PSP Planning and Scheduling Professional Practice Test
Build your confidence for PSP Planning and Scheduling Professional. Practice the concepts, understand the answers, and strengthen your knowledge one question at a time.
Try a sample questionExam overview and details
AACE scheduling certification covering project planning, schedule development, resource management, schedule analysis, and delay analysis for construction projects. Administered by AACE International. Key domains include Conduct Scheduling Duties, Conduct Planning Duties and Communication.
Sample Questions
Choose an answer and explore the explanation to see how practice works.
During a baseline review for a refinery expansion, the project controls lead asks the scheduler to resolve this issue: Using the same data (BAC=1M, PV=400K, EV=350K, AC=420K), what is SPI?
A progress curve for electrical installation shows 60 percent earned value, while installed quantities show only 45 percent of cable pulled and no terminations complete. What should the scheduler question?
The owner requests that activity durations not exceed 20 working days at the contract schedule level. Which AACE RP supports activity sizing guidance?
On a transit project with design, procurement, and field work running in parallel, the scheduler must decide: Same numbers (BAC=1M, EV=350K, AC=420K). Using EAC = AC + (BAC - EV), the result is:
An EPC contractor is preparing its baseline schedule basis for a compressor station. The owner asks why the schedule shows procurement of vendor drawings before purchase order award. Which basis entry best prevents later misunderstanding?
Exam insights and study advice
In the real world, a robust and dynamic project schedule is the single most critical tool for predicting outcomes, managing risk, and enabling informed decision-making. The PSP certification matters because it equips professionals to move beyond simply operating scheduling software to understanding the underlying principles that make a schedule credible, defensible, and actionable. This expertise directly translates to preventing cost overruns, mitigating delays, providing clear communication to stakeholders, and delivering projects on time-directly impacting an organization's profitability and reputation.
What this exam covers
Use the published domain weights to plan your study. Practice results do not predict your certification exam score.
01Conduct Scheduling Duties
Topics
- Develop schedules (e.g., baseline, recovery, revised, shutdown)
- Create baseline basis of schedule documents
- Manually calculate schedule networks
- Analyze critical and near critical paths
- Evaluate resource utilization
- Conduct schedule quality checks
- Evaluate schedule for contract compliance
- Evaluate potential schedule risks (e.g., environmental, political, supply chain)
- Perform schedule cost analyses
- Audit project baseline schedules
- Develop reports (e.g., ad-hoc, earned value, look-ahead, variance)
- Update WBS
- Train personnel (e.g., methodologies, scheduling techniques)
- Update progress schedules
- Monitor resource utilization
- Facilitate schedule update review meetings
- Track KPIs
- Prepare stakeholder progress reports
- Review stakeholder progress reports (e.g., accuracy, relevance)
- Communicate with stakeholders (e.g., verbal, written)
- Analyze schedule performance
- Report schedule performance (e.g., consultants, owners, subcontractors)
- Manage baseline schedules (e.g., maintain, revise)
- Review project schedules
- Report KPIs
- Develop schedule scenarios (e.g., alternate, what-if)
- Review updated SOWs
- Perform schedule impact analyses (e.g., additions, change in scope, delay)
- Perform basic delay analyses
- Perform schedule change management
- Prepare time extension documentation
- Review schedule impact analyses (e.g., additions, change in scope, delay)
- Review delay analyses
- Conduct schedule close-outs
Learning objectives
- Develop schedules (e.g., baseline, recovery, revised, shutdown)
- Create baseline basis of schedule documents
- Manually calculate schedule networks
- Analyze critical and near critical paths
- Evaluate resource utilization
- Conduct schedule quality checks
- Evaluate schedule for contract compliance
- Evaluate potential schedule risks (e.g., environmental, political, supply chain)
- Perform schedule cost analyses
- Audit project baseline schedules
- Develop reports (e.g., ad-hoc, earned value, look-ahead, variance)
- Update WBS
- Train personnel (e.g., methodologies, scheduling techniques)
- Update progress schedules
- Monitor resource utilization
- Facilitate schedule update review meetings
- Track KPIs
- Prepare stakeholder progress reports
- Review stakeholder progress reports (e.g., accuracy, relevance)
- Communicate with stakeholders (e.g., verbal, written)
- Analyze schedule performance
- Report schedule performance (e.g., consultants, owners, subcontractors)
- Manage baseline schedules (e.g., maintain, revise)
- Review project schedules
- Report KPIs
- Develop schedule scenarios (e.g., alternate, what-if)
- Review updated SOWs
- Perform schedule impact analyses (e.g., additions, change in scope, delay)
- Perform basic delay analyses
- Perform schedule change management
- Prepare time extension documentation
- Review schedule impact analyses (e.g., additions, change in scope, delay)
- Review delay analyses
- Conduct schedule close-outs
02Conduct Planning Duties
Topics
- Develop specifications (e.g., planning, scheduling)
- Collaborate in the development of SOWs
- Review project documents (e.g., contracts, cost estimates, drawings, plans, SOWs)
- Implement project documents into the plan (e.g., contracts, cost estimates, drawings, plans, SOWs)
- Develop WBS (e.g., disciplines, phases)
- Conduct constructibility review
- Develop phase sequencing and relationships
- Identify key resources (e.g., equipment, labor, material(s))
- Define/Identify potential schedule risks (e.g., environmental, political, supply chain)
- Determine appropriate level of schedule detail
- Define KPIs
- Support CBS development
- Support OBS development
- Support EBS development
- Support the value engineering process
- Support stakeholder session(s) (e.g., constructibility, development, Partnering)
Learning objectives
- Develop specifications (e.g., planning, scheduling)
- Collaborate in the development of SOWs
- Review project documents (e.g., contracts, cost estimates, drawings, plans, SOWs)
- Implement project documents into the plan (e.g., contracts, cost estimates, drawings, plans, SOWs)
- Develop WBS (e.g., disciplines, phases)
- Conduct constructibility review
- Develop phase sequencing and relationships
- Identify key resources (e.g., equipment, labor, material(s))
- Define/Identify potential schedule risks (e.g., environmental, political, supply chain)
- Determine appropriate level of schedule detail
- Define KPIs
- Support CBS development
- Support OBS development
- Support EBS development
- Support the value engineering process
- Support stakeholder session(s) (e.g., constructibility, development, Partnering)
03Communication
One memo-writing assignment: a given scenario and instructions for writing a response in an onscreen text box.