King’s College London and FourthRev launch first Career Accelerator in Product Management

• New fast track product management programme open for applications July 2022
• The course equips students with the technical and real world skills required for a sustainable career as a product manager
• Learners will benefit from 1:1 career coaching throughout the 6-months programme
• A programme developed for career starters or changers taking their first step into product management, as well as for those already working in product management wanting to formalise their existing experience.

London, UK;  07/07/22: As the digital economy continues to evolve, many companies are experiencing a step-change in the skills they need to thrive and grow. One key area where skills are in highest demand is in product management roles. This is why King’s College London  is announcing today the launch of the King’s Product Management Career Accelerator, in partnership with FourthRev, the digital education company. 

The 6-month programme has been developed by the Department of Digital Humanities at King’s, in collaboration with leaders from organisations such as Atlassian, Dropbox, Mr Yum, Linktree, and industry expert, Janna Bastow, CEO of ProdPad. With a curriculum co-designed by global technology companies and leading employers, the programme provides an immersive, project-based experience for learners seeking a career as a product manager. The Career Accelerator’s capstone Employer Project allows students the opportunity to work with an employer partner on real-world industry problems, where they have the chance to demonstrate and apply the capabilities they have developed throughout the programme, while creating meaningful organisational value for the partners.

A key part of the programme is its emphasis on developing in-demand skills and experience expected of product managers in today’s digital economy. Product managers often oversee multiple departments, manage relationships between different teams and liaise with customers and external stakeholders, all of which require a diverse skill set. The King’s Product Management Career Accelerator exposes learners to both the technical knowledge and human skills specifically related to product management, such as product and UX design, as well as cultivating interpersonal skills within a professional environment, including structured thinking and decision-making, communication and stakeholder management.  

Prof Smithies, Programme Coordinator on the Career Accelerator and Professor of Digital Humanities at King’s College London commented: “The King’s Product Management Career Accelerator connects university and industry in a genuine partnership that equips students with the confidence and skills they need to succeed in complex digital environments, ensuring they can design products that realise the needs of business, government and society and drawing on the expertise and strengths of King’s Department of Digital Humanities.”

Professor Marion Thain, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, King’s College London added: “King’s is delighted to be developing shorter courses through this partnership (to supplement our more traditional degree-length offerings) because it enables us to share our expertise more broadly. We are really proud of the incredible talent we have in this important area, placing us at the forefront of digital developments, and we want as many people as possible to be able to benefit from that talent. The skills and knowledge we offer are essential to tackling the major challenges of the twenty-first century. It is King’s mission to make the world a better place, and supporting the progression of people who are already in the workplace (as well as the more typical degree student) must be part of that. It’s also great to have this route to working more with industry experts and we look forward to developing further those relationships to the benefit of all parties.” 

Mark Lester, Chief Partnerships Officer for FouthRev added: “We are thrilled to be launching the Product Management Career Accelerator with King’s College London. Whether you’re looking to break into a product management career or deepening your expertise in product management, the Career Accelerator brings together the rich practical insights from veteran product managers, the experience of doing authentically-designed business projects from employers, and the academic rigour and analytical skill development from a world leading research university, so learners can acquire the job-relevant and critical abilities to achieve their career goals.”

Janna Bastow, CEO of ProdPad added: “I’m excited to see this course and its curriculum put together by King’s College London. For too long, product management has been a role that so many of us ‘fell into’ by chance or accident, and certainly didn’t have training or dedicated courses to guide the path there. When hiring for a product manager, as I am right now, I look for a good mix of practical knowledge and know-how about how the product development process works, along with experiences and stories that show the person has put those skills to use in a real-world environment. With the continued growth in the product management field, and with the wider tech sector, there’s going to be a huge demand for people with product management skills, and I’m glad to be working with King’s on bringing some of my own expertise into the mix with their students.”

The King’s Product Management Career Accelerator will open for applications in July 2022, with the first learners commencing their studies later this year. Although available to all, King’s and FourthRev expect the programme to appeal most to those starting out and looking for a ‘way in’ to the product management space, as well as those with 1-2 years of experience.

Participants will be assigned a Career Coach for the duration of the programme, providing access to 1:1 coaching focused on progressing personal career growth and development and upon finishing the course, students will receive a certification of completion from King’s College London.

ENDS

About King’s College London

King’s College London is an internationally-renowned university delivering exceptional education and world-leading research. Dedicated to driving positive and sustainable change in society, King’s has a vision to make the world a better place. 

The university has a proud history of inspiring and supporting those who seek to solve the world’s most pressing problems. Today, King’s seeks to define the university of the future. From research that led to the discovery of the structure of DNA, to developing life-changing therapies and making math education available to underrepresented groups – King’s continues to have a transformational impact on society. 

 World-changing ideas. Life-changing impact: kcl.ac.uk/news 

About FourthRev

FourthRev brings together leading universities, the world’s best technology companies and employer partners to deliver learning experiences with direct pathways to qualifications and jobs in the digital economy. Beginning in Melbourne in May 2019, they have since built courses with multiple global tech giants, including AWS, Salesforce and Tableau, delivered through university partnerships in the UK, Australia and the US.

FourthRev courses are currently available via 11 higher educational providers worldwide, including University of Coventry and FutureLearn, RMIT, University of Canberra and University of California, Irvine. The start-up is in conversation with a further 20 organisations, with plans to double the number of higher education partners in the next 12-18 months.

Explanation of Career Accelerators

Career Accelerators are differentiated by three core features: (1) Global tech companies and employer partners collaborate in the design and development of the programmes and projects to ensure learners acquire the latest technology and business requirements to hit the ground running in a commercial environment. (2) They are designed with world-leading universities to ensure learners develop skills in critical-thinking, problem solving and adaptability and can walk away with a highly prized qualification. (3) The include extensive career support to help learners secure new employment, as well as potential opportunities to gain a job or internship from FourthRev’s network of employer partners and recruitment firms.