For college students, a delightful and intriguing experience in the world of planning, organizing, controlling and directing projects. Students not only learn essential leadership skills for success, but also learn to transform lackluster work into exciting accomplishments.

One of ILIA’s pioneering academic programs and offered in several states for over a decade, the YPM certification has been one of the most programs in demand. This novel certificate program is the first-of-a-kind offered in the world for youth combining the concepts of professional project management and innovative values and concepts.

The certification is offered to youth who seek to excel in their lives and transcend traditional boundaries. It provides students an opportunity to learn, practice and apply project management skills through a set of eight courses. All courses are mandatory and certification can be achieved in completing two classes for attainment of the Basic Project Management Certificate, four courses and the competition achieves an Intermediate Level Project Management Certification, and all classes achieve the Advanced Project Management Certificate. The Basic Level Project Management Certification can be achieved in as little as one week. All course work must be completed within a maximum of two years to be eligible to receive advanced certification. The list of course requirements is included along with prerequisites; additional requirements might apply for selected courses.

YPM101 Youth Project Management

An introductory course in key areas of project management covering definition of a project, the difference between project management and product management, project scope, scheduling, cost, quality, risk and procurement. The course is a mix of presentation, hands-on activities, team project and interactive assignments.

Duration: 7 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks and lunch included

Books: Project Management in 3 Hours, Youth Project Management Workbook

YPM201 Youth Project Cost Management

An introductory course in key areas of project management covering details of project costing including, budget, income statements, balance sheets, cost variance and cost estimation. The course is a mix of presentation, hands-on activities, team project and interactive assignments.

Duration: 7 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks and lunch included

Books: The Lemonade Stand

YPM202 Youth Project Risk Management

An introductory course in key areas of project risk management covering details of decision making, objectives, reliance, delegation, procrastination, risk management planning, identification, qualification, quantification and mitigation. The course is a mix of outdoor activities, hands-on activities, group assignments, critical thinking and games.

Duration: 15 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks, lunch and dinner included

Books: Smart Choices

YPM203 Youth Project Time Management

An introductory course in key areas of project schedule management covering details of activity definition, dependencies, resource allocation, scheduling, and the concept of time in this life and the hereafter. The course is a mix of outdoor activities, hands-on activities, group assignments, critical thinking and games.

Duration: 15 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks, lunch and dinner included

Books: The Concept of Time

YPM204 Project Communications for Youth

An introductory course in key areas of project communications covering details of negotiation, active listening, conflict resolution, ideas presentation, motivation and dealing with difficult people. The course is a mix of outdoor activities, hands-on activities, group assignments, critical thinking and games.

Duration: 15 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks, lunch and dinner included

Books: Make the Click Bridge the Gap

YPM290 Project Management Value for Youth

A deep dive into the value of project management and its significance in everyday life. Students are exposed to situational analysis of real projects; examples are glimpses from the Glasgow Tower in the UK and the FBI Virtual File Case Management Program. Students will learn metrics used to measure project success, techniques to critique project performance, factors affecting project success and problems facing real-life projects. Students will engage in brainstorming, group discussions, analysis and critical thinking.

Duration: 6 hours

Meals: Morning and afternoon snacks and lunch included

Books: The Project Management Casebook

YPM298 Youth Project Management Competition

An annual regional youth project management competition. Successful delivery of a project plan and presentation in the competition is a requirement to receive the Youth Project Management Certificate. Students compete in developing a full project plan for a real project in their community. Examples of past project plans are for a new school development, small business launch, food drive, or newsletter.

Duration: 60 days of planning time, competition takes place over one day

Meals: Snacks and lunch

YPM299 Youth Project Delivery Capstone

Students shall lead and manage the implementation and delivery of a real community project in accordance to a plan they have developed as part of the capstone project for a full year.

Duration: 1 year of planning and execution time, project briefing and performance review takes place over four hours

Meals: Snacks