IBM Project Manager Certificate: My Student Review

Let me guess. You’re right here since you’re occupied with discovering out whether or not the IBM Project Manager Professional Certificate is best for you?

You’re in the correct place.

I’ve carried out quite a lot of mission administration coaching in my 20+ years as a mission supervisor (together with this course which I’ll inform you all about under), and people coaching experiences helped me perceive the gentle and onerous expertise crucial for efficiently main initiatives.

However… it’s actually essential to decide on course. If you’re going to spend money and time on an expert certificates, it’s worthwhile to be assured that it’s price your time.

In this IBM Project Manager Professional Certificate evaluate for freshmen, I’ll share my experiences as a pupil on the course together with:

• Why the IBM Project Management certificates doesn’t require pre-requisites (and what you do must move)
• Why it’s good for early profession mission managers, particularly when you suppose that the CAPM or PMP exams are in your future
• How lengthy you’ll must spend going by way of the course supplies earlier than you move, and what that course of seems like.

This course is new (it launched in June 2023). I believed it was actually good and it may turn into within the high bunch of in style on-line mission administration certifications for freshmen in the marketplace.

Before we start: there’s additionally an IT model of this course

IBM has two mission administration skilled certificates: the opposite one is the IBM IT Project Management coaching.

It’s longer and contains technical content material (as you’d anticipate) so in case you are contemplating a job in tech, why not try that one too?

Who is the IBM Project Management Certificate for?

The Coursera IBM Project Management Certificate is geared toward full freshmen.

You don’t want any prior data or pre-requisite examine, or any explicit schooling necessities with the intention to take the certificates.

However, the programs get deep fairly rapidly. If you’re evaluating to the Google Project Management Certificate, I’d say this course is extra. More element, extra PMI-aligned, simply extra.

I liked the Google course, however the Coursera IBM mission administration coaching is extra aligned to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK 7).

You don’t must know something earlier than you get began. If you do know that exact subject, you possibly can skip by way of the movies on quick velocity or transfer on to the quizzes. That’s what I did to get by way of the content material extra rapidly.

This course is nice for:

• People who’ve had no mission administration coaching and need to display they perceive mission administration to allow them to land an analyst or junior PM job.
• People who’re main initiatives for his or her firm however have had no formal coaching and wish to be taught what they need to be doing!
• Project managers who’re but to take an expert certificates however don’t meet the necessities for the course they’re taking a look at, for instance, not assembly the eligibility standards for the Project Management Professional (PMP)® examination.

As I labored by way of the fabric, I noticed the course is just not actually for knowledgeable mission managers as a result of:

• It covers just about all the pieces it’s worthwhile to know to be prepared for an entry-level mission administration job, nevertheless it’s mild on tailoring and the ‘difficult’ stuff that tends to return with complicated initiatives.
• There’s little or no in it about working with mission groups (admittedly, tough in a video coaching).
• It’s aimed on the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)® stage pupil and mentions that ceaselessly. If you’ve received some expertise, you may most likely go straight for the PMP® examination.

If you’re contemplating a profession in mission administration, this can be a low value, low-barrier-to-entry course to take a look at what the job is admittedly like.

About the course and construction

The certificates is made up of seven programs. These are:

1. Introduction to mission administration
2. Project administration foundations, initiation and planning
3. Project lifecycle, data sharing and threat administration
4. Project administration communication, stakeholders and management
5. Introduction to Agile improvement and Scrum
6. Project administration capstone
7. Prep examination for CAPM

This is a really comparable checklist because the IBM IT Project Management Certificate, besides that one additionally contains IT fundamentals for everybody, scrum grasp necessities, and an intro to software program engineering.

If you’re aiming for an IT job, you’d be higher off taking that course.

The modules do really feel barely disjointed as if they’ve been put collectively from different programs.

I didn’t take the programs so as, though on the time of writing, I’m nonetheless doing the Capstone mission, which is my final course.

I studied a number of of the programs in parallel, ready for peer reviewed project outcomes to return in or doing the ‘easy’ quizzes on my cellphone whereas utilizing my laptop computer for the modules I discovered more durable.

Once you’ve gotten handed all of the programs, you’ll earn the certificates.

Set up of the course

Each of the IBM mission administration programs is made up of a number of modules that cowl a spread of matters. The modules are damaged down by weeks so the course is structured so that you tempo your self all through. You don’t have to stay to that, I didn’t.

I actually love the Coursera platform. It’s so good for studying on. The notes characteristic is nice, the transcripts are straightforward to navigate, and it holds you accountable with reminders.

This course didn’t have very many downloadable sources, though I did get some doc templates. I feel they may add extra downloads sooner or later.

The supplies embody:

• Training movies – you possibly can management the playback velocity, hurrah!
• ‘What it’s prefer to work in mission administration’ movies – these are Q&A conversations with IBMers speaking about their function and profession journey.
• Transcripts – these sit beneath the movies and the related textual content is highlighted because the speaker talks
• Discussion boards – if you wish to participate within the dialogue boards and join with different college students, you possibly can.

How lengthy does the IBM Project Management Certificate take?

The advice is 10 hours of examine per week for 2-3 months.

There isn’t any means I spent that a lot time on it, however I’m an skilled mission supervisor. I didn’t watch all of the movies.

You may additionally do it a lot sooner when you ignore the weekly module breakdown and easily plough by way of the content material.

The studying facet is comparatively simple (watch the movies at 1.5x velocity to save lots of time), however you possibly can’t save time on the peer assignments or the Capstone.

The particular period of time you’ll should spend on the IBM mission supervisor certification goes to depend upon how a lot time you possibly can dedicate to finding out and the way rapidly you decide up the ideas.

How the evaluation works

Quizzes

Each module ends with a timed, graded quiz or remaining examination. Coursera is obvious that it needs to be your individual work, so there are pop ups that require you to decide to the respect code and promise that it’s all your individual work.

There are additionally follow quizzes so you may get used to how quizzes are structured earlier than you try the graded quiz for every module.

If you fail a quiz, simply take it once more. You can evaluate your solutions, and there are notes that time you to the video to observe once more, the place you’ll discover the answer.

Peer-graded assessments

The basis course, the lifecycle course, the comms course, and the Capstone all have peer-graded assessments.

This is the place you learn a case examine, full a doc template, add it, and one of many different college students assesses it. It’s hands-on expertise of doing the legwork of managing initiatives.

You should assess a few submissions out of your friends with the intention to earn your grade too.

You get a marking scheme, and it’s straightforward to comply with – grading another person’s work didn’t take me that lengthy. However, the marking schemes for some assignments are actually prescriptive. If you don’t give your mission the precise title that they specify, technically, you shouldn’t get a mark.

I don’t suppose they honestly meant to be that particular, particularly as there’s nowhere within the case examine the place you get given the precise title within the marking scheme, so how would you even understand it?

Some workouts throughout the programs are the identical e.g., create a RACI matrix, however the templates are completely different – that’s bizarre.

I additionally discovered a number of formatting errors; for instance, as you possibly can see within the picture under, Sarah is on this useful resource checklist twice. The second title ought to be Sandra. It doesn’t cease you from doing the case examine project, however there are a number of teething issues within the course like this – most likely as a result of it’s nonetheless new.

What it’s worthwhile to move the course

Ultimately, to get the IBM mission administration badge, you simply want the time and focus to plod by way of the supplies.

Make a plan of how a lot time it’s important to examine and stick with it. As it’s all on-line, self-directed studying, it’s important to be actually strict about following by way of, as nobody goes to return after you when you let it drift one other month or so.

Maybe figuring out that you just get 7 days free is motivating!

What certificates do you get?

When you move every of the IBM mission administration coaching programs, you get a downloadable PDF certificates. When you full all of the programs, a shareable LinkedIn badge by way of Credly.

I used to be shocked that I received one other Credly badge (which, personally, I feel is way extra beneficial than a PDF from Coursera) for the basics module.

What’s the honors content material?

There is non-compulsory Honors content material within the course. For instance, within the Intro to Agile Development and Scrum course. That means your certificates for that course has ‘with Honors’ written on it, and it means you took the time to do the non-compulsory Honors mission, which on this case is creating an Agile plan with ZenHub.

It is beneficial to do the Honors content material in case you are severe about studying sensible expertise to speak about in an interview, however you don’t should do them to move.

What I favored about it

The benefits of the IBM Project Management certificates are:

• It’s from IBM, a model that employers will worth.
• There are real-life interviews with IBMers, providing you with an perception into the job, together with profession assist sources.
• It takes you from figuring out nothing to having an honest understanding of what it means to steer a mission, masking a variety of content material in depth.

It’s cost-effective when you work by way of the course rapidly. The value racks up when you spend months on it however dedicate your self to getting on with it, and it really works out cheaply.

Finally, and this can be a large bonus, you’re employed by way of examples, demos, and case research within the course, together with within the Capstone, so that you get to place your expertise into follow (useful for after they ask you at an interview in case you have ever carried out XYZ).

To earn the certificates and get the aggressive edge, all it’s important to do is full all of the work! Don’t underestimate how a lot time it’ll take, although.

There is quite a lot of glorious materials within the course, and whereas the graded quizzes are simple, the peer assignments should not.

There isn’t any remaining, pressured examination, however there’s the Capstone to work by way of. If you’re nervous about taking invigilated exams, that’s one more reason to take this course over one which makes you sit a remaining examination!

What I didn’t like about it

The disadvantages that I discovered are as follows.

Some of the workouts had been the identical, for instance, making a RACI or a RBS, however they’d completely different templates. One project requested me to fill in a subject on the template, however the template didn’t have that subject – it felt a bit like a sneaky take a look at: are you able to full the train though we haven’t made it straightforward so that you can get all of the marks?

The comms plan project requested me to create a doc that wanted a piece breakdown construction, however I didn’t have a WBS.

One project required two paperwork to be uploaded. The marking rubric required each paperwork to have the title of the mission on the high, and the rubric learn like it’s important to use the precise mission title to get the mark, however they had been two completely different names!

On one course, it asks you to evaluate the PDF, however there is no such thing as a requirement to add the content material as a PDF (different programs particularly ask you to save lots of your content material as a PDF – so far as I can see, it makes zero distinction to with the ability to entry the content material to mark it).

The modules really feel disjointed, like they’ve come from different programs and have been put collectively for this certificates, which they’ve.

These are all tiny gripes about formatting and content material, and so they don’t actually take away from the credibility of the certificates. I’m certain they are going to be resolved over time as college students level them out and they’re fastened.

My larger gripe is that the course may be very PMI-focused. In the comms course, the quiz particularly says these are the sort of questions you’d get in a CAPM examination.

I discovered the quiz questions very course of pushed in locations: “What process are you performing when you do X?” or “What document do you fill in during this stage but before this is done?”

This is just not actual life. It will enable you move the CAPM examination if that’s what you need, nevertheless it received’t enable you present up and be a wonderful mission supervisor as a result of in actual life, individuals don’t care that you just’re doing the Manage Quality course of in the present day or no matter. These should not the mission administration ideas that stakeholders lose sleep over.

It’s additionally not very agile. Agile ideas are coated, together with iterative improvement, adaptive planning, and different strategies, however they don’t present up all through the fabric.

Recommendation: Should you purchase this course?

If you’re significantly contemplating a profession in mission administration and desire a certificates to place in your job functions from a coaching supplier that folks will acknowledge, then this can be a implausible entry-level certificates.

Sign up for the free trial, try the course, and work by way of the content material to earn the badge.

I ought to let you recognize that I’m impressed with the course and that I’m now an affiliate for the Coursera platform so I can suggest it, however I solely suggest merchandise I’ve examined out and am assured in.

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