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This version of the program predates the July 2024 updates. Courses from this version will continue to run through the 2024-2025 AY and beyond, as needed, to ensure graduation timelines.

For the new version of this program, expected to begin rollout during 2025-2026, please visit:

Project Management

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Project Management Overview

Why This Matters

Project Managers are among the highest-paid professions in the United States - with a median salary of $116,000 - according to research conducted by Northeastern University. Furthermore, according to research performed by the Project Management Institute, employers will need to fill an average of 2.2 Million new Project-Oriented Roles Each Year through 2027. Additionally, there is a tremendous shortfall in project management talent, which might result in a loss of over $208 Billion GDP globally.

Clearly this indicates a dramatic gap in project-oriented role training, which the Project Management major is intended to fill. The Project Management major will prepare students for a role as a Project Manager, or Technical Project Manager, upon graduation and provide them with a solid footing to pursue a role as a Program Manager as they advance in their careers. It will provide students with skills in project management, product development and basic programming.

About

In a rapidly evolving business environment driven by digital transformation, among other things, traditional project management has changed dramatically in recent years. The Project Management major will prepare students for these changes. While covering the basics of project management, they will also learn about the complex organizational and inter-organizational environments in which projects operate, different project approaches that can be applied depending on the context, and an overview of the impact of technology on the project manager role. This will equip them to apply their judgement to adapt to changing circumstances.

We conducted interviews with over 20 Fortune 500 employers, numerous technology professionals, and several academics - some of whom are listed in our contributors section below - in order to identify the key needs and problems with a modern project management education. A major recurring theme of our conversations was that project management education is basically non-existent at the undergraduate level, and hiring entry-level project managers is absurdly difficult.

However, we also learned that liberal arts graduates make for exceptional project managers once they have acquired the necessary skills. Thus, the aim of this program is to provide students with the skills vital to project management to supplement their liberal arts education.

We identified the following as priorities in a project and program management education program:

Upon completion of the Project Management major, students will have acquired key skills and knowledge essential to starting their careers in project management. More specifically, by the end of the PMM IV course, students will be eligible to sit for the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) exam, having completed the requisite 23 hours of formal education. This is a significant milestone in any project manager's career path, as this globally recognized certification from the Project Management Institute (PMI) will not only increase their employability but will also broaden their professional opportunities.