Project Management Career Overview: Resources for Your PM Journey

Written by Coursera Staff • Updated on

Take a 360-degree look at project management with these tips, guides, and resources.

[Featured image] A project management career professional stands and works on a desktop computer.

Project management can be a rewarding career. According to Glassdoor, a project manager’s average pay (salary and other compensation, including cash bonuses, profit sharing, and commission) in the US is $93,033. With companies across industries hiring project managers—including construction, technology, and social media—you may find diverse opportunities available to you.    

As you research and consider this career path, it’s important to gain an understanding of what project management entails, including the skills you need to become a project manager, typical career paths and areas of specialization, tools project managers need to succeed, and how to get a job in project management. 

We’ve put together this project management career overview guide to make it easier to forge your path. Bookmark this page to refer to throughout your project management journey. 

Project management overview 

To gain a general understanding of project management, explore these resources: 

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Extended Reality for Everybody

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Skills you'll build:

Interactive Design, Computer Graphics, Extended Reality (XR), development, Research and Design, Computer Programming, Design, Virtual reality (VR), Human Computer Interaction, Design and Product, User Experience, Augmented reality (AR), Unity, WebXR, Unreal, Mixed Reality (MR), User Experience Design (UXD)

Essential project management skills and concepts 

A career in project management will call on you to use a variety of skills, understand key concepts, and be familiar with different project management methodologies. Explore the resources below to prepare for your next step:   

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Google UX Design

Get on the fast track to a career in UX design. In this certificate program, you’ll learn in-demand skills, and get AI training from Google experts. Learn at your own pace, no degree or experience required.

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Design Reviews, Storyboarding, Figma (Design Software), Wireframing, Usability Testing, User Story, User Research, UI/UX Research, User Experience Design, Persona (User Experience), Mockups, Design Research, Ideation, Information Architecture, Responsive Web Design, Design Thinking, User Centered Design, Wireframe, User Experience Design (UXD), User Experience, Prototype, UX Research, User Experience (UX), Figma, mockup, UX design jobs

Project management certifications

For most project management positions a professional certification is required. The resources in this section cover different certifications for project managers:  

Career planning

Setting clear goals for your career can make it easier to land a job you love and live the life you want. Use these resources to plan your career: 

Project manager job search resources

Glassdoor has over 59,000 US project manager job listings, as of August 2022. As you begin your job search, use these tools to prepare for job applications, interviews, and more: 

Explore project management with Coursera

Taking online courses can be a great way to build skills and explore project management career options. Check out these options: 

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professional certificate

Extended Reality for Everybody

4.7

(429 ratings)

16,302 already enrolled

Beginner level

Average time: 2 month(s)

Learn at your own pace

Skills you'll build:

Interactive Design, Computer Graphics, Extended Reality (XR), development, Research and Design, Computer Programming, Design, Virtual reality (VR), Human Computer Interaction, Design and Product, User Experience, Augmented reality (AR), Unity, WebXR, Unreal, Mixed Reality (MR), User Experience Design (UXD)

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specialization

Game Design and Development with Unity

Launch Your Career in Game Design and Development. Learn the theory and practice of game making using Unity 2020

4.7

(525 ratings)

24,429 already enrolled

Beginner level

Average time: 2 month(s)

Learn at your own pace

Skills you'll build:

Storytelling, Video Game Development, Computer Programming, video game, Graphic Design, technology, Design and Product, User Experience, Game Design, Interactive Design, Unity, Computer Graphics, Human Computer Interaction, Software Engineering, Creativity, Game Making

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IBM Front-End Developer

Build job-ready front-end skills employers need. Master the development skills to plan, build, deploy, and test web designs and application interfaces in just 4 months! 

4.6

(906 ratings)

26,082 already enrolled

Beginner level

Average time: 4 month(s)

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Skills you'll build:

front-end development, Continuous Delivery, Continuous Integration, Devops, agile, Mongodb, React (Web Framework), Front-end design, Software Development, Web Development, Front-end Development, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), Web, JavaScript, User Interface, UI/UX Designer, Wordpress, No-code, Front-End Web Development, Progressive Web Development, Figma, Website Wireframe, User Interface design (UI Design), User Experience (UX), Web Development Framework, Responsive, Grid system, Bootstrap, Software Architecture, Computer Programming, Programming Principles, Agile and Scrum, Software Engineering, Communication, Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), Python Programming, javascript library, Webpack, Debugging, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Coding Challenge, Career, interview Preparation, Full Stack Developer, Software Engineer, Distributed Version Control Systems (DVCS), Cloning and forking, open source, Github, Git (Software)

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