Top Online Master's in Project Management

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Updated November 7, 2023

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Ready to move up in your career? Learn to lead, manage risk, and deliver results on time and on budget with an online master's in project management.

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An online master's in project management can help you move from an entry-level job to a leadership role as a project manager. This two-year degree helps students build a theoretical foundation of project management and acquire the practical skills to lead teams and projects in complex companies.

Modern project management began in 1958, but the advent of the computer revolutionized the field during the 1970s and 1980s. Newsworthy projects such as the Panama Canal expansion and the Large Hadron Collider have also brought project management to more people's attention. Today, project managers handle global initiatives with software-focused methodologies like Agile and critical chain project management.

Consequently, colleges and universities now offer graduate and undergraduate degrees in the field. These degrees can position you to assume the role of project manager in one of many diverse industries. Using the guide below, discover what makes a project management degree valuable, the top schools offering the degree, and what you can do after graduation.

Why Get a Project Management Master's Degree?

  • Career Advancement

    A master's degree can help you stand out among other job applicants, secure a promotion, or switch careers entirely. In 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projected that people with a master's degree earned $1,661 per week on average and had a 1.9% unemployment rate. People with a bachelor's degree earned $1,432 a week and faced a 2.2% unemployment rate.
  • Professional Certification

    Project managers can earn professional certifications through the Project Management Institute (PMI). Pursuing a master's degree can help you prepare to take the exams you need to acquire certification. Holding both certification and a graduate degree may make you even more competitive in the job market.
  • Networking

    Graduate school can introduce you to professors, alumni, and other students who are working in project management. You may also meet recruiters, guest speakers, or adjunct instructors who are influential decision-makers in the field.

Featured Online Project Management Programs

Find a program that meets your affordability, flexibility, and education needs through an accredited, online school.

What to Expect From a Project Management Graduate Degree

A master's in project management is a two-year graduate degree that can equip you to lead projects and teams. The curriculum is often constructed around the Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide from the PMI.

Courses may cover topics such as Agile principles, cost and risk management, project lifecycle management, and managing procurement. Depending on the program, you may complete a project portfolio, real-world capstone, or research thesis as part of your curriculum.

Most master's programs require 30-36 credits, and students typically take 6-15 credits per semester. Choosing an institutionally accredited program, instead of an unaccredited degree, can give you transfer options along with a valuable degree for the marketplace.

Earning a master's in project management can also help you prepare for Project Management Professional (PMP) certification or to move into a leadership role.

Degree, Concentration, and Format Options

Master's degrees take many different formats. You can earn a master of professional studies (MPS), master of science (MS), master of business administration (MBA), or one of a number of other degrees. Each degree has a different emphasis, and you can pursue an MBA, MS, or MPS specifically in project management.

This degree focuses on the larger concepts of business leadership, including innovation and marketing, while emphasizing project management techniques. This degree specializes in project management skills such as decision-making, proposal development, and resource and cost management. This degree serves working professionals who already have experience in project management. The curriculum focuses on developing new industry-related skills.

Students have other options, too, when choosing their education:

  • Program Delivery Format

    Schools offer on-campus, online, and hybrid learning options. In some programs, students may take asynchronous and synchronous classes.
  • Accelerated Program Options

    At some schools, students can pursue a one-year master's degree or a five-year bachelor's-to-master's.
  • Concentrations

    You may be able to choose a concentration in some project management degrees. For example, some schools emphasize leadership while others focus on logistics.
  • Related Degrees

    Depending on your career goals, you may consider a related degree such as a master's in construction management or a master's in organizational leadership.

Popular Project Management Graduate Courses

Each university develops its own project management curriculum based on its own resources and the needs it perceives in the field. Typically, this curriculum includes core courses, project management electives, and perhaps a capstone or thesis project. The courses listed below are representative of the curriculum you may encounter in a master's in project management program.

  • Principles of Project Management

    By exploring the philosophy, principles, practices, and knowledge of structured project management, students learn to apply a project management framework to initiate, plan, execute, and manage projects. The course also acts as a theoretical foundation for the entire degree.
  • Intercultural Business Communication

    Students strive for competence in managing and leading diverse project teams in this course, which looks at cross-cultural communication and cooperation. The course focuses on strategies for bridging cultural differences in workplace environments and emphasizes intercultural communication in academic, corporate, nonprofit, and governmental agencies.
  • Leading Organizational Change

    In this course, students explore how change impacts an organization and its stakeholders. They also learn how to lead organizational change initiatives. The curriculum covers organizational learning and best practices in large-group change efforts, using leadership capabilities to achieve project objectives, and developing leadership skills among team members.
  • Global Project Management

    Covering advanced project management techniques and concepts, this course applies project management to real-world political, cultural, and geographic contexts. Topics include integrating global logistics support, outsourcing initiatives, virtual software projects in an international context, and developing transnational teams. Students also learn to assess risk across ethnolinguistic, geo-political borders.

How Much Do Online Project Management Master's Programs Cost?

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports that during the 2020-2021 school year, the average annual cost of a graduate degree was $19,749. Many factors affect graduate tuition, including the school's prestige, whether it's public or private, your state residency, and the program's delivery format.

Most students do not have to cover all their expenses alone. Scholarships, fellowships, and grants are awarded to qualifying applicants and do not need to be paid back. Some employers offer tuition assistance or reimbursement depending on the length of a worker's tenure at the company and their academic performance. Loans require payment in full, along with fees and interest.

Best Online Master's Programs in Project Management

We have compiled a list of nonprofit and for-profit institutions that offer this degree program. Use the table below to compare schools.

Top Online Project Management Programs
School Location Student Population Size For-Profit/Nonprofit
Arizona State University Scottsdale, AZ 62,551 Public
California Intercontinental University Irvine, CA 506 Private for-profit
Capella University Minneapolis, MN 39,727 Private for-profit
Colorado State University Aurora, CO 9,565 Public
Columbia Southern University Orange Beach, AL 15,948 Private for-profit
Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne, FL 1,230 Private nonprofit
Johnson & Wales University Providence, RI 2,505 Private nonprofit
Lakewood University Cleveland Heights, OH 169 Private nonprofit
Pennsylvania State University University Park, PA 13,979 Public
University of Arkansas Grantham Little Rock, AR 5,436 Public
Source: NCES

Common Questions About Online Master's in Project Management

What can you do with a project management master's?

A master's degree in project management can prepare you for a career as a senior project manager, logistician, IT project manager, construction project manager, or consultant. You may also teach project management courses at the postsecondary level.

Is a master's in project management worth it?

A master's degree can help launch or advance your project management career. According to the BLS, project management specialists earned a median annual salary of $95,370 in May 2022. Construction managers brought in $101,480.

Is PMP better than a master's in project management?

While a PMP is a valuable professional certification, it does not offer the scope and versatility of a master's degree. Earning a graduate degree can equip you with wider business skills and introduce you to a valuable global network of professionals, which a PMP cannot do.

What is better: an MBA or a master's in project management?

The answer depends entirely on your career goals and why you are earning your degree. A master's in project management focuses on planning, resource utilization, and cost management, while an MBA covers a broader subset of business disciplines. The MBA remains a widely recognized degree; the master's in project management is less renowned.

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