Terms of Use

By proceeding to register and access the PM4NGOs websites, Partners Area, and our Exam System, you express your consent to, and agreement with, our Terms and Conditions as outlined on this page. PM4NGOs reserves the right to alter or modify these Terms and Conditions whenever this may be deemed appropriate. Please review these changes regularly as they may be modified from time to time.

PM4NGOs reserves the right to block or prohibit anyone from using the Partners Area and the Exam System.

Who are we? 

PM4NGOs (https://www.pm4ngos.org) is an international NGO that works to promote and sustain project management in international development. PM4NGOs has devised online examinations for its certifications. These are hosted by a US vendor, Questionmark Corporation (https://www.questionmark.com) which provides an Exams Portal for PM4NGOs.

The Partners Area

PM4NGOs offers an area of its website that is restricted to partners. The access to this area is optional and partners that would like to access must create their own profiles.

In order to have access to the Partners Area a partner must sign an MoU with PM4NGOs as either: Nonprofit Partner, Training Partner, or PM4NGOs Champion/Hub.

The Exam System

PM4NGOs runs two types of certification exam, Foundation and Practitioner. The Foundation exam consists of multiple-choice questions to be answered in a set time. The Practitioner exam consists of downloading an Activity Log and completing a number of activities over a set period which are recorded in the Activity Log and submitted for assessment. For more details see the Exams Guidance at https://pm4ngos.org/candidates-and-learners/exams-certificates/.

Successful candidates will receive a certificate in digital format and a digital badge, issued electronically by a third-party supplier. Candidates who misuse their certificates or digital badges will have them withdrawn.

These Exams are PM4NGOs’ confidential information and are protected by intellectual property laws. They are made available to you solely for the purpose of demonstrating competency in the content area referenced in the title of this Exam.

Candidate profiles

When registering and creating a profile on the Exam Portal, candidates are responsible for providing accurate information and keeping their password and username safe. PM4NGOs will not be liable for any loss or damage that candidates may incur as a result of someone else using a candidate’s login without their knowledge.

Candidates should be over 18 to use the PM4NGOs Exam Portal.

Country-Specific Processes
Profile approval and exam access are restricted in selected countries.

Candidates in several locations have their access blocked to the exam system, exams failing to load, or repeated disconnections leading to failure as result from country‑specific internet restrictions.

To ensure a smooth exam experience, PM4NGOs has established a process in selected countries in which candidates receive support from a Hub or Training Partner to ensure that the necessary technical conditions are in place.

Candidates based in the following countries must take their exam following the process and details provided by the PM4NGOs Hub or one of PM4NGOs Official Training Partners.

China
Please contact one of our authorized Training Partners to arrange your examination:

• HANDA Social Service Development Center – 汉达社会工作服务中心
• Yixiu Academy – 益修学院

Saudi Arabia
Please contact the PM4NGOs Middle East Regional Hub in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to arrange your examination:

• mena-hub@pm4ngos.org

Candidate documentation

When creating their profile, Candidates are required to provide a photo identification such as a scan of their Passport when requested.

The candidate documentation will be saved at a document processing platform (https://www.signwell.com/) for the required period of assessing and validating the profile. Once the profile is approved, the documentation shall be deleted from PM4NGOs system within 30 days.

Candidates who wish to register for a Practitioner Exam must be able to show that they have achieved the Foundation qualification by uploading their Foundation certificate when requested.

Exam security and integrity

Important! Candidates may be barred from taking any PM4NGOs Certification Exams and may lose their certification status if they violate these Terms of Use. Candidates who engage in misconduct are not entitled to any refund of fees.

Examples of misconduct or misuse of the on-line Exam and the Practitioner’s Activity Log include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Using unauthorized materials during the Exam;
• Disseminating actual Exam content;
• Modifying or altering the original results or score report for an Exam, or any other exam records;
• Fraudulently impersonating another to gain access to the Exam;
• Providing or accepting improper assistance;
• Copying, publishing, disclosing, transmitting, selling, offering to sell, posting, downloading, distributing in any way, or otherwise transferring, modifying, making derivative works of, reverse engineering, decompiling, disassembling or translating any Exam in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, verbal or written, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose;
• Using the Exam content in any manner that violates applicable law.

PM4NGOs has the final decision over which candidates pass and which fail its exams.

Exam Process and Criteria

The certification examination is available online on the PM4NGOs Exams Platform and requires candidates to demonstrate that they know and understand the content of the respective DPro Guide. The learning objectives for the  examination are found in the Appendix of the respective DPro Guide.

The exams are multiple-choice with 75 questions. The pass mark is 65% – or 49 correct answers. There is no ‘negative’ marking so an incorrect answer does not lose your marks. All DPro Exams are open book with the duration of 2h (120 minutes). Please consult our FAQ to learn more about what an open-book exam is.

DPro Exam Review and Audit Procedures

Starting in 2026, PM4NGOs adopted a new process for DPro certifications. This process adds a review and audit step after candidates complete their exams.

The purpose is to strengthen exam security, verify that candidates followed exam instructions, and ensure fairness across all certifications. The details of this new process, applied to all DPro exams, are outlined below.

How the procedure works

• Every 7 days, the PM4NGOs team reviews all exams completed during that period. The team analyzes exam data and records, and a random sample of candidates may be selected for an interview. During the interview, a PM4NGOs representative will:
  • Confirm the candidate’s identity.
  • Confirm the exam purchasing against the candidate’s location and workplace, and to ensure the correct fee tier was used.
  • Ask questions the candidate again.
• If the candidate’s identity is confirmed and they answer the questions correctly, the certificate will be released.

When the interview happens

• A PM4NGOs representative will contact the candidate, and the interview must take place within 7 days from the date of the contact.
• If the candidate does not respond to the request, the exam will be invalidated.
• If the candidate schedules the interview but does not attend, the exam will be invalidated.
• Specific circumstances, such as candidates located in conflict zones who are unable to respond or attend, will be reviewed case by case.

What happens during the interview

• The interview will be conducted in the same language used in the online certification exam
• The interview will be held via a video call on a platform accessible to the candidate, such as Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, WhatsApp, or Telegram.
• The candidate will be asked to present valid identification (passport or national identity in the same language used in the online certification exam).
• The candidate will also be reviewed against the exam fee paid at the time of purchase, to confirm their stated location and workplace, and to ensure the correct fee tier was used.
• If the exam tier paid is not aligned with the candidate’s verified location and place of work, PM4NGOs may require payment of the applicable fee difference prior to issuing the certificate, assuming the exam is validated through the audit and interview.
• The PM4NGOs representative will ask exam questions and request verbal responses.

What happens after the interview

• If the candidate correctly answers at least 65 percent of the oral questions, the exam will be validated and the certificate will be issued.
• If the candidate does not reach the 65 percent threshold, the exam will be invalidated.

If an exam is invalidated

• Candidates may appeal the decision by submitting a written justification to appeals@pm4ngos.org.
• The appeal requires a fee equivalent to the highest tier of PM4NGOs exams. As of March 2026, this fee is 180 USD.
• After receiving the written justification and payment, the auditing team will review the appeal and schedule a new interview following the same parameters.
• The appeal fee is non‑refundable regardless of the outcome.
• The appeal process may result in:
  • The exam remaining invalidated.
  • The exam being validated and the certification granted.
  • Conditional validation, requiring the candidate to retake the exam with online or in‑person proctoring. In this case, the exam cost is covered by the appeal fee.

PM4NGOs may validate or revoke certifications in line with its policies and code of ethics. Certification invalidation or revocation does not constitute grounds for refunding exam or appeal fees.

Exam attempts

Each exam purchase allows the candidate for a single attempt. If a candidate does not pass or abandons the exam and wishes to attempt it again, a new exam purchase is required.

Appeals

PM4NGOs has a formal appeal process by which registered candidates can appeal against a certification decision. This process can be viewed on the website at https://pm4ngos.org/pm4ngos-privacy-policy-and-terms-of-use/. Appeals should be made in writing to appeals@pm4ngos.org within six months of the certification decision detailing the mitigating circumstances or clear evidence of procedural irregularity.  Note that disagreement with the exam result for multiple choice papers does not give grounds for appeal.

Retake policy

Exam retakes are charged at the full fee unless an appeal is successful (see above).

Refund policy

Candidates who have used PM4NGOs’ ecommerce partner’s site (2checkout) to make a purchase and require a refund for an unused exam, can make a request on the ecommerce site itself using the “Refund” button. This refund will not be instant as PM4NGOs will need to check that the exam has not been used and approve the refund request. Refunds must be requested within 12 months of the purchase.

Important privacy notice

PM4NGOs is committed to protecting your privacy. Your personal data will be stored and used in order to carry out and maintain the certification. The same is true of the verification of certification toward third parties with a legitimate interest. PM4NGOs is allowed to inform the corresponding training provider of your personal examination result. Forwarding of results serves the purpose of quality assurance and maintenance of customer relations. PM4NGOs assures you that all your personal data is handled in accordance with the principles of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). If you would like PM4NGOs to delete your personal information, please inform PM4NGOs using the contact details below.

Legal

These Terms of Use are governed by the laws of Virginia, USA* [the Commonwealth of Virginia, USA].

Contact details

PM4NGOs is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization registered in the United States of America with main business address at 1520 Belle View Blvd, PMB 4062, Alexandria, VA 22307.
Email: info@pm4ngos.org
Telephone: +1 (571) 220-6834.
Website: www.pm4ngos.org