Master level education in project management — The EuroMPM model

Projects are one of the most important organizational patterns in industry and society. Projects drive change and change takes place in a projectized world. Therefore, project management is a competence field which is required in many areas and on various competence levels. Master education in project management is a special type of delivery for project management competence. It combines a scientific approach with an education for a professional domain. Master programmes are an established way of competence delivery in project management — both for graduate students and professionals. With the ambition to define a European way of Master education in project management, the partners of the consortium of the European Master in Project Management (EuroMPM) developed a portfolio of six Master programmes at different European universities. These programmes are closely interlinked with exchange formats for students, scientists and lecturers, double degrees and a joint research community. The programmes follow a similar philosophy and didactic model. They have a synchronized and aligned curriculum. The intended competence profile for the graduates is aligned, too, while still being differentiated by local specialization modules and different target groups. The comprehensive approach in terms of content development, delivery, didactics, community of practice and intended learning outcomes forms a unique model — the EuroMPM model. This contribution aims to define and describe the EuroMPM model. The intention is to serve as a position paper and starting point for the development of a de-facto standard in project management education on Master level.