To not pay for this training course for my DH?

[ChilledTomotoes]

My DH has been unemployed for nearly 4 years now due to health reasons (severe anxiety). He is now much better and has been looking for work.

He used to have a professional job in the NHS and earned a good salary. He’s adamant that he wants to get into project management and wants to do Prince2 training. He has no experience of project management really.

If he does the Prince2 he would still need to apply for trainee roles as he has no experience. But he thinks the qualification will help him get a job. Would it really though?

It would cost approx £500 and although I have the money, we have very minimal savings. I’m scared to lose this money on something which will have no real benefit.

On the other hand would it show he was really serious to employers?

AIBU - yes you should give him the money
UANBU - no he should get an entry level job first

Could he work alongside the training. Is it an excuse not to go back to work. Has he been in touch with employers hr departments to see what qualifications they look for

It's a recognised certificate but has absolutely no impact on getting a job. He'd still have to take an entry level job. He'd be best off looking for someone who is hiring trainees, they would probably put him through this or PMP or similar.

It sounds like he is looking at something to make him feel more confident and in that he might, or might not be putting the cart before the horse. But only the two of you will know if it will be useful, giving him more confidence, or will just be a prevarication.

He needs to be working first. Otherwise you’ll pay for the training, he’ll be “too anxious” to complete it, and you’ll have wasted money that he won’t be replacing.

Hi as an employer I wouldn't employ someone as a project manager role without the experience- however someone actively studying to get their prince 2 off their own bat would be attractive. However he needs to start applying for jobs now and study alongside working.

Does he have a job in mind ? Are they available? Most employers will want experience alongside the PM qualifications

That’s very reasonable for that particular course. I can tell you however that project management is a very competitive area. My ex is a project manager with about 10 years experience and the competition for jobs, especially the well paid ones, is very strong indeed.

Everyone I know who did Prince2 did it alongside work. I think he’s going to find the job market brutal after 4 years out and covid. I think he’d be better trying to get his confidence back up in the work place and if he still wants to do the course then take it.

If 500GBP is a significant amount for you, then I don't think you're unreasonnable, because it sounds as if you don't have much of a cushion againts emergencies.
What about his previous career? Can he get back into it, and save up the money, to then fund the course?

If it’s joint money he has every right to spend it on the course.
But, having lived/live with a person with anxiety I know that they can become quite obsessive about something, almost addicted, and then go off it quite quickly and on to something else.
Make sure it really will benefit before you pay out.

What did he do in the NHS?

There's some return to work options here if any fit:

www.local.gov.uk/lga-launches-return-work-campaigns-support-professionals-back-work

Doing some kind of training could help him recover his confidence but I'm not sure this should stop him looking for jobs.

Also, something to consider imo is what is £500 to you? Is it switching grocery store for a month or is it no holiday in 2021?

If you'd spend a similar amount on hobbies then it kind of justifies paying for a course he enjoys and which challenges him even if it doesn't lead onto work, in the same way you would expect a recreational photography course to educate, enrich and fulfil rather than lead onto paid work.

I am not sure that it will make all the difference if he doesn't have the experience.

Also - it does seem very cheap for P2. When I did it 10+ years ago it was well over £1,000. I remember it also being fairly full on (as a one week course) and quite stressful. It wouldn't be my first step back into the workplace post anxiety.

I think it would be better to get a job and then do the qualification once he can see how it will help him progress.

I do project management and haven't done prince2. But I worked in the creative sector and gained experience from working. Often for free. However it could be that he want to do a course to gain confidence?

I also think you can do prince 2 more cheaply than this via online providers. All courses are probably being delivered remotely now anyway.

The qualification alone would not get him a job. There are 2 levels, foundation which is basic and practitioner. Prince2 is about a methodology rather than learning how to manage a project.There are other methodologies.

He will need to get experience as just because you have done a 5 day course doesn't mean you can run a project, you need the relevant experience.

I would hire someone who had experience over someone with a qualification only.

What else has he done to build his confidence back up? Has he explored free training opportunities? There may be some available as he is long-term unemployed, although they do tend to be linked to benefits so if he isn’t claiming, that might be a barrier. Has he done any volunteer work? If he’s not taken any initial steps, I’d be asking him to do that before paying for a course that might not get him very far. He needs to be realistic about his first steps back into employment.

For £500 I wouldpay. There is never a guarentee of a job, but surely doing somehting is better then noubt and it shows you have each others back.

No. I would want him to test his ability to return to work by getting a job - part time perhaps - for a few months at least first. Sounds as though that would help build up your finances too.

I did Prince 2 and it was only a two or three day course. Really intensive with a heck of a lot to learn in a small time period.

Bear in mind if he fails one of the exams (there were two), you would need to pay to retake it. I failed the second exam by a few points and to retake it it cost a lot (can't remember exactly but it was a few hundred). So I never retook it in the end.

Also I believe with Prince 2 your then pay a fee every year to keep the accreditation. Not too knowledgable on this as I never did it but may be worth looking into it.

I do project management as my job but to be honest have never found Prince2 helpful. I think it relates a lot to those project managing in a construction industry

Prince2 is brutal when you work in project management, I can only assume more so if you don’t. However - I can understand that it might help him feel more confident applying for jobs if he has done some retraining. He is, as others have said, unlikely to get a project manger role without experience so yes to entry level applications.

I’d expect him to get a job first, then the qualification would be a bonus along with the experience he’s getting. I wouldn’t pay out £500 for a course with no guarantees he’d even be offered a job. I’d also be wary of him biting off more than he can chew after 4 years off with mental health issues

I am a project manager while prince 2 can help get the foot in the door it not going to guarantee a job.

I don’t have it and as I have been a PM for a good number of years I’m going to ask my employer to pay it for me to do it instead.

It is much harder but possible to self study for the exams instead of taking a course. If he isn't working at the moment, maybe he could buy a Prince2 for Dummies book (or one of the other million books on the subject) and work through that first before investing £500 in a training course.

I have a Masters in project management, which covered all aspects of PM as part of the course. As others have said, Prince2 is only one methodology and it's not appropriate for all workplaces - some will prefer an Agile approach. Having that qualification will absolutely not guarantee him a PM job.

My mum completed Prince2 a few years ago and it has done nothing but gather dust on her CV.

If he’s really interested in project management, I’d suggest your DH look for project coordinator type jobs which don’t require any formal qualifications and then see what an employer can offer in terms of qualifications.

I self studied Prince2 and just paid to sit the exam once I’d read the textbook, which was a lot cheaper. It meant nothing to my employer at the time though as they only recognised APM qualifications 🤷🏼‍♀️ For other companies it might be Agile, etc...

As others also mentioned, project management is a very competitive area, but jobs are increasingly being offered on a fixed term/contract basis so people can be easily laid off if there’s no work for them once one project ends, which may or may not be work for you.

I am a qualified PM and it's a very very high pressured job and it causes major anxiety as the buck stops with you. I really wouldn't put someone with those issues in that sort of role. Although I did learn project planning I never had to do it within my role as project planners did the scheduling and highlighted area of concern. Also I have never worked for a company that uses Prince but that could be my industry.
I worked for 10 years in my field before I was considered for a PM role.