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The critical skills and perspectives required by today’s project managers continue to evolve and expand as projects become increasingly complex and timelines tighten.

Turning a complacent organization into a lean, pioneering market leader takes powerful project management skills. Become a master of leading-edge project management tools and Lean agility — the concept of creating the most value while minimizing resources, time, energy, and effort used — and learn a skill set valued by companies in virtually every industry. As the practice of project management expands within industries like health care, publishing, and professional services, the global economy has become more project-oriented. A 2017 survey commissioned by the Project Management Institute® anticipates project management jobs will increase 33% nationwide between 2017 and 2027. Organizations increasingly rely on technologies and the projects needed to support them, and are connecting the dots between strategy and action, working to assure that project benefits are truly delivered as expected.

Leveraging the deep resources of Clark’s knowledge center, our master’s in project management is distinguished in the academic marketplace by its emphasis on lean practices, giving you the skills to increase your ability to implement strategic initiatives, drive change, and deliver innovation.

Our focus on technical knowledge and leadership skills will provide you with the well-rounded expertise that today’s employers demand. You’ll gain a deeper understanding across the project management lifecycle while mastering the key strategies needed to assess risk, manage quality, minimize costs, control scope, and incorporate research insights into the planning and management process.

International Students

Candidates with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees are in tremendous demand across most major industries in the United States. When you graduate with a STEM-designated degree, such as the Master of Science in Project Management, you may be eligible to remain in this country for up to 36 months on Optional Practical Training (OPT).

Why a Master’s in Project Management at Clark University?

  • Tap into the resources of Clark University’s widely respected information technology knowledge center.
  • Clark’s information technology (IT) project management orientation gives you the experience needed to work with the increasing level of complexity associated with IT projects like cloud deployments, globalization, and IT integration across business functions.
  • Work in a highly collaborative learning environment with talented peers and scholar-practitioner faculty who share with you their deep leadership experience.
  • Amp up your skills at a globally ranked and accredited university that has set itself apart as a leader in skills-based education with an outcome focused curriculum.
  • Explore a degree program aligned with the Project Management Institute’s Global Accreditation Center.
professor leblanc

Learn from Professor Brian LeBlanc, a Leader in Lean Project Management

Professor LeBlanc is a successful entrepreneur and corporate leader, currently working for an industry leading financial services firm, with a passion for building highly productive teams and processes. He is renowned as a strategic problem solver.

Review Professor LeBlanc’s latest video where he discusses the concept of “The Startup Mod.”

Greatness in project management is built upon a depth of experience. Clark's unique program studies PM techniques, presenting them in a challenging format to add critical skills, creating skilled project leaders for an increasingly complex business ecosystem."
—Brian LeBlanc

Professor of Practice

The Essentials

Program Overview

Gain knowledge in every step from project inception to completion, including project definition, cost and risk estimation, schedule planning and monitoring, budget management, negotiation and conflict resolution, leadership, presentation, and evaluation. Our master’s in project management curriculum provides standalone skills-based training to a working professional audience across multiple industries.

Our focus is to help you understand the concepts, tools, and tasks of a project manager, while ensuring you gain the practical leadership skills needed to excel on the job. Our instructors have specific topical expertise and provide an optimized learning process and practical application of the technical and soft skills learned. With easy access to an additional portfolio of potential electives, providing expertise in cybersecurity, and IT architectures and analytics, students can construct an educational experience that is uniquely focused on their own career aspirations, including pursuing a concentration in Lean Management.

Learning Outcomes and Competencies – School of Professional Studies

The following sections talk about the specific programmatic outcomes for each credential.  For programs at the Masters level, a core of five core operational competencies informs our theoretical framework for all Clark University School of Professional Studies Master’s degrees. Graduate certificates are not held to the same holistic standard as they are considered to be narrower in focus and more applied in practice.  For the credentials at the Masters level, those competencies are:

Core Competencies for SPS Master’s Degrees
Organizational Systems OR Foundational Elements for STEM Programs Developing an appreciation and understanding of the interdependence of the parts of a system will result in effectively and efficiently assisting an organization by developing its strategy and delivering its intended mission.  For STEM credentials, a solid foundation in analytical and diagnostic competencies which will enable the student to succeed from a technological perspective.
Ethics and Social Responsibility

 

 The SPS curriculum will stress the importance of ethics and corporate social responsibility, so all SPS students are aware of the advantages of ethical behavior in business and professional life, and can act from a moral point of view. The notions of ethics and social responsibility are extended to STEM programming through the lens of the issue of data and programming integrity that can inform systems and analytical architecture that is applied in a fair and equitable manner.
Applied Research As a professional, SPS graduates will have the ability to call upon research methodologies to solve practical problems organizations and individuals encounter.  Our professional focus demands that informed research is a core value to knowledgeable problem-solving.
Workplace Dynamics, Communication, and Career Management OR Core Technologies Necessary to Meet STEM Industry Standards Workplace dynamics involve the relationships among the members of an organization, including departmental and interpersonal relationships. The capacity to communicate effectively is an essential skill for the successful professional. Career is an integral component of a professional’s life, and career can be maximized by an awareness of opportunities available consistent with individual talents.  For STEM-based programs, core technological applications and industry standards will be presented to form a foundation of programming and problem-solving competencies for a successful workplace experience.
Theoretical Grounding Each SPS degree is part of a field of study based upon a collection of theories that have proven to be effective when applied to challenges. Students will develop an appreciation for how arguments are used to explain, predict, and understand phenomena.

 

MS in Project Management
Operational Competency Learning Outcomes
Organizational Systems – to understand and apply the basics of effective project management within the Information Technology domain. (Course MSIT3840 IT Project Management Fundamentals)
  • Manage a project through the development lifecycle by applying established project management techniques in each project phase.
  • Establish the goals and deliverables for each phase, and evaluate and track to a project plan.
  • Communicate the project health and status effectively to senior management and other stakeholders via project management templates (introduced in class) and by sharpening verbal presentation skills.
  • Explain the management skills necessary to be successful in local as well as distributed project environments.
  • Evaluate a project and determine the correct project methodology to use.
Ethics and Social Responsibility – to apply value and ethics across all interactions based upon an understanding of the organizational dynamics of the enterprise. (Course: MPA3120 Organizational Behavior and Leadership)
  • Describe organizational behavior and its importance.
  • Explain at least five of the components of organizational behavior.
  • Understand how teams can impact an organization.
  • Describe the role of culture in an organization’s success or failure.
  • Identify the importance of change for an organization’s success.
Workplace Dynamics – to be able to prioritize and manage multiple initiatives with an understanding of how they fit within the overall workplace. (Course: MSPM3680 Project and Portfolio Management)
  • Understand the differences between program and portfolio management versus project management.
  • Understand project governance across multiple projects.
  • Understand the project management office (PMO) and strategies for implementation.
  • Understand project management information systems (PMIS).
Core Competencies required to meet PMI standards – to be able to apply the foundational elements of effective product management as defined by the discipline’s governing body. (Course: MSPM3580 Risk, Quality, and Change Management)
  • Understand risk management planning, identification, analysis, and control.
  • Understand the general principles of quality planning and assurance.
  • Understand quality improvement methods and techniques such as Six Sigma, LEAN, and TQM, and the application of quality management work products.
  • Develop an understanding of how to apply change management techniques, configuration management, and formal change control processes.
  • Understand process management and business process re-engineering.
Theoretical Grounding – to understand when and how to apply the most current approaches in product design. (Course: MSIT3760 Design Thinking Approach to Product Development)
  • Start a project off successfully by writing an accurate problem statement.
  • Identify customer needs through observation.
  • Traverse brainstorm design sessions as part of a team.
  • Accelerate innovation through time boxed processes.

We recognize the valuable experience and perspectives that working professionals bring to the class. If you are a student with three or more years in a professional position or hold an industry-standard certification, you can apply for the Assessment Prior Learning (APL) credit.*

You may be awarded APL credit for up to two (2) graduate courses, enabling you to complete your degree more quickly and cost effectively. (An administrative fee is applied if the APL credit is approved.)

*Applies to Worcester campus only.

  • Manage a project through the development lifecycle by applying established project management techniques in each project phase.
  • Articulate the framework, roles and rituals, and insights into functioning in an agile environment and how project management becomes a distributed function.
  • Understand risk management planning, identification, analysis, and control.
  • Recognize the development and deployment options (i.e., premise, cloud, hybrid cloud) and the associated impact on time to project completion, capital costs, and operating costs.
  • Learn to establish goals and deliverables, and communicate effectively about project health and status to senior management and other stakeholders.
  • IT Project Management Fundamentals
  • Agile Software Development Methodology
  • IT Economics, Finance, and Budgeting
  • Managing Troubled Projects

Requirements

10 course units

  • 7 core courses
  • 3 elective courses

Course Catalog

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