Where best to study project management qualifications?

[timetolive]

I work full time in a career that I need to have a change from. I supervise a team and deal with often very stressful situations and investigations.

I feel I need a change and think my skill set would suit project management. I think I need to get some qualifications to put me in good standing to start applying for roles. I know Prince2 is as often asked for qualification.

Are there any others that are good to have?

Are these qualifications things I can study around my current full time job?

Where is best to do them/get them from?

How long do they take?

Any advice welcomed thank you!

I did my PRINCE2 last year. I took a weeks annual leave and did it online with QA. I then booked the exams a couple of weeks later so I had a bit more time to revise.
My current employer prefers the APM qualification so they’re putting me on that course in January.

I think it depends on your sector as to which qualification is best to do. Public sector are still largely using PRINCE2 but most tech companies etc will be on Agile.

Are you changing sector as well?

I'm interested in this too - thinking of doing a PM qualification - but not sure if it will stand me in good stead if I'm also changing sector!

I can't comment on tech companies, but I hold Prince 2 and APM and am a programme manager with decades of experience. And I don't know many employers who would hire someone as a project/programme manager based on a skill set and a qualification. Normally experience would be required, and people generally work their way up the ranks. Project or programme assistants at entry level are most often recruited and don't need qualifications - then take the appropriate qualifications once they've cut their teeth on real projects. If, and I emphasise the if, an employer is willing to recruit without existing experience to this level, you may find that they don't require the formal qualification either. If I am honest, there is no rocket science involved in Prince2 or APM and it is a lot to invest in gaining if you can't get a job due to lack of experience, so I'd probably scope out whether there is a route in that doesn't require them.

I'm Head of Project Management in a tech company. I'd echo previous posters that experience is more valued than qualifications in this career, and suggest you look for Project Coordinator or Assistant PM roles in a larger organisation to get the best experience and learn from more experienced PMs. Somewhere that has a PMO would be ideal as there should be structure and hopefully a career path once you gain experience.

What industry are you looking to manage projects in? As others mentioned, APM and Prince2 are still the gold standard in public sector, but when I hire I'm more keen on Agile qualifications such as PMI-ACP, PMP or Certified ScrumMaster.

I'd also suggest joining project management groups on LinkedIn as they can be good for networking/job opportunities.

I did and failed the APM last year despite managing projects for years. I would recommend getting some experience first then looking at formal qualifications or you could do APM fundamentals to get something behind you which is a much lower commitment

I'm a management consultant / programme manager and was previously the U.K. Head of the project & programme management practice for Financial Services for one of the big global consultancies.

I completely agree with @Quveas and @terroir. Experience is what matters rather than qualifications. I recruit for my current employer and we don't ask for and/or expect project management qualifications, and to be frank if a candidate has them (or not), we're not bothered. It makes zero difference. What matters is experience and ability.

As has already been said, look at project analyst or project coordinator or similar roles as a way in. Maybe even junior PMO. If you're already managing a team, depending on industry you may well have to take a salary drop to get in but the only way to get the required experience is to start at the bottom and work your way up. I cannot stress enough how much experience matters. A good project manager can make it look almost effortless but I can assure you it isn't.

Thanks for all the responses, really helpful. Interesting re experience as I have a good friend who retired from the army, did his project management qualifications and was able to get an excellent job immediately in project management, he moved to a different company after a year on even more money (the first job was £60k and his new job is significantly more).

I'm currently a detective sergeant but I specialise is serious and complex crime, so I have many skills around managing people, investigations (which are similar to projects!) and working alongside lots of different partner agencies/stakeholders. I thought that as my friend has found it a good transition role it would be a good one for me to look at too.

In that case @timetolive I'd suggest having a look at Principle One as they might be a fit for you. They're small but growing (one of the founders is very close of mine).

https://www.principleone.co.uk/experienced-hires

Apologies for the typo - should have written close friend of mine. 😖

You should be able to get a job in banking (fraud / financial crime complex investigations) immediately. They wouldn’t require a paper qualification due to your experience - those are (to put it bluntly) for the inexperienced.

Yeah I know a DS in financial crime who now works for Deutschebank. OP definitely should investigate this route.

I have thought about fraud but it's the one area I've not worked in... organised crime gangs or paedophiles I'm all over! 😆🤷‍♀️

You should look at the link I posted. They do a lot of govt work and work closely with the police, including employing a number of former police. It would be a way into project management / consulting using some of your existing experience and culturally it wouldn't be too much of a shock. A couple of years with consulting experience on your c.v. would then open a lot more doors for you.

Thank you @HundredMilesAnHour I definitely will take a look 😊

Fraud just requires investigations experience. And there are some extremely complex cases - many fraud rings for example do have links to organised crime gangs / paedophile rings.

@timetolive project management is pretty rife in the military, I've worked with a number of project/programme managers from armed forces backgrounds, I don't know anything about policing so I'm not directly comparing there, but I'd be careful to assume because they did that you would be able to too. I would look at some PM job adverts and see how you would answer the applications based on your current experience.

Might be worth looking at civil service; NCA, HMRC, DWP and SFO would likely covet your experience and pay you to do qualifications (I've done PM qualifications through the CS and I don't even do PM!) even if it's just a good stepping stone for you to get some official PM experience and qualifications under your belt.

Indeed. I worked with a PM (in fact I pushed my boss to give him a chance or he wouldn't have even got an interview) who was ex-Navy. Average PM but brought with him a massive sexist attitude that turned into bullying one of his female peers so badly that she ended up being treated at the The Priory. The men in the dept all thought he was great and couldn't see / didn't want to see his unacceptable behaviours. Fortunately HR took it a lot more seriously than the male management did and he was eventually fired.

@HundredMilesAnHour sorry what's that got to do with anything here? The ex military PMs I've worked with weren't sexist, many were women in fact (though I'm not denying sexism in the military, trust me....but not sure the way you've brought it up here has any relevance).

I'm so sorry @gallop17 , I didn't realise you were the self-appointed thread moderator. Next time I'll ask your permission before I post. 🙄

@HundredMilesAnHour do you not expect to be pulled up on when making sweeping implications? Armed forces personnel deal with enough prejudice when seeking employment after serving without people like you making comments like that without challenge. Your experience is your experience and you'll talk about it where you want, but don't expect to not be pulled up on it.

Well I can guarantee that I'm not a bully or sexist or any other 'ist!

What I am is burnt out from working 16 hour shifts day after day (it's very rare to leave work on time) dealing with a mix of extremely vulnerable or extremely dangerous people to the point I'm emotionally and physically exhausted. I need to change. I joined my job to help people , but unfortunately, like many DS's working in similar fields, it's just so short staffed and relentless, we're breaking and leaving the force in droves. It's a very difficult decision to make but I need to move on. I've worked 96 hours in the last week which I would like to say is unusual but unfortunately it's not. I can't remember when I last worked less than 80 hours in a week.

I know all jobs are hard and I'm more than happy to put the hours in, but the hours combined with the nature of the work I do is breaking me and my marriage.

Thank you for all of the helpful comments, I've taken it all on board and will look into the options that have been suggested.