Turning 25 Years of IT Experience Into a Project Management Career

After more than two decades working in information technology, Erick Bowman has seen firsthand how complex projects succeed or fail. What he realized during this time was that his deep technical experience gave him a perspective that many project managers didn’t always have. 

That realization sparked a new goal: to formally transition into project management and lead initiatives himself.

To make that jump, Erick sought a rigorous academic foundation to complement the practical experience he had built during that 25-year career—and our Project Management certificate fit the bill.

The five-course curriculum helped him translate decades of hands-on experience into structured leadership skills and ultimately positioned him for the next stage of his career as a professional project manager.

Today, Erick works for the State of California as a project manager and continues to grow in a field he has long admired.

It was one of those situations where things I had been doing by instinct suddenly had structure and context behind them.

Building a Career in Technology

Erick’s career in technology began at a junior college, where he discovered early on that IT was the right path for him.

“That foundation launched my career at Hewlett Packard as a computer specialist,” Erick says of his entry into the field.

As the technology industry evolved, so did Erick’s career. He stayed with the Hewlett-Packard ecosystem through multiple corporate changes and spin-offs, gaining a wide range of experience across the IT landscape.

Over time, however, he began noticing something during the many projects he worked on alongside project managers.

“I worked closely with project managers on all kinds of initiatives,” Bowman explains. “If I'm being honest, those experiences were sometimes frustrating because I felt that my technical background gave me a perspective that was missing from how some of those projects were being run.

“That frustration actually became my motivation,” he continues. “I realized that with everything I had learned over 25 years in IT, I had the foundation to be a really effective project manager myself.”

So when Erick began exploring project management education, he initially considered earning a certification through a short boot camp.

Some colleagues even recommended that approach.

“When I first started exploring my options, some project managers I knew encouraged me to just do a boot camp and get my PMP® certification,” he says. “When I mentioned I was going to UC Berkeley Extension instead, a few of them questioned why I would take that route.”

But Erick had a different vision for what he wanted out of his education.

“Passing a test doesn't make you a project manager,” he says. “What truly prepares you for the work is understanding the processes, learning the methodologies and developing a real grasp of what it means to manage a project from the ground up.”

That depth of learning was exactly what he found in our curriculum. “UC Berkeley Extension gave me that depth, and looking back I wouldn't have done it any other way.”

I realized that with everything I had learned over 25 years in IT, I had the foundation to be a really effective project manager myself.

Learning From Instructors and Peers

One of the aspects Erick valued most about the program was the engagement and experience of the instructors.

“The curriculum was practical and applicable in a way that constantly pushed my thinking,” he says. “It wasn't just about absorbing information; it was about genuinely understanding how to apply it.”

The instructors played a key role in making that possible.

“Every single one of them was engaged, responsive and invested in my progress,” Erick says. “I never felt like they were just rubber stamping my work. They reviewed everything thoughtfully and gave me real, meaningful feedback that helped me improve along the way.”

His fellow students also enriched the learning experience.

“Collaborating with people from different backgrounds and hearing their perspectives added a layer to the learning that I wasn't expecting but really valued,” he says. “It all came together in a way that felt genuinely rewarding.”

Like many of our students, Erick had to balance his studies with a full-time job. Throughout the certificate, he worked in IT at next-generation technology and national security company Peraton while completing his coursework.

“All of my classes were taken online and it worked really well for me,” Erick recalls. “The format was well organized and easy to navigate, which made it easy to stay on top of the coursework while balancing everything else in my life.”

What stood out to him most was how interactive the online learning experience felt.

“They didn't just post assignments and disappear,” he says of the instructors. “They made the experience feel personal and connected, which I think is harder to pull off online than people realize.”

The discussion boards and group work helped foster a strong sense of community among students, even in a virtual environment. “It never felt like I was learning in isolation,” Erick says. “It felt like a real school experience, just from the comfort of my own home.”

UC Berkeley Extension gave me that depth, and looking back I wouldn't have done it any other way.

Applying What He Learned

As Erick moved through the certificate, he quickly began applying what he learned directly to his work.

At the time, he was working within an Agile framework.

“Going through the certificate gave me a much deeper understanding of what Agile is really supposed to look like in practice,” he explains. “It was one of those situations where things I had been doing by instinct suddenly had structure and context behind them.”

That deeper understanding strengthened his confidence and effectiveness on the job.

“The certificate also lit a fire in me to keep going,” Erick says. After completing the program, he continued building on that momentum by earning several major professional certifications, including a Project Management Professional (PMP)®, Certified ScrumMaster® (CSM®) and PMI Agile Certified Practitioner (PMI-ACP)®.

“The foundation that UC Berkeley Extension gave me made all of that feel within reach,” he says.

Erick’s work today as a certified project manager represents a crowning achievement of years of experience and dedication.

“This role, in many ways, feels like the culmination of everything I have been working toward,” he says.

For Erick, earning the certificate was about much more than adding a credential to his résumé.

“It means a great deal to me on both a personal and professional level,” he says. “I made a deliberate choice to invest in a rigorous program at UC Berkeley Extension rather than take a shortcut, and completing it confirmed that I made the right call.”

For students considering the certificate, Erick emphasizes the importance of fully engaging with the learning experience.

“My biggest piece of advice is simple: Take the program seriously,” he says. “This is not something you want to sleepwalk through.”

He encourages students to focus on truly mastering the concepts rather than simply completing assignments. “The more you put into it, the more you are going to get out of it,” Erick offers. “Understand the methods, sit with the concepts and really think about how they apply to the work you are doing or want to be doing. If you do that, the rewards go way beyond the certificate itself.”

As he looks toward the future, Erick hopes to continue advancing in the field and taking on increasingly complex projects.

For someone who began as a computer specialist at a junior college and built a career through the evolving tech industry, the path has been both challenging and deeply rewarding.

“The journey has been a long one,” Bowman says, “but every step has been worth it.”