UCCS business students can earn project management certificate

Students at UCCS will be the first to earn a student certificate in project management from a national body of project management.

Under the direction of Gary Klein, Cougar Distinguished Professor of Information Systems, students studying at both graduate and undergraduate levels in the UCCS College of Business will have the opportunity to earn a student certificate in project management. Project management skills are crucial for jobs in government, defense, software development, and many engineering and construction companies.

UCCS students who participate in the program will be the first in the nation to earn this certificate in the fundamentals of project management. UCCS students enrolled in Klein’s undergraduate project management course or Web-based master of business administration project management course who opt for the program will receive the certificate following successful completion of an exam administered after the regularly scheduled final exams.

“Many of the courses in the College of Business cover essential elements of project management,” Klein said. “With additional coursework to focus knowledge on specific skills, it becomes a natural extension to offer a certificate indicating to potential employers that UCCS students have the basic knowledge of project management principles and are ready to participate productively as project team members. Perhaps more importantly is the designation as a student certificate, because those students who pursue project management are just beginning their learning experience.”

The certificate will be valid for three years and will encourage students to pursue additional project management certifications offered by the American Society for the Advancement of Project Management, or asapm, the U.S. affiliate of the International Project Management Association.

Klein serves on the board of directors of asapm, as the director of education. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in quantitative methods, programming languages, and project management. His research interests include system analysis and design, model management, project management and decision support systems. He joined the UCCS faculty in 1998 as the Cougar distinguished professor and served as interim dean of the College of Business in 2003-2004.

For more about project management and various certifications, visit www.asapm.org.