Is a Certification from Product School Worth It?

In 2014, trained software engineer and entrepreneur Carlos González de Villaumbrosia founded Product School, intending to create a school he wished existed when starting his own product management career. Seven years later, Product School is one of the global leaders in product management training.

The school offers industry-recognized product management certifications for individuals and custom product training sessions for companies and organizations. Instructor-led classes are held live online and offer a mix of real-world case studies, group activities, and hands-on mentorship. It currently has over one million members in its community of product professionals worldwide.

Product School currently offers three levels of certification: Product Management Certificate, Product Leader Certificate, and Product Executive Certificate. The three certificates mirror the career trajectory of a product manager, teaching students everything they need to know to start their first job as a product manager until they make their way to C-suite. 

A Product School certification is recognized by several hiring managers in top companies globally. Although the certificate does not come with a job guarantee, it can be hugely beneficial and can help transform a product manager’s career. It has produced numerous student success stories that are concrete examples of possible careers in the product management industry with Product School.

How Product School Can Help You Land a Job

Since it first launched in 2014, more than 10,000 learners have taken Product School courses. The school works with over 1,000 hiring partners, which helps graduates find fulfilling jobs in product management.

As part of its goal of helping product managers start and advance fulfilling careers, Product School holds The Product Career Fair, which brings together dynamic companies looking for product managers and qualified candidates. Companies get access to top talent vetted in advance while job seekers meet and network with hiring managers from leading technology companies.

The Product Career Fair takes place live online and happens twice a year. Aside from virtual networking, the event also features roundtable discussions with real-world product leaders from leading tech companies such as Microsoft and Google. Companies like Amazon, Audible, and Tinder are among the hiring companies during this event. 

In the last Product Career Fair, there were 40 hiring companies with 300 jobs they were looking to fill. Around 800 candidates attended the fair. Through events such as these, Product School continues to provide valuable job-seeking tools to product managers, even after they’ve finished their certificate course. 

A Product School Alumni Story

Timothy Lew was studying accounting at the University of Southern California when he realized that he was more interested in building and creating things than crunching numbers. He made the switch to computer engineering with business administration, and it was during this journey when he also discovered his interest in product management.

“I wanted to first work in software engineering. I wanted to get a feel for how things are on the technical side, understanding the friction between software engineers and product managers before jumping in,” Timothy said. 

“I was initially a software engineer at my current company. Once I decided it was time to make the jump, that’s when I looked into Product School and other programs. Ultimately, I chose Product School. I took two courses with them. After that, I was able to transition into a product management role at my company Course Hero,” he continued.

Timothy chose Product School over other programs primarily because of the level of interaction the school offered. “I noticed that the courses at Product School focused more on a project that you’re working on throughout the length of the course. Other programs I looked at offered a more standard curriculum: go to a lecture for eight weeks. There was no clear, interactive component.”

“Product School made it very clear: ‘You’re going to be working on this project, applying what you learn each class, and your instructor is going to walk you through different exercises every class.’ Working on a portfolio product management case was one of my favorite experiences in the course. In our final project, we were supposed to uncover some opportunity for a company of our choosing.”

“Then, as you go through the steps of product management as they are taught, [you] pitch a feature to present at the end. That was probably the most fun I had in a course in a long time. It also gives you something to highlight on your resume when you’re looking for a job. You’re able to draw from this experience and show how you would think if you were actually on the job for this company,” Timothy shared.

Aside from the projects, Timothy also appreciated the deep and real-world experience his Product School instructors drew from. 

“I think one of the strongest aspects of Product School is that they hire senior-level product managers or above, who have actually worked in the industry. My instructor was a senior-level product manager. In my opinion, this is very different from having an academic instructor who is knowledgeable by doing research on the topic. It’s theoretical academics versus applied academics in a sense, and I loved how everything was applied.”

Product School instructors present the curriculum through prescribed slides and discussions but also add many insights based on their own experiences. 

“That was very helpful and interesting. I would say it was almost like a case study of the actual curriculum. The instructor would show how what we were learning applies to their day-to-day job. That was very cool to see,” Timothy said.

Timothy took the Product Management Certificate and Product Leader Certificate at Product School. In the first course, he worked on a project based on Uber bikes. 

At the time, Uber offered bikes, but the app did not specify where the bikes were located relative to the app user—they were just pinned on a map. Bikes were also separated from other Uber vehicles. Timothy proposed that bikes be included in the standard list of Uber vehicles available. 

At the time he was working on this, Lyft also came out with a press release about a similar product. This, for Timothy, further validated the practical and real-world lessons he was learning at Product School.

He was able to combine his work as a software engineer with product management in this current company, thanks to Product School. “Even when I was a software engineer, a lot of the product managers at my company let me help them out with their projects. ‘If you want to do this analysis on this AB test for me, you’re more than welcome to take up the extra work.’ I did things like that,” Timothy shared.

“The company environment was so supportive, I knew I wanted to stay. The only issue was the experience gap. What Product School really helped me do was fill in that experience gap. It’s almost like, I want to say, a training program. One that’s similar to the [programs] big companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft have for new grads.

“I wouldn’t say it’s exactly the same, but it has a similar effect. It holds your hands through product management before you actually jump in. You already have some projects under your belt, and you understand the flow of things. That’s what Product School helped me do,” he continued. 

Thanks to his Product School certifications and the relevant skills he gained, Timothy was able to transition from software engineering to product management seamlessly. His story is just one of many around the world who have used the skills they gained at Product School to start and advance their product management careers.

Is Product School Worth it?

For thousands of people around the world, a Product School certification has helped them grow as product managers, no matter what stage they are in their career. Whether as a new product manager or product manager already leading teams, the skills gained are invaluable and immediately applicable to the workplace. 

If this sounds right for you and you’re interested in earning a product management certification, learn more about Product School’s upcoming courses here.