Product School
Product School Reviews and Complete Guide
Product School offers live online product management courses taught by senior managers from leading tech companies such as Google, Facebook, Airbnb, and Amazon.
These are certificate courses meant to launch or further the career of product management professionals.
In this Product School review, we’ll look at what this bootcamp has to offer.
What Do You Need to Know About Product School?
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Product School is a global leader in product management education. Its courses offer practical training that equips software product managers with the skills they need to land a new job or a promotion.
The school has two courses aimed at product management professionals who want to take the next step in their career, and one for beginners seeking their first product management job. All classes are part-time, with many offered on evenings or weekends to suit the work schedules of both the expert instructors and students. Classes are capped at 20 students.
| Locations | Austin, Boston, Boulder, Chicago, Denver, London, Los Angeles, New York City, Online, Orange County, San Francisco, Seattle, Silicon Valley, Toronto |
| Tuition | Starting at $4,199, $9,999, |
| Financing Options | Installment plans |
| Start Dates | February 20, February 22, February 23, February 27, March 1, March 2, March 6, and more |
| Program Types | Online, Part-time, Self-paced |
| Courses | Product Manager Certificate, Product Leader Certificate, Product Executive Certificate |
Where Are Product School’s Campuses Located?
Product School’s certificate courses are always offered live and online. However, each class is tailored to a different time zone so that students from around the world can enroll.
In these classes, you will be able to interact with your professor and work with other students in real-time.
How Much Is Tuition at Product School?
Tuition at Product School can vary from $4,199 up to $9,999. Getting just one certificate from the school will cost you $4,199. However, if you wish to enroll in all three certificate programs, it’ll cost $9,999. It also offers corporate training at other price points.
How Can You Pay Product School Tuition?
Product School offers different financing options for students. This includes paying in full or paying in installments.
Product School Scholarships
Product School has pledged $500,000 to support students from communities that are underrepresented in technology. These scholarships are offered in partnership with the organizations Black Product Managers, Women in Product, Help Your Peers, and Product Buds. However, applications for these scholarships are currently closed.
ISAs
Product School does not offer an ISA.
Loan Financing
Product School offers loans through Climb. Monthly payments and interest rates will vary depending on the total amount of the loan.
Installments
If you can’t pay tuition upfront but don’t want to take out a loan, this school will allow you to pay back your tuition in installments, starting as low as $129 a month.
Can You Use the GI Bill at Product School?
Product School does not accept the GI Bill.
What Courses Does Product School Offer?
Product School offers three certifications that are meant to be taken consecutively. The one you should start with depends on what stage you’re at in your career. Below, we’ll explain what each certification course offers, so you can choose the one that matches your current career and aspirations.
Product Manager Certificate
If you want to become a product manager but have no experience, you should start with this course. The curriculum focuses on how to build digital products from start to finish and how to lead a cross-functional team.
The program takes 40 hours to complete and will leave you with the skills to start your product management career. It also includes resume review and interview prep.
Product Leader Certificate
The product leader certificate is the next step for those who have completed their product manager certificate, or for those who already have at least three years of experience in product management. This 40-hour program goes deeper into the product development cycle and the process of designing a product strategy.
Product Executive Certificate
The most advanced certificate offered by Product School, the product executive certificate, is designed for product management leaders. The certificate takes 20 hours to complete and is intended for professionals with at least five years of experience.
How to Get Accepted Into Product School
It’s relatively simple to get into Product School. After all, the beginner-level Product Manager Certificate is open to those with no prior product management experience.
Product School Acceptance Rate
Product School does not list its acceptance rate online.
Product School Application Process
The application process for Product School is easy. It consists of filling out a form online and completing an interview with an admissions officer.
- The first step in the process is to fill out the online form with your basic personal information.
- After you submit the form, the school’s admissions department will call you to discuss your career goals and help you decide which certification level you should pursue. This phone call will take about 30 minutes.
- Within a day or so, you will find out whether you have been admitted to the program. If you are accepted, you will need to pay a deposit. Classes are capped at 20 people, so it’s recommended that you pay quickly to secure your spot.
Product School Interview Questions
During your interview with the admissions director, you will be asked a variety of questions covering your product management experience and goals. These will be used to determine whether you are a good fit for Product School, and which course you should take. Below are some topics that are likely to come up in your interview.
- Your reasons for entering the product management field, and career goals.
- Your background in product management.
- If applicable, your feats or achievements in product management.
- Your short-term and long-term career goals.
- Any questions that you have about the school and its programs.
How Can You Prepare for Product School?
There are no prerequisites for entering Product School. However, below are a few ways you can get more familiar with the school and product management.
- Download books, videos, and guides – Product School has published its own best-selling book, the Product Book. It is filled with expert tips and industry best practices. Product School’s website also features other videos and guides that can help you prepare for your course.
- Listen to the podcast – Product School’s podcast is another great way to prepare. It features interviews and advice from experts.
Join some communities – There are several Product School communities that you can get involved in, including on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Slack. - Browse career resources – See if a career in product management is right for you by checking out Product School’s career resources. These include articles and an interview checklist.
Is Product School Worth It?
If you are interested in pursuing a career in product management or making greater progress in your current role, Product School is a logical step.
Unlike other certificate programs, Product School’s courses are taught by instructors who are currently working as product management professionals. Furthermore, the school has included job search assistance in its curriculum.
Product School Job Placement
Product School does not measure its job placement rate since two of its three courses are intended for those who are already working in product management.
Still, job search advice is built into the school’s curriculum. The lower-level certificate includes mock interviews for product management positions and LinkedIn reviews to ensure your profile is appealing to potential employers.
The school also maintains strong ties with its alumni. Product School encourages students to take advantage of the industry networking opportunities it hosts, including conferences, workshops, and events. As an alumnus, you will have lifetime access to the networking events, and Product School’s course content.
Does Product School Offer a Job Guarantee?
No, Product School does not offer a job guarantee. This means you will not be eligible for tuition reimbursement if you do not receive a job offer soon after graduation.
Should You Apply to Product School?
Product school is an industry-recognized school that stays on the cutting edge of product management education. The instructors work in product management every day, so they know what it takes to break into the industry and to achieve success.
Additionally, they know what hiring managers are looking for. This is one reason why Product School graduates have gone on to work for top companies such as Google and Adobe. If you want to enter the world of product management or secure a raise, enrolling in a Product School certification course is the right choice.
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8 Reviews
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Anonymous
I wanted to learn more about product management in order help me transition into the field. Went to many of their events and decided to enroll into the course. Loved the experience b/c our instructors were all real practitioners and we went through the entire product management cycle learning a ton along the way. Highly recommend this school if interested in product management.
June 20, 2017
Anonymous
I enrolled in Product school shortly after taking on a PM role at my current job and found it very helpful. The Product School curriculum packages the product life cycle into a simplified form that is easy enough to memorize but robust enough to apply when confronted with a mental roadblock. The lectures cover all aspects of their framework and augment the curriculum with additional tips that really empower you to tackle the demands of a career in product.
I decided to attend the course in person on Saturday mornings and while that may sound like a drag I actually found myself looking forward to it knowing how much I was learning by applying what we learned to case studies. The lectures and case studies were very engaging!
The instructor for my cohort was Dr. Joel Palathinkal who was very energetic for Saturday mornings! He always came in ready to tackle the days lecture and share product idea/experiences and challenged us to think on our feet. I truly appreciated his approach to teaching the course as it was very dynamic in that he covered everything on the syllabus but reacted to our input and tailored the lectures to focus on what students wanted to expand on. Joel went above and beyond by reaching out to his network of alumni to bring in guest speakers for every lecture. I can be a bit shy but he’s really cool and approachable making it easy to feel comfortable participating.
One of my favorite things about Product School is the Slack channels that offer a network where you can get help on a range of things from the need of advice from a SME to interview prep and even job leads! Whether you are new to product or early in your career I highly recommend the Product Management Course by Product School!
December 3, 2018
Anonymous
Taking Product School’s PM course has been one of my best career decisions so far! Switching careers, when you are already well established in your current role, can be quite a daunting task. So it was imperative for me to learn from the best and get the right level of support to break into product after completion of the course. I am so happy that I chose this as it delivered and exceeded my expectations from the course!
A few aspects that make this stand-out course are the thoughtful curriculum that hones student’s hard and soft skills, the access to an ever-expanding and helpful alumni group and, most importantly, the mentorship from your instructor during and after your course.
It was a privilege to be taught by Chris Maliwat – a PM veteran with solid experience in eBay, Netflix, Warby Parker and start-ups . Chris’s passion for his craft, teaching and mentorship elevated the entire experience for our group. He truly cares for his student’s career growth and it showed in his engagement with our group right from the very beginning. He is a phenomenal teacher and a great mentor, and I look forward to his guidance as I take next steps into becoming a PM.
I highly recommend Product School’s PM course for anyone seeking to transition into product or improving PM skills to become better in their role. It was totally worth the time and investment! Thank you Product School, you guys are doing an amazing job!
January 10, 2019
Anonymous
I just finished my Product Management class that I took at Product Management School in Bellevue Washington. I definitely feel like it was worse my time and the money I have invested in it. The class was twice a week in person for 8 weeks. I really liked the in-classroom interactive learning process. Almost every class, we had guest speakers from different big companies such as Google, Amazon, IBM, Best Buy and more. Us students had live Q&A sessions with the PMs where we could ask them any questions directly and get the answers right away. Throughout these 8 weeks, we have worked on a homework assignment which was an entire product that we had to build from the ground up. My teacher Swati was excellent at clarifying all the gray areas to me, answering all my questions, directing me to the right path, proving all the necessary tools for the interview preparation and much more. I could tell she was really invested in her teachings and truly was enjoying it which always makes the learning process so much better. I have already recommended this course to my colleague who trusts my research and knows that I would only recommend the best.
March 8, 2019
Anonymous
Product school (www.productschool.com) has a curriculum. The course touched upon many topics right from user persona, interviews, design, A/B testing, metrics, marketing, and the entire product development life cycle. You have to choose a product that you like and work on providing an opportunity hypothesis and launch that idea to market. All of this is done in 8 weeks with the help of the instructor and the lesson notes. Everyone chooses different products (mostly). Some are B2B, some are B2C, some are SaaS and some were PaaS products. At the end of the seventh week, we all presented our product-> idea-> Go-to-market strategy.
I liked every bit of the class and the assignments. But the question mostly asked that did it help you find jobs? I would say it helps you build your network and learn a few product management fundamentals. I am in the process of looking out for jobs now.
I will list out the pros and cons of the course now.
Pros:
A good outline of the 8-week course.
Great instructors.
Extremely active slack community.
Free networking events and webinars by reputed and established Product Managers.
Cheaper compared to General Assembly.
ProductCon is a great conference to meet and network.
Cons:
Less focus on product management interview preparation. I wish they had a couple more weeks to cover more on this.
Overall a great learning experience. I recommend to someone pivoting from another industry into product management and looking to network.
More on :https://medium.com/@atashijain/why-i-went-to-product-school-8a808f83a2b1
March 10, 2019
Anonymous
Thanks to Product School I established a solid foundation of PM knowledge that served me to get my first job as a PM @flybondi. The course content is invaluable and I still refer to it at work. Highly recommend it.
March 17, 2019
Anonymous
The materials are very basic and the instructors are also very average. I attended online version of Product Management.
You will not get anything back for the money ($3999) which you put it.
Totally waste of time. Instructors are more interested in selling their own services like they will prepare you for the job if you pay more and avail their services.
June 16, 2019
Anonymous
The course is not worth $3,999. Not even close.
To his credit, Mark, my instructor, was pretty good. He clearly has real hardware product experience, and is an experienced PM. He really tried to make realistic exercises that, as a newly minted PM, I can see were at least somewhat realistic.
The material/content Product School provided to him? Not so much.
First of all: course started early June. First or second class in July (it’s a two-month course), you begin classes on “public speaking” and “interviewing”. Basically half the course material is mostly useless or at least of questionable use. Which is why I withdrew at around the halfway point.
Second: it’s really not easy (possible?) to teach product management short of having the experience. Though I got somewhat familiar with different terms and such, the usefulness of the course in my actual job today is extremely low.
Lastly, I had an awful refund experience with the program team. First, I told them to refund me via check. Then, they forgot about my refund until I followed up two weeks later. Then, they refunded my via my credit card, which I don’t have access to anymore. When I told them to refund me via check (again), they did. But then that check bounced. You can imagine this was a frustrating process.
Anyways, don’t take this course. It’s a waste of money. Read Cracking the PM Interview, build your own product. This course isn’t for true future PMs.
July 16, 2019