There are many project management certification options to choose from to become a certified project manager. The certification you choose will depend on your career goals as a project manager, the industry in which you work, and your professional and educational qualifications. Getting ahead of the pack has never been more crucial to developing a successful career. We’ve created a route to achieve our flagship qualification, the APM Project Management Qualification specifically designed for PRINCE2® Practitioners.
In either case, PMP certification could be just what you need to level up your career. As part of the certification process, you’ll learn industry best practices that you can start incorporating into your day-to-day work life immediately. If you have this work experience or are working toward it, the next step is to complete at least 35 hours of formal PMP training, also called “contact hours,” or hold a current CAPM certification. You can complete contact hours through a PMP certification course, which you may take online or in person.
Associate in Project Management (APM), Professional in Project Management (PPM) and Certified Project Director (CPD)
Candidates for this certification have secondary degrees and at least 40 months of project scheduling experience over the past five years. Alternatively, they can have a bachelor’s how to become a project manager degree and 24 months of experience with 30 hours of education. Program managers are senior-level professionals who advance their company’s goals while managing several projects.
The certification can be taken via a reputable online examination procedure. The costs are based on the gross domestic product of your country of origin. Hear from a project manager at Google about how she went from being a business analyst to her current role. The value of a CSM certification is understanding how to work in a scrum environment effectively. It also showcases knowledge to potential employers and could be an excellent stepping stone toward career advancement. The certification process does, however, require a two-day CSM course.
Get on the fast track to in-demand jobs with top employers
The Project Management Institute (PMI) offers some of the most popular certifications. You can earn a general project manager certification or a speciality certification through PMI. A PMI-RMP certification from PMI is built for those who want to identify potential roadblocks before they happen. They assess risks and threats to a project or organization’s success and use their knowledge to mitigate them. PMI-RMP candidates are PMs, risk managers or C-suite executives with advanced expertise in risk management. The course typically takes 45 to 50 hours to complete and costs $340 for an e-course with exam access or $100 for the class on its own.
Other online courses like the Google Project Management Professional Certificate can be a great way to help build foundational skills and learn about project management ahead of a formal certification exam. To know if certification is right for you, consider your long-term career plans and if certification will help you to achieve your career goals. If the roles you choose are certified project manager jobs, you can start to align your career goals with becoming a certified project manager. If you find you have quite a bit of experience already, you may be ready to apply for project manager positions, or approach your manager to state your interest in becoming one. Whatever path you’re hoping to take, here are six steps you should consider to become a project manager. Project managers organize teams of people to accomplish a specific goal, or project, for companies and other organizations.
Associate in Project Management (APM)™
After you’ve graduated from the program, you’ll have access to career resources and the opportunity to connect directly with over 150 employers who are hiring for open entry-level roles in project management. No prior project management experience or specific knowledge is required. All you need is an interest in solving problems and working with people.
The training requirement can be waived if you have a CAPM certification. The Google Career Certificates Employer Consortium consists of over 150 U.S. companies like Target, T-Mobile, Wells Fargo and Google. These companies span multiple sectors and are committed to considering Google Career Certificate graduates for entry-level jobs. Upon completion of the Project Management Certificate, you will gain access to an exclusive job platform where you can easily apply to opportunities from employers with open jobs.