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construction project management

Types of Degrees construction project management Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing construction project management have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	7
Master’s Degree	5

What construction project management Majors Need to Know

Coursework for construction project management emphasize a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that construction project management graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

Coursework in construction project management emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Administration and Management — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Mathematics — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Building and Construction — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Customer and Personal Service — Importance 3.8 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills developed in a construction project management program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Active Listening — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Speaking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Critical Thinking — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Judgment and Decision Making — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to construction project management careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Deductive Reasoning — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, construction project management graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.3 / 7
Getting Information	4.2 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.2 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.1 / 7
Scheduling Work and Activities	4.0 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.0 / 7
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards	4.0 / 7
Communicating with People Outside the Organization	3.9 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by construction project management professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Google Docs	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
3M Post-it App	Word processing software	—
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Microsoft Visio	Process mapping and design software	—
Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne	Enterprise resource planning ERP software	—
Project management software	Project management software	✓

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for construction project management graduates include:

• Project Coordinator
• Railroad Construction Director
• Utility Division Project Manager
• Site Manager
• Construction Director
• Construction Manager
• Commercial Superintendent
• Electrical Superintendent
• Construction Project Manager
• Masonry Contractor Administrator (Masonry Construction Admin)
• Construction Superintendent
• Commercial Construction Superintendent
• Superintendent
• Site Supervision Technical Operator
• Construction Coordinator

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to construction project management graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Bachelor’s degree	31.4%
Doctoral degree	18.0%
Postsecondary certificate	11.3%
High school diploma or equivalent	11.3%
Master’s degree	8.8%
Some college courses	7.5%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	7.5%
Less than a high school diploma	3.8%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.1%
First professional degree	0.1%
Post-master’s certificate	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in construction project management?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 83.3% of construction project management degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	2	16.7%
Men	10	83.3%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of construction project management graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	8	66.7%
Asian	1	8.3%
Hispanic or Latino	1	8.3%
Black or African American	1	8.3%
Race Unknown	1	8.3%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do construction project management Graduates Earn?

College Scorecard reports median earnings of construction project management graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$73,015
4 years	$82,569
5 years	$93,031

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $93,031 — roughly 27% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Is a Degree in construction project management Worth It?

Strictly by the federal earnings tracker, construction project management graduates earn a median of $82,569 four years after completion — roughly 117% above the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000).

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Construction Management	52.20
Construction Management, General	52.2001
Construction Management, Other	52.2099
Business Administration and Management, General	52.0201
Business/Commerce, General	52.0101
Operations Management and Supervision	52.0205
Project Management	52.0211
Accounting and Business/Management	52.0305
Accounting and Finance	52.0304
Accounting	52.0301
Actuarial Science	52.1304
Auditing	52.0303

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.