made available in early 2014.

PRMIA’s Board of Directors has approved three strategic changes to the PRM designation, specially aimed at enriching the quality and standing of this certification in the risk management market. This in turn will benefit its candidates and designation holders.

• Exam Frequency - PRMIA will discontinue on-demand exam taking and will offer exams at fixed intervals throughout the year;
• Exam Bundling - The PRM Handbook will now be sold as a 'bundle' with 4 exam vouchers
• Experience Requirements - PRM holders will only be validated with the attainment of a minimum level of either education or work experience.
  

These will be implemented in early 2014.

Exam Frequency
PRMIA’s new testing approach will begin in January 2014; thus, the last date for “On Demand” testing will be December 31, 2013.

This will benefit our candidates in multiple ways.  Primarily, the new structure will motivate our candidates to better allocate study time in preparation for their exams. Furthermore, it will encourage the formation of a PRM study community, allowing candidates to join different study groups based on the testing period of their preference.  It will also create a sense of urgency and disallows the candidates to procrastinate, thereby promoting a better outcome and a pathway to success.

Simultaneously, this new structure will advance PRMIA’s capability to continuously update its curriculum, thus keeping its exams current, which is essential given the ever-evolving nature of the risk management industry.

We can offer this examination approach to our candidates, while still maintaining a high degree of flexibility in comparison to our peers by allowing 4 testing windows a year, each spanning over 3 weeks as opposed to an approach such as a single testing day spaced six months apart.

Exam periods will be:

• February – March (3 week test window)
• May – June (3 week test window)
• August – September (3 week test window)
• November – December (3 week test window)  
  

During these periods candidates may still choose to take the complete exam or individual exams. To ensure convenience, testing will continue to be available in more than 165 countries in nearly 5,000 locations.

Exam Bundling
In a rapidly changing world of risk management, the use of outdated textbooks ranks high among our concerns. To discontinue the use of obsolete material and encourage candidates to follow the most up-to-date information, PRMIA will start selling the PRM Exam as a bundle.  Each bundle will contain 4 exam vouchers, which can be used with any of the 4 PRM Exams and a complete set of the Professional Risk Managers’ Handbook (PRM™ Handbook). This will ensure that our candidates are constantly educated with the most pioneering study materials available in the field and will eliminate the need to constantly change the PRM Vouchers.

PRM Vouchers will now have a validity of 3 years.  Candidates will have 2 years to complete the PRM Program from the first successful attempt at any of the PRM Exams.  In the eventuality of an unsuccessful examination attempt, candidates can purchase additional PRM Vouchers online or by contacting support@prmia.org.

Note: The PRM Handbook will continue to be available as a stand-alone product, with the understanding that once a candidate decides to begin the PRM Exam, they will receive an additional copy with the purchase of the bundle.

Voucher bundle options will include:

• 4 Exam Vouchers & PRM Handbook Digital Version
• 4 Exam Vouchers & PRM Handbook Print Version
• 4 Exam Vouchers & PRM Handbook Digital & Print Versions
  

Experience Requirements
The new minimum requirements for PRM candidates will take effect as of January 1, 2014.  Anyone who begins the exam process as of this date will be subject to the new requirements.

The reason for the PRM requiring some previous experience of related work is that candidates can apply their experience to the theoretical concepts they meet in their study. Also, it allows the PRM to be seen as a qualification that is held by experienced risk management practitioners. This will be an attraction to new PRM candidates and a benefit to PRM holders.

Minimum experience requirements:

• 4 Years if no bachelor degree
• 2 Years if bachelor degree
• No experience requirements if graduate school or holder of other accepted professional Designations (CFA, CAIA, CQF, etc.)
  

Furthermore, with the impending release of The Essentials of Risk Management, Second Edition in December of this year, PRMIA will also update the Associate PRM certificate. PRMIA members are reminded that the Associate PRM certificate is an excellent introduction to the risk management subject area and also counts as an exemption to Exam IV of the PRM designation.

If you have any questions, contacts, or concerns, please contact Andy Condurache, PRMIA’s Director of Exams & Publications, atandy.condurache@prmia.org.

Sincerely,

Andy Condurache
Director of Exams & Publications

Justin McCarthy
PRMIA Education Committee