CAREER ADVICE

Become a Project Manager

Project managers ensure that projects run smoothly and finish on time and on budget. Find out what skills you need to become a project manager and get your career started with online project management courses from top universities.

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  • Best jobs in the UK #14
  • Job satisfaction 3.6 / 5
  • Median base salary £39,000
  • UK job openings/month 7,320
Source: Glassdoor's Best Jobs (2019)

What skills do you need to become a project manager?

  • Organisation

    As a project manager, you’ll learn to manage time, budgets, expectations, paperwork and even people. So you’ll need to be organised.

  • Calmness

    In every project, things can go wrong. Staying calm and getting things back on track is a vital part of project management.

  • Communication

    If a project gets difficult, you’ll need to learn negotiation and communication skills to resolve any conflicts.

  • Empathy

    Professional project managers work with people from diverse backgrounds in diverse industry. Being able to empathise with them is key.

Develop these skills. Start a short project management course online with FutureLearn

Darden School of Business, University of Virginia

Fundamentals of Project Planning and Management

Learn the basics of project planning and management so you can run effective projects at work or in daily life.
4 weeks
2 hrs per week

Part of a degree

Coventry University

The Importance of Project Management in the Global Construction Industry

Why is the management of construction projects important and why do construction projects fail?
2 weeks
3 hrs per week
Darden School of Business, University of Virginia

Getting Started with Agile and Design Thinking

Get an introduction to agile product development and design thinking so you can build better digital products.
4 weeks
4 hrs per week
The Open University

Business Fundamentals: Project Management

Gain the basic skills to manage all phases of project lifecycles effectively, using the most appropriate methods and tools.
4 weeks
3 hrs per week

Browse more courses in Business & Management

What do people say about these project management courses?

I found the course to be very well presented and a great refresher, or perhaps an introduction for those that haven't studied project management before. Overall, for such a short course, it was crammed with content and a good opportunity for people who want to see if this is a subject they'd like to investigate further.

Paul Caunce
Learner on Time Management Strategies for Project Management

The course really helped me take a step back from my mentoring programme and see that it needs a lot more structure and focus if it is to succeed. I’ve been creating a project report with a Gantt chart to show current progress and future progress needed, and I’ve been looking at risk management and how we will measure success too.

Emma Sear
Learner on Business Fundamentals: Project Management

The benefits of taking project management courses online with FutureLearn

Learn flexibly online, for free, around the world

Develop valuable skills with a short, online project mangement course wherever you are. Start learning for free, on desktop, tablet or mobile.

Upgrade for tests and Certificates

Upgrade your chosen course to get unlimited access, take tests and prove what you’ve learnt with a Certificate of Achievement.

Meet project management experts

Learn with experts from top international universities and business schools. Network with project managers all over the world.