HP ITIL ® Frequently Asked Questions

General ITIL Training and Certification Questions

1. Why is Certification important?
2. Why is it important to take classes from an accredited trainer?
3. Who accredits the courses and trainers? Who are OGC, APMG, ISEB, EXIN, CSME, Loyalist, and ATOs?
4. What should I look for when selecting an ITIL trainer?
5. Which examination agency does HP Education endorse?
6. Who prepares the exams?
7. Are there any practice exams available?
8. What languages is the exam available in?
9. Am I allotted extra time on an exam if English is not my first language?
10. How can I retake an exam?
11. How many times can I retake the exam?
12. Can I earn PDU credits from PMI for attending HP's ITIL courses?

1. Why is Certification important?

• ITIL certification signifies that the holder of the certificate has an understanding of Best Practice for IT Service Management that can be applied immediately at some level
• ITIL certification is recognized worldwide
• Certification also lays the groundwork for a career road map

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2. Why is it important to take classes from an accredited trainer?

Only accredited course providers may bestow certificates. Any certification from a non-accredited trainer would be meaningless.

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3. Who accredits the courses and trainers?  Who are OGC, APMG, ISEB, EXIN, CSME, Loyalist, and ATOs?

• OGC - Office of Government Commerce - this is the UK government office that owns the ITIL intellectual property
• APMG (http://www.apmgroup.co.uk) - the APM Group - is the official developer of the qualification scheme and course syllabi
• The following exam institutes are involved in some aspect of exam development and exam delivery and accreditation of courses, instructors, and training providers.Other exam institutes may be accredited from time to time. Visit ITIL official site to see the most current list of exam institutes:
  • ISEB ( http://www.iseb.org.uk) The Information Systems Examination Board (ISEB) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Computer Society. The ISEB provides industry recognized qualifications that measure competence, ability and performance in many areas of IT, including ITIL.
  • APMG (http://www.apmgroup.co.uk) In addition to being the official ITIL accreditor, APMG specializes in the accreditation and certification of organizations, processes and people, offering global accreditation and examination services for training providers.
  • CSME (http://www.csme.us) - an ISEB partner delivering exam services in the US and elsewhere in the Americas
  • Loyalist Certification Services (http://www.lcsexams.com) - an EXIN partner delivering exam services in the US and elsewhere in the Americas
• ATOs (Accredited Training Organizations) such as HP partner with the above and perhaps other exam institutes to bring exams and related services to ITIL training customers.

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4. What should I look for when selecting an ITIL trainer?

itSMF USA has created a checklist of questions you should ask of a training provider. For more information, please go to itSMF USA site and click on the Certification link. Other useful questions include:

• Are the instructors certified at the Manager level (v2) or ITIL Expert level (v3)?
• Is the organization accredited? By whom?
• To what level is the instructor accredited and certified?
• For what language were the materials originally developed?
• What field experience, or experience within IT, or as part of an ITSM project, does the instructor have?
• Does the provider have recent satisfaction survey responses regarding the class?
• How long has the organization provided accredited training?

Check out HP Education's credentials.

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5. Which examination agency does HP Education endorse?

In the US and Canada, HP Education utilizes exams and services from both CSME and Loyalist.  We also work with those exam institutes as well as ISEB, EXIN, and APMG to help drive improvements and new certifications important to our customers. If you have a preference for certification from one or the other, please contact your local HP representative or 1-800-HP-CLASS to discuss.

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6. Who prepares the exams?

APMG prepares the original question database.  EXIN , ISEB, APM Group and possibly other exam institutes may each prepare their own exams using these questions.  Each agency has a collection of exams which they use for a period of time and then remove from the market.  Exams are reviewed several times before they are introduced.  It is also possible for an exam institute to deliver another exam institute’s exams.

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7. Are there any practice exams available?

Yes. You can view a few sample questions on the EXIN website.

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8. What languages is the exam available in?

In the US and Canada, HP Education delivers the exams in English. (Additional information about exam language versions can be found at the official ITIL exam site).

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9. Am I allotted extra time on an exam if English is not my first language?

If English is not your first language, you may be allowed extra time and a hardcopy translating dictionary to complete your exam.

HP must be notified of this need in advance of the course/exam delivery.  If you are enrolling into a publicly scheduled course or exam session, you must inform HP at the time you register that you will require extra time.  If you will be taking the course or exam at a dedicated onsite session, you will need to inform your session coordinator, who must then inform HP when the course/exam is ordered.

The amount of extra time allotted depends on the exam type (Foundation, Practitioner, Service Manager, etc.) and the exam institute owning the papers (ISEB, EXIN, etc.), as follows:

Candidates whose first language is not English may take hardcopy (not electronic) translating dictionaries into the exam room. These are not dictionaries of IT terms or IT Service Management terms.  Prior to the start of the exam, you must present the dictionary to the Invigilator (Proctor), who will inspect it to confirm that it is "clean".

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10. How can I retake an exam?

HP offers several options for retaking the various multiple choice ITIL exams:

1. Directly from CSME, for any multiple-choice exams

   Go to http://www.csme.us, click on the "Student" link, register if you have not previously done so, and then log in to order and schedule your exam. Note the "CSME Exam Centers" link at the top of the page, which will provide you with information to help you locate a CSME exam center.
    

2. Through Prometric or Pearson VUE for Foundation.
   
   Prometric - At the home page, under the "Test Taker" section:

   • Choose Testing Program = Information Technology (IT) Certification
   • Schedule an Appointment
   • Select your country and state or province
   • Then select either
     • Client = EXIN, Inc. and Program = EXIN (EX0, EX1), or
     • Client = ISEB and Program = ISEB

   Both ISEB and EXIN offer the Foundation exam via Prometric.

   Pearson VUE - At the home page, select Category = Information Technology and Program = EXIN.  (ISEB exams are not available via Pearson VUE.)

Options (1) and (2) may represent the most cost effective and convenient options.

NOTE: For the CSME, Prometric and Pearson VUE options above, HP Education has no involvement in exam scheduling, the exam site prep, obtaining a proctor or negotiation with the exam provider. The exam candidate assumes sole responsibility of the exam purchase and related actions through the provider.

3. At a future HP Education publicly scheduled session

   You may take just the exam portion of a future publicly scheduled course. Check our website for scheduled dates and contact your HP Education representative or call 1-800-HP-CLASS for pricing and registration information. ITIL Foundation exam retake is U3268S and Practitioner exam retake is U5450S.

    
4. At a dedicated onsite delivery of the same exam to your organization

   If HP Education is delivering the exam you want to retake as part of a dedicated onsite session, you should contact the responsible training coordinator within your organization to make arrangements for an extra exam to be made available at that time.

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11. How many times can I retake the exam?

There is no limit. However, bear in mind that course content may change, and that you may also need to pay for second and subsequent exam attempts. There are numerous options for retaking exams - please refer to the previous question for details on how to schedule a retake.

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12. Can I earn PDU credits from PMI for attending HP's ITIL courses?

Yes. Use this guide to determine the number of PDUs for each ITIL course.

Certified PMPs are responsible for reporting qualifying activities to PMI as they occur.  PDUs should be reported using the Online PDU Resources system.

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