Office project manager education requirements

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

There are several educational requirements to become an office project manager. Office project managers usually study business, accounting, or communication. 61% of office project managers hold a bachelor's degree, and 18% hold an associate degree. We analyzed 3,484 real office project manager resumes to see exactly what office project manager education sections show.

The most common colleges for office project managers are the University of Phoenix and the University of Phoenix.

There are also many online office project manager courses to help get the education required to be an office project manager.

There are certain office project manager certifications that you should consider. These office project manager certifications include Project Management Professional (PMP) and Certified Management Accountant (CMA).

What education do you need to become an office project manager?

What degree do you need to be an office project manager?

The most common degree for office project managers is bachelor's degree, with 61% of office project managers earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are associate degree degree at 18% and associate degree degree at 12%.

Bachelor's, 61%

Associate, 18%

Master's, 12%

High School Diploma, 5%

Other Degrees, 4%

What should I major in to become an office project manager?

You should major in business to become an office project manager. 35% of office project managers major in business. Other common majors for an office project manager include accounting and communication.

Business, 35%

Accounting, 7%

Communication, 5%

Management, 4%

Other Majors, 49%

Most common colleges for office project managers

Office project managers often get their degrees at University of Phoenix, New York University, and Arizona State University. Here are the most common colleges for office project managers in the US based on their resumes.

Office project manager common college	Percentages
University of Phoenix	21.10%
New York University	8.02%
Arizona State University	5.49%
New York Institute of Technology	4.64%
University of Maryland - College Park	4.22%

Show more common office project manager colleges

Best majors for office project managers

Rank	Major	Percentages
1	Business	35.0%
2	Accounting	6.7%
3	Communication	5.2%
4	Management	4.5%
5	Marketing	4.2%

Show more common office project manager majors

Best colleges for office project managers

The best colleges for office project managers are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.

An office project manager with advanced education typically earns a higher salary and has access to better jobs. That's why Zippia looked into the best colleges for office project managers. We based this list on several metrics: admissions rate, retention rate, mean earnings of graduates, the ratio of working vs. non-working students ten years after admission, the average cost of attendance, and median debt for graduates who become office project managers.

1. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Enrollment

9,142

2. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$51,354

Enrollment

7,083

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$55,584

Enrollment

10,764

4. University of Minnesota - Twin Cities

Minneapolis, MN • Private

In-state tuition

$14,760

Enrollment

31,451

5. Cornell University

Ithaca, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$55,188

Enrollment

15,105

6. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$14,184

Enrollment

30,845

7. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

In-state tuition

$54,568

Enrollment

8,451

8. Western Carolina University

Cullowhee, NC • Private

In-state tuition

$3,926

Enrollment

9,835

9. SUNY College of Agriculture & Technology at Morrisville

Morrisville, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,670

Enrollment

2,758

10. Pennsylvania State University

University Park, PA • Private

In-state tuition

$18,454

Enrollment

40,108

20 best online courses for office project managers

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3. Contracts Management in Construction Projects

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Contracts Management, Contract Administration, FIDIC, Bank Guarantees, Contracts, Letter Drafting, Quantity Surveying...

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A practical guide on how to build and run PMO on the level of top consulting firm Mc Kinsey, BCG, Bain, Pw C...

5. Mastering Construction/Project Management

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Mastering Construction-Project Management in less than 10 Hours...

6. Project Management Essentials

4.5

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A crash course in the essentials of project management for new project managers...

7. Xero Bookkeeping & Accounting, w/ Set-up & Reporting

4.3

(263)

From Set-up to Bookkeeping, Accounting, Reporting, & Financial Statements in Xero with a Certified Xero Advisor...

8. Agile Crash Course: Agile Project Management; Agile Delivery

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Agile Project Management Basics (Scrum) & Agile Project Management Essentials (Scrum). Plus Agile Certification (Scrum)...

9. Project Management - Complete Guide For A+ Project Managers

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Complete guide to project management - stakeholders, planning, cost, quality, risks, feasibility, methods & resourcing...

10. Payroll Accounting: Laws, Calculations, and Journal Entries

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Master the complex world of payroll with practical examples, legislation insights, and comprehensive problems...

11. Practical Project Management for Management Consultants

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12. IT Project Budget & Cost Management

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Project Management tips to manage a million dollar IT Project budget from start to finish...

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This Agile Project Management Bootcamp course will allow you to learn the Agile Way! Agile Project Management (Scrum)...

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15. Professional Diploma in Project Management

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16. QuickBooks Payroll - QuickBooks Online

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Processing Quick Books Online payroll for a small business, generating paychecks, processing payroll tax forms...

17. Project Management: Simple Software Project Management

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Project Management for NEW Project Managers - knowledge, tools, techniques, skills, checklists, guidelines, pitfalls...

18. Project Management: Becoming a Successful Project manager

4.4

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Project Management...

19. Project Management Master Class: Government Projects

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Learn How To Win Big By Always Successfully Completing Government Projects Using Ninja Project Management Techniques...

20. Project Management Fundamentals

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Practical Project Management worked example using Gantt Charts, PMI, PMP, APM...

Top 10 most affordable universities for office project managers

The most affordable schools for office project managers are Baruch College of the City University of New York, california state university - bakersfield, and university of florida.

If the best universities for office project managers are out of your price range, check out these affordable schools. After factoring in in-state tuition and fees, the average cost of attendance, admissions rate, average net price, and mean earnings after six years, we found that these are the most affordable schools for office project managers.

1. Baruch College of the City University of New York

New York, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$7,262

Cost of attendance

14,046

2. California State University - Bakersfield

Bakersfield, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$7,309

Cost of attendance

16,714

3. University of Florida

Gainesville, FL • Private

In-state tuition

$6,381

Cost of attendance

21,034

4. SUNY Farmingdale

Farmingdale, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,306

Cost of attendance

16,091

5. University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez

Mayaguez, PR • Private

In-state tuition

$4,094

Cost of attendance

14,302

6. California State University - Dominguez Hills

Carson, CA • Private

In-state tuition

$6,942

Cost of attendance

14,469

7. Dickinson State University

Dickinson, ND • Private

In-state tuition

$6,768

Cost of attendance

15,506

8. Clayton State University

Morrow, GA • Private

In-state tuition

$5,419

Cost of attendance

17,697

9. Brigham Young University

Provo, UT • Private

In-state tuition

$5,620

Cost of attendance

18,136

10. SUNY Polytechnic Institute

Utica, NY • Private

In-state tuition

$8,238

Cost of attendance

21,567

Top 10 hardest universities to get into for office project managers

The hardest universities for office project managers to get into are Stanford University, Northwestern University, and University of Pennsylvania.

Some great schools for office project managers are hard to get into, but they also set your career up for greater success. The list below shows the most challenging universities to get into for office project managers based on an institution's admissions rates, average SAT scores accepted, median ACT scores accepted, and mean earnings of students six years after admission.

1. Stanford University

Stanford, CA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,497

2. Northwestern University

Evanston, IL • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,508

3. University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA • Private

Admissions rate

SAT average

1,492

4. Boston University

Boston, MA • Private

Admissions rate

22%

SAT average

1,420

5. Cornell University

Ithaca, NY • Private

Admissions rate

11%

SAT average

1,471

6. New York University

New York, NY • Private

Admissions rate

20%

SAT average

1,419

7. University of Southern California

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

13%

SAT average

1,445

8. University of California, Berkeley

Berkeley, CA • Private

Admissions rate

15%

SAT average

1,448

9. Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN • Private

Admissions rate

10%

SAT average

1,514

10. George Washington University, The

Washington, DC • Private

Admissions rate

42%

SAT average

1,380

Top 10 easy-to-apply-to universities for office project managers

The easiest schools for office project managers to get into are D'Youville College, gwynedd mercy university, and mount saint mary's university.

Some schools are much easier to get into. If you want to start your career as an office project manager without much hassle, check out the list of schools where you will be accepted in no time. We compiled admissions rates, average SAT scores, average ACT scores, and average salary of students six years after graduation to uncover which were the easiest schools to get into for office project managers.

1. D'Youville College

Buffalo, NY • Private

Admissions rate

100%

SAT average

1,072

2. Gwynedd Mercy University

Gwynedd Valley, PA • Private

Admissions rate

92%

SAT average

1,031

3. Mount Saint Mary's University

Los Angeles, CA • Private

Admissions rate

84%

SAT average

1,031

4. Felician University

Lodi, NJ • Private

Admissions rate

81%

SAT average

999

5. Barry University

Miami, FL • Private

Admissions rate

91%

SAT average

1,006

6. Life University

Marietta, GA • Private

Admissions rate

94%

SAT average

979

7. Oregon Institute of Technology

Klamath Falls, OR • Private

Admissions rate

96%

SAT average

1,139

8. Presentation College

Aberdeen, SD • Private

Admissions rate

97%

SAT average

1,050

9. Oklahoma Wesleyan University

Bartlesville, OK • Private

Admissions rate

68%

SAT average

964

10. Fresno Pacific University

Fresno, CA • Private

Admissions rate

85%

SAT average

1,053

Average office project manager salary by education level

Office project managers with a Doctorate degree earn more than those without, at $120,238 annually. With a Master's degree, office project managers earn a median annual income of $110,880 compared to $95,883 for office project managers with an Bachelor's degree.

Office project manager education level	Office project manager salary
Master's Degree	$110,880
High School Diploma or Less	$79,054
Bachelor's Degree	$95,883
Doctorate Degree	$120,238
Some College/ Associate Degree	$82,356

Office project manager education FAQs

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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