Managing projects to the agreed scope, time, budget and quality requirements is essential to industry. This course looks at the concept of establishing a baseline for expected performance in terms of projects within a programme environment in order to maximise the benefits. You will gain knowledge in relation to best practice in project scope management and establishing the project baseline.
Aligned to the Association of Project Management’s Body of Knowledge 7th edition and delivered by our highly experienced project management team, this programme provides you with the technical skills and contextual knowledge to contribute to effective scope management and successful project delivery.
Graduate destinations
The course can lead to a career in project management or project controls.
Course outline
Course summary
STUDY – APPLY – REFLECT - LEARN
Incorporating three 20-credit modules, this programme will explore the core activities of establishing and managing the project baseline and its role in successfully delivering project outcomes and allowing benefits to be realised. You will develop an understanding of the extended project lifecycle and the relationship between projects, programmes and portfolios in the context of the project baseline, and acquire the skills for baseline definition, control and management.
Delivery is online utilising a mix of synchronous and asynchronous techniques. Live discussions with your tutor, interspersed with guided self-study (sometimes group, sometimes individual) take place on a fixed day each week. Beyond the scheduled delivery you are free to engage with e-learning materials in your own time, at your own pace to take advantage of the additional learning materials that are available. Through the programme sessions you will explore the tools and techniques for determining and analysing project requirements, setting the scope baseline, and refining solutions through value engineering. You will explore how projects, and particularly scope, is managed within the broader context of the programme and portfolio and the evolution of scope baseline management throughout the project life cycle.
Delivered by our highly experienced academic team and featuring a range of case studies and guest lectures, this programme incorporates learning and best practice from a diverse range of industries with examples from the IT, health, military, engineering, and nuclear sectors.
On this course you will…
- Explain how projects, programmes and portfolios relate to each other, and the roles and accountabilities in a project and programme environment.
- Define project scope and describe the process of developing solutions to establish the baseline.
- Explain the concept of value engineering and its importance in solutions development.
- Explain the importance of requirements analysis, verification and validation in a project and programme context.
- Explain the importance of estimating and cost benchmarking when establishing the project baseline and describe cost and schedule management within the context of projects.
Course structure
Delivered over one university semester using a day release model, this University Certificate in Project Scope Baseline Management features three 20-credit modules designed to enhance your knowledge and skills in planning and delivering projects.
Modules
Modules
Compulsory modules
- Projects in a Programme Environment
- Establishing the Project Baseline
- Project Baseline Management and Control
Teaching and Assessment
How you will learn
This University Certificate has been designed to be delivered fully online. This allows you to study from any location and plan your studies around other commitments.
A highly interactive student experience, our online learning sessions are delivered live by our expert tutors, and you are encouraged to contribute your thoughts, knowledge and experience to all the information that is being presented. Interaction continues after the scheduled live sessions with tools embedded into Blackboard, our Virtual learning Environment. Between taught sessions you can upload your work, observations and critical reflections to an online journal which your tutor can then read and provide feedback on, allowing you to progress at your own pace and pull out and focus on the aspects of learning that are most appropriate for your context and situation. Additional discussions can also take place with the teaching team utilising online tools such as Blackboard Collaborate or MS Teams.
As a student on a programme at the University, you will have access to a range of informative and interactive online resources. In addition, students on the programme are able to make use of the resources and facilities for self-study and extra-curricular activities at our University campuses.
Students seeking to study this programme in employment need to discuss these arrangements with their employer prior to application.
How you will be assessed
The programme uses a variety of assessment methods including written assignments, short-answer tests, and presentations. Each module usually involves two pieces of assessment. Further details can be found in the programme specification.
Programme Specification
For detailed summary of all course content please read our programme specification for this course.
Assessment, Feedback, and Teaching and Learning methods
Full details are available in the programme specification.
Timetables
The teaching timetable should be available from the end of August. Access to the timetable is through the Student Hub – you will be able to access the Student Hub after you have completed online registration. The teaching day is 9am to 6pm, Monday to Friday; please keep your other commitments open until confirmation of your teaching timetable, and bear in mind that many courses will offer placements or fieldwork which sometimes extends into the evenings and weekends.
Entry requirements
Have a question about our entry requirements?
Entry Requirements
Applicants for this programme must have 40 UCAS tariff points and GCSE Maths and English at grade C/4 or above, or at least two years’ work experience in project delivery.
Entry requirements
Applicants for this programme must have 40 UCAS tariff points and GCSE Maths and English at grade C/4 or above, or at least two years’ work experience in project delivery.
Application information
Applications should be made online directly to the university using the apply button above. For more details and guidance, please contact the University of Cumbria Project Academy Office on 01228 616332 or project.academy@cumbria.ac.uk.
There is no official closing date but we would encourage you to apply as early as possible, as many courses are competitive.
Student finance
We have a wide range of scholarships, bursaries, grants and funds available to support you throughout your studies with us. This includes the Cumbria Bursary - a non-repayable bursary designed to support first year students with a household income of less than £25,000.
Student FinanceFees and Funding
Tuition fees are set annually and are subject to review each year. The University may therefore raise tuition fees in the second or subsequent years of a course, in line with inflation and/or the maximum permitted by law or Government policy. Students will be notified of any changes as soon as possible.
Employers intending to sponsor students should contact project.academy@cumbria.ac.uk to discuss financial arrangements.
There may be some additional costs. For example, all students will need to purchase stationery and may wish to purchase some text books. Travel to or from University campuses to attend any in-person activities that are scheduled is not included in the course fee, nor are any accommodation costs, such sessions will however be optional as all learning materials are available online.
