Product Manager Degree: Educational Paths and How to Get Started

Getting a sought-after job as a product manager typically begins with getting the right skills and qualifications. For most people, this might mean getting a degree. Product managers have strong decision-making, analytical, and critical thinking skills as they work across their organization to ensure the success of different products.

Explore how to become a product manager, including which degrees you may pursue and specific skills and knowledge you may need to excel in your career. If you’re ready to start learning, consider enrolling in the IBM Product Manager Professional Certificate, where you’ll learn to apply key product management skills, tools, and techniques to engage and manage key stakeholders and clients.

What degree do I need to become a product manager?

Product managers typically need at least a bachelor’s degree, usually with a major such as marketing or business management. Seventy-two percent of product managers have a bachelor’s degree, while 17 percent have a master’s degree. Additionally, 7 percent of product managers have their associate's degree [1]. 

Why a degree can be helpful for a product management career

Earning a product manager degree can help you build specific skills that employers may expect you to have in this role, such as organization, problem-solving abilities, and how to market a product. A degree program also offers you the opportunity to explore a product’s lifecycle, how to meet customer demands, and stay up to date on trends.

Can you become a product manager without a degree?

You may become a product manager without a degree with proper experience and knowledge. To gain this experience and knowledge, you may explore entry-level roles, such as a product analyst or an associate product manager.

Product manager degree requirements and options

Various degree options are available to help prepare you for a career in product management, from business to marketing to engineering. These degree paths provide important skills like management, data analysis, problem-solving, and communication.

Business and management degrees

With a business or management degree, you can build skills in business analytics, leadership, and operations. Product managers often need a good understanding of business practices so they can manage the product in a way that will make it succeed. 

• Business: Earning a business degree may help you develop an understanding of how business works and how it pertains to product management and marketing your product. You may study topics like business law, business analytics, and leadership. 

• Business management: A degree in business management can be a helpful degree path because it emphasizes the management aspects of business. Skills like leadership and the ability to streamline operations are important and frequently utilized in product management.

Degrees in computer science and engineering

A degree path in computer science or engineering may help you gain skills such as software development, problem-solving, and attention to detail.

• Computer science: This degree can aid you in your path to product management because a strong specialization in computer science is a huge benefit if you want to work in the technology sector. As a product manager in this field, you could manage the technical aspects of products. Computer science degree programs focus on skills such as software design, problem-solving, and system administration. 

• Engineering: Engineering degree programs often cover skills such as project planning, quality control, and manufacturing processes. Engineering projects require skilled product managers to oversee different construction materials and products needed in the engineering sector. 

Degrees in marketing and psychology

A degree in marketing or psychology can help you discover skills like sales, statistics, and supply chain management.

• Marketing: Product managers use their skills to not only manage the flow and inventory of different products, but they can also make important decisions on product development. In this degree path, you typically have the opportunity to learn about supply chain management, business practices, and sales.

• Psychology: A product manager guides teams through the development of a product and communicates with many different people and departments. All of which requires great interpersonal and communication skills. In a psychology degree path, you may discover topics like human behavior, statistics, and cognition, giving you the tools to communicate with different people throughout your product management career. 

Example coursework and degree requirements

Depending on your major, your product management coursework may vary. Example coursework you may encounter when enrolling in a product management degree program, specifically a master’s related to product management or a bachelor’s focusing on business administration, includes [2, 3]:

• Managing people and teams

• Data science for product managers

• Business finance

• Marketing management

• Business information systems

• Management of organizational behavior

Typical degree requirements for a product management program, specifically a four-year bachelor’s degree in marketing, include 120 credits.

Product manager skills to complement your degree 

In addition to earning your bachelor’s or master’s degree, consider focusing on other skills that may help you succeed in product management. For example, learning Agile may help you develop more effective marketing plans. Other skills you may explore include: 

- Data analysis: To be a successful product manager, consider building your data analysis skills to accurately find trends in the market, as well as data pertaining to how consumers receive and react to your product. You can then make adjustments to your marketing and developmental plans.

- User experience (UX): An important aspect of selling a product includes a compelling and easy-to-navigate user experience. Putting yourself in the perspective of the consumer and modifying concepts to cultivate a positive user experience may be a helpful tool in your career.

- Communication: As you identify trends and make changes to your product and the user experience, you may need to communicate your findings with other members of your team, stakeholders, and consumers themselves.

How to become a product manager

To become a product manager, start by earning a relevant bachelor’s degree in fields like business, marketing, computer science, or engineering to develop key skills in management, analytics, and leadership. 

You may then go to explore internships, professional certifications, or networking opportunities to grow in your career and add to your resume.

Get certified

Expand your product manager skill set by utilizing online courses and certifications. Consider exploring the Certified Product Manager certification, offered by the Association of International Product Marketing and Management (AIPMM). In this program, you can explore strategies from global product management leaders and gain real-world experience demonstrating the skills you acquire.

You may also choose to expand your technical skills with the Software Product Management Specialization by the University of Alberta on Coursera. In this program, you’ll have the opportunity to master Agile development and effective interactions to drive the making of great software products.

Gain professional experience

To begin your career as a product manager, search for entry-level positions in your desired industry or take on an internship to hone your abilities. For example, if you choose to work in marketing, consider an entry-level role as a market research analyst or a product marketing specialist. 

Network

Networking with those who have experience in product management can be a great step not only for building connections, but also so you can discover what kind of product management job you want. Speaking to those already in the role will give you insight into which industry you should explore.

Do I need a master’s degree to become a product manager? 

While not a requirement to become a product manager, a master’s degree may benefit a career in many ways. For example, pursuing a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in product management may further specialize your skills and make you a more competitive candidate in the job market. Discover additional benefits and the skills you may gain through a master’s program.

Benefits of a master’s in product management

A master’s degree may lead to leadership opportunities, a higher salary, and connections with professionals in your line of work. Specific ways that an MBA or a Master of Science (MS) in Product Management may help you in your career as a product manager include:

• More career opportunities: By pursuing an MBA, you have the chance to attend events and classes where you can meet and network with industry professionals who may help you expand your network further and set you up for valuable career opportunities.

• Higher earning potential: Product managers with a master’s degree earn a median annual salary of $127,434, compared to those with a bachelor’s who earn $115,111 [1].

• Personalized learning: In Carnegie Mellon’s MS in Product Management, students have the opportunity to receive personalized coaching to develop their leadership skills [2]. Additionally, the small class size of this specific program, which was just 35 students in the class of 2025, allows you to work in a smaller setting with more individualized attention [4].

Skills you can gain from an MBA or MS program

Earning a master’s degree allows you to revisit subjects you enjoyed in your bachelor’s degree program and build on foundational skills. Some of the skills you can learn from an MBA or MS program include:

• High-tech product management: As technology continues to develop and expand, your role as a product manager may evolve to understanding how technology affects the creation and marketing of your product. In an MBA program, you can explore how business and technology work together in management and product development.

• Product marketing: In your MBA curriculum, you may have the opportunity to develop advanced product marketing strategies, including how to distribute a product, how it measures against competitors, and how a customer receives the marketing of a product.

• Team management: In a master’s program, you may go beyond managing individuals and expand your knowledge and expertise to managing teams as a whole. You may take part in discussions and exercises that allow you to demonstrate your skills and work on refining them.

Build product management skills with Coursera

Your learning can start today and happen anywhere. Hear from Illinois Tech online M.B.A. student and nonprofit educator Janie Butler, who is earning her degree while hiking the Pacific Crest Trail.

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