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Purpose: This study aims to investigate how to improve the project management (PM) curriculum by evaluating the nature and alignment of learning outcomes in the PM course syllabi with Bloom's Taxonomy framework. Design/methodology/approach: The research methodology for this study is an integrative approach that uses document analysis and content analysis. The data set was selected based on a purposeful sampling method and came from PM course syllabi for classes that were taught during the 2016-2018 academic years. Findings: Results revealed that most of the reviewed PM course syllabi contained learning outcomes although they were written and assessed at the lower levels of Bloom's Taxonomy and knowledge dimensions. The study calls for the academy and industry to partner in improving the PM curriculum to lower the PM talent deficit and increase project success rates. Research limitations/implications: The absence of PM learning outcomes or the presence of poorly written PM learning outcomes in a course implies that the academy should provide professional development programs to help professors learn how to formulate and write specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timely learning outcomes. The professors should also ensure that the learning outcomes use a type of cognitive taxonomy that is aligned with the appropriate assessments to measure, monitor and guarantee assurance of learning. Practical implications: Academy and industry partners can work collaboratively to provide students with opportunities that expose them to real-world experiential projects, internships and job opportunities while concurrently giving them hands-on practical applications of learned PM knowledge and skills. The society will be well served when the academy is able to produce well-qualified PM personnel capable of successfully carrying out PM activities and lowering the project's failure rates. Social implications: The society will be well served when the academy is able to produce well-qualified PM personnel capable of successfully carrying out PM activities and lowering the project's failure rates. Originality/value: To the researchers' knowledge, this is the first study to specifically investigate the presence and nature of PM learning outcomes in course syllabi. By evaluating the alignment between PM learning outcomes and Bloom's Taxonomy action verbs and cognitive processes, the study provides some exemplars of well-written and measurable learning outcomes that professors can use to inform their PM curriculum through course design or redesign. more...

Project Management (PM) capability continues to be a highly desired skill set in many for-profit and not-for-profit organizations across a range of industries. However, the PM field faces a talent gap, and one approach that may increase the interest in PM education is having a learner-centered pedagogy. A learner-centered pedagogy seeks to create a community of learners through the implementation of several initiatives namely, sharing power between the teachers and the students, providing multiple assessments and evaluation avenues, specifying clear feedback mechanisms, and articulating a rationale for the course by tying the course content to the learning outcomes. The goal of this research is to conduct a descriptive content analysis to examine the nature and content of the PM syllabi to gain a better understanding of how they reflect and communicate the attributes of a learner-centered pedagogy and thus help in improving the learning, teaching, and delivery of the PM curriculum. This study makes use of a sample of 76 PM syllabi gathered in 2018 from instructors affiliated with the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) schools in the United States. The results have implications for the academy and the PM practice and call for improvements in the design and content of PM syllabi by including language and activities that foster the creation of a community of learners, mechanisms for offering periodic feedback, and consistent teacher-student interactions. Furthermore, it is suggested that the assessments and evaluations should be tied to the learning outcomes and incorporate "real world" experiential projects aligned with the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) areas and process groups. more...