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Project Management Specialists

Typical education: Bachelor's degreeModerate pressure Bright Outlook

What they do

Analyze and coordinate the schedule, timeline, procurement, staffing, and budget of a product or service on a per project basis. Lead and guide the work of technical staff. May serve as a point of contact for the client or customer.

Kinds of work

  • Enterprising: Leading, persuading, selling and starting new projects or businesses.
  • Conventional: Organizing information, following clear procedures and working with data and details.

Moderate pressure: How much pressure workers in this job report: deadlines, conflict, dealing with upset people, the cost of mistakes, responsibility for others' safety, competition and long hours. It varies a lot from one employer to the next. Source: U.S. Department of Labor worker surveys.

Pay, tasks and more

Salary

United States $102,320 Median per year · $49.19/hr Most earn $61,580–$167,970

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025.

What you might do

  • Request and review project updates to ensure deadlines are met.
  • Propose, review, or approve modifications to project plans.
  • Monitor project milestones and deliverables.
  • Develop or update project plans including information such as objectives, technologies, schedules, funding, and staffing.
  • Plan, schedule, or coordinate project activities to meet deadlines.
  • Prepare and submit budget estimates, progress reports, or cost tracking reports.

Job outlook

Bright Outlook Rapid Growth; Numerous Job Openings

United States
7% more jobs by 2035, faster than average · about 76,500 openings a year

Openings include new jobs and jobs left by workers who retire or change careers. Projections: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Bright Outlook": U.S. Department of Labor.

Where they work

  • Computer systems design and related services7.0%
  • Nonresidential building construction6.7%
  • Engineering services6.5%
  • Management, scientific, and technical consulting services6.1%
  • Management of companies and enterprises4.3%

Share of all workers in this career. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Employment Matrix.

Often remoteExperience before this job: 2 to 4 years

Career path

How people usually get into this career, from school to their first job and beyond.

Typical education: Bachelor's degreeExperience before this job: 2 to 4 years

Project Management Specialist is usually not a first job straight out of school. Most people earn a bachelor's degree, spend about 2 to 4 years in an entry-level coordinator or assistant role, and then move into this career.

  1. Bachelor's degree in business, engineering, information systems, or a related field

    4 years

    You build a foundation in planning, budgeting, communication, and how organizations run projects, which is what employers look for in this field.

  2. Project Coordinator

    2-4 years

    You help schedule tasks, track budgets and deadlines, take meeting notes, and keep project teams organized, which builds the experience needed for a specialist role.

  3. Project Management Specialist

    Career goal

    You analyze and coordinate schedules, timelines, procurement, staffing, and budgets for a project, guide technical staff, and often serve as the main contact for clients.

Where it can lead

  1. Senior Project Manager

    3-5 years of experience first

    You take on larger or riskier projects, make more decisions on your own, and may lead several project teams at once.

  2. Computer and Information Systems Manager

    6-8 years total experience of experience first

    You lead IT teams and set technology direction for a department or company, which usually requires a strong track record of managing projects and people.

What you can do now

Ideas for high school and college students.

In high school

  • Take math and a business or economics classMath and budgeting skills are used every day in managing project schedules and costs.
  • Lead a school club or team projectPlanning events or a class project teaches you to set deadlines, divide tasks, and keep people on track.
  • Get a part-time or summer jobAny job that requires scheduling, handling money, or serving customers helps you practice reliability and communication.
  • Practice public speaking and writingJoining a debate or drama club, or writing for the school paper, builds the clear communication that project managers need.

In college

  • Choose a major such as business, engineering, or information systemsThese majors give you coursework in planning, operations, and project management concepts that employers expect.
  • Take a course in project management or schedulingA class on project planning or scheduling introduces you to the methods used in this career.
  • Get an internship or co-op with a project teamHands-on work with real deadlines and budgets gives you experience that counts toward entry-level coordinator roles.
  • Join a student organization that runs events or projectsLeading event committees or project-based clubs builds the planning and teamwork skills you will use on the job.

Tips for getting started

  • Ask to help with scheduling, budgets, or client updates in any job or volunteer role, since these are the everyday skills this career uses.
  • Get comfortable with common project tools such as spreadsheets and scheduling or task-tracking software, and learn to write clear status updates.
  • Look at job postings for coordinator and specialist roles in fields you like, so you can see which skills and degrees employers ask for. Pay details are on each career's page in this app.

Related jobs that often lead here

Related jobs a step up

Education, experience and related careers: U.S. Department of Labor. The step-by-step path, where it can lead and what you can do now were written by AI as typical examples; many people take other ways.

College majors that lead here

Majors: U.S. Department of Education and BLS (CIP–SOC crosswalk). Earnings and debt: College Scorecard, typical across U.S. colleges.

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