How to become a project manager
Official title: Project manager
Also called: ICT project manager, Construction project manager, Engineering project manager, Joinery manager
Project managers oversee projects and project teams. They manage the planning, resources, schedule, administration and budget of projects.
Main tasks
- Estimate costs for projects
- Manage project budgets
- Make sure projects stays on schedule
- Manage resources, buying and supply for projects
- Talk to clients and suppliers
- Manage relationships with clients and suppliers
- Lead project planning and review meetings
- Manage project teams
How to become one
You usually need experience to become a project manager and a qualification may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 to do the study or training for this job. Other requirements: experience in similar work; a relevant tertiary qualification in business and management or similar area; a Project Management Institute of New Zealand Certificate; a PRINCE2, PMBOK or Agile qualification.
Ways in
- University: Business & Commerce degrees, Offered by 6 universities in New Zealand
Pay · Past change
- Most common pay: $74,000 to $139,000 a year (median $97,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
- Lower: $59,000 a year · Upper: $189,000 a year
- TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
- Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Increase (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
Who does this work
- About 16,000 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
Related jobs
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Questions people ask
How do I become a project manager?
You usually need experience to become a project manager and a qualification may be useful. You usually need NCEA Level 3 to do the study or training for this job. Other requirements: experience in similar work; a relevant tertiary qualification in business and management or similar area; a Project Management Institute of New Zealand Certificate; a PRINCE2, PMBOK or Agile qualification.
How much does a project manager earn in New Zealand?
The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $97,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $74,000 to $139,000 a year.
Has the number of people working as a project manager grown in New Zealand?
It has grown: TEC records an increase in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.
Sources
- Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.
Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.
This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.
Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.
These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.
Updated 4 October 2026