Whether you are entirely new to project management, learning the basics for PMO certification or ready to take the next step in your project management career, a free training course can help put you on the right path.

Why Should You Earn a Project Management Certification?

Employers are always looking to hire the best person for the job. The best candidate should fit a company’s culture and vision, but they should also be skilled and qualified to perform the tasks at hand. On the job market, project management certification can help you stand out against the competition.

The Project Management Institute (PMI) offers the PMO certification to verify professionals’ experience and skills. With the PMO designation, you may qualify for more employment opportunities and increased earning potential.

PMI surveyed professionals worldwide and found that the median salary for those with PMO certification is 16% higher than those without, on average.

Free PMO Certification Courses

Each of the free PMO certification courses below has both strengths and weaknesses. They all entail different time commitments and resources. Note that some of our listed resources are free for only a limited time before requiring payment.

None of these free PMO certification courses will result in the PMO credential. You can only earn PMO certification by taking the official PMI-administered exam. However, the below courses can help you prepare to earn this certification.

Master of Project Academy

Time Commitment: 1 hour

Cost: Free

Course Description:

Master of Project Academy’s free PMO training course is 100% online and self-paced, containing three sections of learning material. The course includes over 25 lectures, plus an assortment of resources for those wanting more information.

This course includes a handout, a short quiz and a situational project case example. The free materials in section two include a PMO question bank, flashcards, a formula sheet and a sample of Master of Project Academy’s PMO prep eBook. The course also provides a walkthrough of the PMO application process, including photos of each step.

There is no final exam at the end of the course. The only requirement to obtain the certificate is to complete each module.

1. PMO Global Institute

CB-PMO Certification - PMO Global Institute Inc.

Certified Baseline PMO Consultant (CB-PMO)® credential is the most important industry-recognized certification for PMO professionals. Globally recognized and demanded, the CB-PMO® demonstrates that you have the experience, education and competency to setup, manage and mature Project/Program/Portfolio Management Office (PMO).

This CB-PMO)® certification program is based on Project Management Office (PMO) Guidebook First Edition (PMO Guidebook®)theory and best practices paired with hands-on, real-world exercises taught by instructors who are experienced, CB-PMO®-certified professionals.

• Length: 21 Hours

• Delivery Method: Instructor Led Live Training (Online course (using Zoom). The attendee will receive the course presentation (.pptx) by the end of course.)

• Professional Unit: 21 hours

• Text Book: Project Management Office (PMO) Guidebook First Edition (PMOGuidebook®)

2.Udemy

Time Commitment: 1.5 hours

Cost: Free

Course Description:

Udemy offers multiple free PMO courses, each created by a different instructor. One such course is the introduction to PMO exam tutorial, created by Bayhas Al Sawady, PfMP, PMO, ACP, PMO-CP. Like many of the courses on this list, this course is introductory. It acts as a starting point for those wanting to learn or review the basics of project management.

This course includes five sections of content. Each is limited to multiple short video lectures and does not include any supplemental materials to support learning. The sections provide an overview of project management, the project management framework, organizational influences on project life cycles and project management processes. The course also gives a brief review of PMI and its Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide.

Like all free courses offered by Udemy, this one does not result in a certificate of completion. This course may lead to a paid PMO exam prep course, also created by Sawady. Note that PMI has not designated this program as an authorized training partner.

3.LinkedIn Learning

Time Commitment: 3 hours and 20 minutes

Cost: Free

Course Description:

The project management foundations course—taught by Bonnie Biafore, PMO—teaches students the fundamentals of project management through videos, activities and quizzes. This class uses downloadable exercises to walk students through each module.

Completing this course results in a LinkedIn Learning certificate of completion. It also provides options to receive National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) continuing professional education (CPE) credits, along with PMI professional development units (PDUs) and contact hours.

All course content must be completed to obtain the 8.6 available NASBA CPE credits. You must also score 70% or higher on the 43-question final exam within one year of completion. Earning the 3.5 PMI PDUs and contact hours only requires course completion.

4.Skillup by Simplilearn

Time Commitment: 9 hours of self-paced video lessons

Cost: 90 days of free access

Course Description:

The PMO basics course is crafted for aspiring project managers, introducing basic project management knowledge through video presentations. This course comprises 17 sections, each associated with a video lesson. It does not include assignments, projects, tests or quizzes, which can be a drawback if you’re looking for more resources.

The lessons cover an array of project-planning concepts like project cost, time, quality management, communication, human resource management and popular project management tools. Lesson lengths range from less than 15 minutes to more than 90 minutes.

After watching 85% of the lesson videos in this course, you can obtain and download a completion certificate. If you are looking for more advanced training, Simplilearn is a PMI-authorized training partner that offers a paid PMO certification course.

5.Coursera

Time Commitment: 1 hour per week, 5 months

Cost: Included with Coursera Plus membership ($49/month)

Course Description:

The University of California, Irvine offers Coursera’s project management principles and practices specialization course for professionals with little to no experience in project management. This introductory course covers the knowledge and skills necessary to manage work projects. It is also 100% online and entirely self-paced.

Throughout this course, learners complete projects and assignments that require an understanding and application of project management skills. These include defining a project’s scope, building a work breakdown structure, creating a project budget and identifying and managing risks.

While this course is ultimately an introduction to project management, Coursera also offers a paid professional certificate. This subsequent course also fulfills the PMI’s educational requirements for the PMO credential and prepares learners to pass the PMO certification exam.