Arizona·Business and Financial Operations Occupations·SOC 13-1082

Best Project Management Specialist programs in Arizona, ranked by enrollment

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.

39 schools in Arizona run programs that feed this job, graduating 25,705 people a year. The job pays a median of $99,050 in Arizona across about 22,920 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Also calledGrant AssistantProject ManagerProject SchedulerProject ControllerProject CoordinatorProject AdministratorProject Delivery ManagerProject Management Manager
Graduates / yr
25,705
in Arizona
Median pay · Arizona
$99,050
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
22,920
people employed
Schools
39
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
31%
across those schools
Median net price
$22,442
per year, IPEDS

Fields of study in Arizona that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

5 programs in Arizona that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Arizona (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Arizona page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 52.0201In Arizona
22,732
88.4%
35$43,506$25,000
2
CIP 52.0101In Arizona
1,522
5.9%
16$44,700$24,000
3
CIP 52.0211In Arizona
774
3.0%
10$43,506$25,000
4
CIP 11.1005In Arizona
661
2.6%
3$48,185$25,250
5
CIP 52.0216In Arizona
16
0.1%
3$43,506$25,000

Top 25 schools in Arizona

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 13 of the 39 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1University of Phoenix - Arizona
Phoenix, AZ Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
13,655Business Administration and Management, General$58,26821%$15,478
2Grand Canyon University
Phoenix, AZ Private not-for-profit · 3 feeder programs
3,157Business Administration and Management, General$53,77043%$21,53579%
3The University of Arizona Global Campus
Chandler, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
2,016Business Administration and Management, General$61,46611%$26,445
4American InterContinental University System
Chandler, AZ Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs
1,811Business Administration and Management, General$43,5289%$15,785
5University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ Public · 1 feeder programs
650Business Administration and Management, General$50,92468%86%
6Arizona State University Campus Immersion
Tempe, AZ Public · 4 feeder programs
563Information Technology Project Management$61,98568%90%
7Mesa Community College
Mesa, AZ Public · 3 feeder programs
497Business/Commerce, General16%
8Chandler - Gilbert Community College
Chandler, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
430Business/Commerce, General30%
9Arizona State University Digital Immersion
Scottsdale, AZ Public · 4 feeder programs
414Information Technology Project Management$61,9850%67%
10Glendale Community College
Glendale, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
331Business/Commerce, General16%
11Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
315Business Administration and Management, General$47,88461%90%
12Estrella Mountain Community College
Avondale, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
250Business/Commerce, General32%
13Pima Community College
Tucson, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
195Business Administration and Management, General28%
14Paradise Valley Community College
Phoenix, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
193Business/Commerce, General19%
15Phoenix College
Phoenix, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
181Business/Commerce, General14%
16Scottsdale Community College
Scottsdale, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
133Business Administration and Management, General17%
17South Mountain Community College
Phoenix, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
106Business/Commerce, General16%
18Rio Salado College
Tempe, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
94Business/Commerce, General9%
19Arizona Western College
Yuma, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
93Business Administration and Management, General20%
20Arizona Christian University
Glendale, AZ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
80Business Administration and Management, General$40,70240%$32,19871%
21Aspen University
Phoenix, AZ Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs
63Business Administration and Management, General$54,92227%
22Ottawa University - Surprise
Surprise, AZ Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs
62Business Administration and Management, General$51,62718%$34,37378%
23Eastern Arizona College
Thatcher, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
57Business Administration and Management, General42%
24Yavapai College
Prescott, AZ Public · 1 feeder programs
46Business/Commerce, General34%
25GateWay Community College
Phoenix, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
43Business/Commerce, General29%

All 39 schools in Arizona

Every school in Arizona with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Arizona that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
University of Phoenix - ArizonaPhoenixPrivate for-profit13,6552
Grand Canyon UniversityPhoenixPrivate not-for-profit3,1573
The University of Arizona Global CampusChandlerPublic2,0162
American InterContinental University SystemChandlerPrivate for-profit1,8111
University of ArizonaTucsonPublic6501
Arizona State University Campus ImmersionTempePublic5634
Mesa Community CollegeMesaPublic4973
Chandler - Gilbert Community CollegeChandlerPublic4302
Arizona State University Digital ImmersionScottsdalePublic4144
Glendale Community CollegeGlendalePublic3312
Northern Arizona UniversityFlagstaffPublic3152
Estrella Mountain Community CollegeAvondalePublic2502
Pima Community CollegeTucsonPublic1952
Paradise Valley Community CollegePhoenixPublic1932
Phoenix CollegePhoenixPublic1812

What project management specialists earn in Arizona

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Arizona
$99,050
Mean annual
$105,310
Jobs in state
22,920
What the range looks like
10th pct$62,050Median$99,05090th pct$161,870
Versus the national median
-3.2%

U.S. median $102,320. Arizona pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
1.03×

1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.

Metro areas in Arizona

Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
$100,780median
17,790 jobs
Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ
$88,370median
250 jobs
Tucson, AZ
$91,500median
2,310 jobs
Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ
$85,400median
220 jobs
Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ
$84,610median
160 jobs
Yuma, AZ
$84,910median
240 jobs
Flagstaff, AZ
$77,940median
320 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+5.6%
Faster than average
Openings per year
78,200
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
58,700
1,046,300 → 1,105,000
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Project Management Specialists page.

How to become a Project Management Specialist

Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree

Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Arizona

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 6 majors mapped to Project Management Specialists6 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 11.1005Information Technology Project Management
  • 52.0101Business/Commerce, General
  • 52.0201Business Administration and Management, General
  • 52.0211Project Management
  • 52.0216Science/Technology Management
  • 52.2002Construction Project Management

Common questions

Answers for people weighing project management specialists programs in Arizona.

What degree do you need to become a Project Management Specialist?+

Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Business Administration and Management, General, which awarded 22,732 degrees in Arizona in 2024-25, 88.4% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.

Which college majors lead to becoming a Project Management Specialist?+

The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 5 programs to this occupation. The largest are Business Administration, Business/Commerce, Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management. Together they graduate about 25,705 people a year in Arizona.

How much do project management specialists earn in Arizona?+

The median is $99,050 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 3.2% below the U.S. median of $102,320. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for project management specialists growing?+

BLS projects a +5.6% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, faster than average, with roughly 78,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Arizona?+

39 institutions in Arizona reported graduates from at least one of the 5 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

Do you need training or experience beyond a degree?+

BLS lists 'None' for related work experience and 'None' for on-the-job training typically needed to reach competency.

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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