Adjunct Professor, Project Management

Polymath University; Chicago (IL); Remote; USD 4,500 - 5,500; Part time

Job summary

Polymath Institute is seeking an Adjunct Professor of Project Management to teach BUS 555 for the Pivot MBA, a fully remote program with Defiance College. The instructor will prepare students for PMP certification and lead graduate-level online instruction with a focus on practical project leadership.

The course runs 8 weeks, with 5 hours of live instruction per week. Cohorts are capped at 20 students, and instructors collaborate with Polymath and Defiance College to connect coursework with

Qualifications

• Master's or doctoral degree in a relevant field.
• Applied professional experience leading or managing projects.
• Working command of predictive, agile, and hybrid project management, and of the PMI framework.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to inspire and mentor students from diverse backgrounds in a remote environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deliver engaging course content aligned with the BUS 555 syllabus and Polymath's interdisciplinary framework.
• Align instruction with PMI PMP Examination Content Outline so students are prepared for the exam.
• Facilitate live online sessions using cases, simulations, and applied exercises.
• Use Canvas LMS for course materials, assignments, grading, and student communication.
• Assess student work and provide timely, constructive feedback; act as coach and instructor.
• Work directly with the founder of Polymath University and support staff to connect course material to apprenticeships and career goals.
• Stay current in the field and bring in recent, real-world examples.

Skills

Project leadership

PMI framework

Agile/Hybrid PM

Communication skills

Remote mentoring

Education

Master's or PhD in a relevant field

Job description

Polymath Institute is hiring an Adjunct Professor of Project Management to teach BUS 555 Project Management in the Spring 2027 term of the Pivot MBA™. The Pivot MBA™ is a fully remote MBA for career changers, delivered in partnership with Defiance College.

This course prepares students to sit for, and pass, the Project Management Professional (PMP)® certification exam from the Project Management Institute (PMI). Every student's first exam attempt is included in their tuition. We're looking for an instructor who can teach graduate-level project management and get students ready for exam day.

The course runs 8 weeks, with 5 hours per week of live, synchronous online instruction. Each cohort is capped at 20 students.

We hire practitioners. We expect you to have led real projects and to bring those experiences to class. Adjunct professors are co-appointed as adjunct faculty with Defiance College, Polymath Institute's accredited degree-granting partner for the Pivot MBA™.

About the course

BUS 555 builds advanced skills for leading complex projects across different kinds of organizations. Students plan, execute, monitor, and close projects using the PMI framework of process groups and knowledge areas. They build schedules using critical path, PERT, and earned value techniques. They design risk responses, compare predictive, agile, and hybrid approaches, and plan stakeholder engagement and change management. The course combines cases, collaborative planning, stakeholder simulations, and peer review of project deliverables.

Pivot MBA™ students are career changers. Many come from K-12 education, the military, and public service. This course gives them the discipline of project management and the preparation to earn the PMP®.

Core human skills

Every Polymath course is built on four core human skills. In Project Management, they look like this:

• Curiosity:Students dig into scope, constraints, and what stakeholders actually need before they build a plan.
• Creativity:Students choose and adapt predictive, agile, or hybrid approaches to fit the project in front of them.
• Critical thinking:Students analyze schedules, costs, and risks with data, forecast outcomes, and recommend corrective action.
• Community:Students lead teams, engage stakeholders, and manage change so that a finished project is actually adopted.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and deliver engaging course content that builds on the existing BUS 555 syllabus and Polymath's interdisciplinary curriculum framework.
• Align instruction and practice with PMI's current PMP® Examination Content Outline so students are prepared to sit for the exam.
• Facilitate live, participatory online sessions using cases, simulations, and applied exercises.
• Use Canvas LMS for course materials, assignments, grading, and student communication.
• Assess student work and give timely, constructive feedback. You'll act as a coach as well as an instructor. Teaching here depends on knowing each student and supporting their growth.
• Work directly with the founder of Polymath University and Polymath support staff to connect course material to students' apprenticeships and career goals.
• Stay current in the field and bring in recent, real-world examples.

Qualifications

Required

• Master's or doctoral degree in a relevant field.
• Applied professional experience leading or managing projects.
• Working command of predictive, agile, and hybrid project management, and of the PMI framework.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to inspire and mentor students from diverse backgrounds in a remote environment.

Preferred

• Experience teaching or coaching PMP® exam preparation.
• College-level teaching or professional training experience. If you're a practitioner new to academia, we still want to hear from you.
• Experience teaching in Canvas LMS.

Compensation

$5,000 for the course.

About Polymath Institute

Polymath Institute is the name under which Polymath University, a Chicago-based nonprofit, delivers the Pivot MBA™. Polymath University was founded in 2023 to build a new model for higher education that is interdisciplinary, apprenticeship-based, and debt-free.

The Pivot MBA™ is a 20-month, fully remote MBA for career changers. Students take courses with a cohort of up to 20 peers and complete a paid apprenticeship with an employer partner that leads into a full-time role. The degree is awarded in partnership with Defiance College, Polymath Institute's accredited degree-granting partner.

Our mission is to develop modern polymaths: leaders and problem solvers with breadth, depth, and integration of knowledge who are intellectually and morally prepared to solve humanity's greatest challenges. Every course is built on four pillars: curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, and community. Learn more at polymath.org.

PMP and PMI are registered marks of the Project Management Institute, Inc.