Leadership Skills Your Crew Can Count On
Cal State East Bay’s Construction Management Certificate Program provides you with an up-to-date understanding of construction management fundamentals and equips you with the leadership skills you’ll need to advance to a management position or create your own construction business. Upon completion of the program, you’ll be prepared for the day-to-day challenges you will face in the field, from managing subcontractors and cash flow to controlling costs and minimizing risk.
Best Online CollegesRanked among the Top Consensus Best Value Online Schools for 2023
Professional DevelopmentHands-on preparation for management roles
Faculty ExcellenceTaught by faculty with extensive experience in the construction industry
Practical Experience at Every Level
With CSUEB’s Construction Management Program, you’ll enjoy a dynamic curriculum that merges theory with practice and provides you with the opportunity to apply the techniques you learn in a variety of real-world settings. You’ll learn from seasoned professionals and engage in online coursework that mixes lectures, group work, reading and writing assignments, and guest speaker engagements.
This is an excellent program, even for seasoned construction professionals like me. The program can also be very beneficial for younger individuals getting started in the trade. The certificate helped complete the ‘education’ portion of my resume and set me apart from my competition. Many interested employers were impressed that I completed a two-year course, and I was hired at PG&E as an Operations Superintendent.
A Dynamic Field that Demands Expertise
Taking part in a construction project is an exciting job in and of itself, but can you imagine being in charge of the entire project from development to implementation? As a construction manager, you’ll be involved in every step of a construction project from planning and coordinating to budget and supervision. Throughout the lifespan of a project, you may find yourself working from an office one day and then out in the field on a construction site the next.
If you enjoy a fast-paced and hands-on profession, construction management is right for you.
Occupational Trends
The median annual wage for construction managers in the San Francisco Bay Area was $149,570, in 2023, while the national median wage is $104,900.
—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Employment of construction managers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2022 to 2032, faster than the average occupation.
—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Construction managers held about 505,800 jobs in 2022.
—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Build a Better Future
With the training and education you’ll receive at Cal State East Bay, you’ll be equipped to embrace management roles in a variety of industries and settings, including the building of public, residential, commercial, and industrial structures, as well as roads, memorials, and bridges.
Certification is becoming increasingly important for construction managers.
Certification is becoming increasingly important for construction managers and with a Certificate in Construction Management from an accredited university, you’ll demonstrate expert knowledge and experience to both future employers and employees.
Upon completion of the program, Cal State East Bay graduates have opened their own successful construction management businesses and others have secured management positions within their existing companies or a new organization entirely.
About two years ago, I started my own construction management company. I spend much of the work week engaged in estimating, CPM scheduling, project management, construction accounting…all courses that I took through the CSUEB Construction Management program.
Program Objectives
As part of your experience in the Construction Management Certificate Program, you will:
Learn how to manage all facets of construction projects large and small and tackle the challenges they will face on site.
Gain a thorough grounding in construction accounting and other business matters such as bonding and insurance.
Become familiar with the numerous legal aspects of construction, from elements of a contract and managing contracts to real estate law and land development regulation.
Gain skills and confidence in estimating costs and preparing bids.
Learn how to work effectively with clients, suppliers, architects, engineers, and others.
Acquire up-to-date knowledge of construction methods, materials, and technology.
Program Format
Courses are conveniently offered online, making them easily accessible for active professionals. You’ll enjoy a curriculum that incorporates a variety of learning styles including lectures, class discussion, group work, reading and writing assignments, and guest speaker lecture.
Certificate Requirements
To earn a Certificate in Construction Management, you must complete nine required courses.
| Course | Units | Term |
|---|---|---|
| EXTX 200: Drawings and Specifications | ||
| EXTX 201: Business Practices and Project Controls | ||
| EXTX 202: Legal Aspects of Construction | Fall, weeks 9-16 |
|
| EXTX 203: Estimating and Bidding | Fall, weeks 9-16 |
|
| EXTX 204: Project Planning | Spring, weeks 1-8 | |
| EXTX 205: Project Administration and Site Supervision | ||
| EXTX 206: CPM Scheduling | Spring, weeks 9-16 | |
| EXTX 207: Construction Methods & Materials | Spring, weeks 9-16 | |
| EXTX 208: Practical Applications of Construction Management | 3 CEUs | Summer |
Course schedules, including the terms that courses are offered in, are subject to change. For the most up-to-date information on courses currently being offered, visit the Course Search page.
Jim Benson
I enjoy good group collaboration and discussions in my class.
Jim Benson has over 20 years of experience in the construction industry. He has been estimating large commercial projects for 14 years and Chief Estimator since 2004 at S.J. Amoroso Construction Co., Inc.
Mike Chambers
Michael (Mike) Chambers grew up and went through grade school, high school, and Cal Poly State University in San Luis Obispo, California. Chambers was awarded a degree in Construction Engineering in 1978 and passed the Engineer in Training exam during his senior year. After graduation, he was self-employed building redwood decks and retaining walls. Chambers loved being outdoors and the physical nature that construction work entails.
As a Peace Corps Volunteer, Chambers was posted to Kenya in East Africa where he was involved in both the design and construction of small scale water supply systems and the construction of a high school dormitory and classrooms. Upon returning to the US, he got a job with Granite Construction as a field engineer on their $700 million Helms Creek Pumped Storage Project in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Chambers met his wife Mahshideh on this project while she was also working for Granite as a draftsperson. He took and passed his Professional Civil Engineering Exam shortly after leaving Granite.
Next, Chambers went to work for S.J. Amoroso Construction who is a mid-sized Bay Area based General Contractor. Over the next 35+ years, he worked for Amoroso as a Superintendent, Project Manager, and Project Executive. He retired last year as their Nor Cal Operations Manager. Chambers worked on dozens of successful projects all over the Bay Area for clients like: San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the State’s Department of General Services, New United Motors (NUMI), Oakland and SFO Airports, UCSF and UC Berkley, Veterans Administration, and many others. He is now looking forward to sharing the knowledge and experience he’s learned with the next generation of builders via CSUEB’s Construction Management program.
Ed R. Duarte
Ed Duarte is a graduate of the Management Development for Entrepreneurs (MDE) Program from the Anderson School of Business Management at UCLA. He is not only Cal State East Bay’s Construction Management Program Director, but he is the CEO of Aztec Consultants, a firm that specializes in public works, commercial, industrial, and institutional construction projects. With 52 years of experience in building and in the heavy-civil construction industry, he has led Aztec Consultants in providing construction management services on public works contracts; and built over $200 million of similar projects as the General Contractor of Record.
Stephen Elbert
Stephen Elbert's architectural work encompasses restaurant, retail, and commercial designs across the country. As the principal architect of his East Bay firm Elbert Associates, he guides his projects from the working drawing/specification phase, through public agency approvals/bidding to completion of construction. For several clients, Elbert has provided owner's representative, construction management, and procurement services to retail and restaurant projects.
Karim Nassab
Karim Nassab brings over 32 years of program, project, and construction management experience to California State University, East Bay. He is an adjunct faculty member of Cal State East Bay, Construction Management/Engineering Department, CSUEB Continuing Education, and UC Berkeley Extension Program.
Nassab has various academic degrees in Architectural, Civil Engineering, and Construction Management from several accredited universities. He is a Certified Construction Manager "CCM" through Construction Management Institute of America and LEED AP. Currently he is Program Manager for SGI/West Contra Costa Unified School District, overseeing the performance of several construction managers, construction management companies, architectural firms, various engineering consultants, and many local general contractors.
Cory Thomas-Fisk
Cory Thomas-Fisk has been involved in almost every aspect of the construction industry–federal/tribal, public works, commercial and residential projects, working as a field engineer, construction and project manager, facility director executive, private consultant, facilitator, and an education advocate for over 18 years as a college professor. Projects include: exclusive custom home design and development, residential housing developments, prisons, schools, roads/bridges, casinos, wellness facilities, gas stations, RV resorts, and golf courses. Thomas-Fisk is a graduate of Texas A&M University and holds a BS, an MA in Curriculum and Instruction, and a Class A Civil Engineering General Contractors License. Thomas-Fisk’s experience lends her a unique perspective and well-rounded approach to building professional and personal life balance strategies with a focus on self-awareness, transitional skill sets, mindset, leadership, soft skill development and construction management concepts, systems and processes. She has used this knowledge to design curriculum in an education platform specially designed for those in the construction industry.
Ready to Enroll?
Admission to CSUEB’s Construction Management Certificate Program is accepted on an ongoing basis. It is recommended you have knowledge of basic construction math and understanding of construction contracting as well as three years of experience in the construction industry before enrolling.
If you’re not quite ready to commit to the full program, individual courses may be taken without formal admission to the certificate program.
*Cal State East Bay alumni: The Forever Pioneer Discount is available for this program. Registration must be processed via this Forever Pioneer form in order to qualify for the discount.
Upcoming Info Sessions
Tuesday, January 7, 2025
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM PDT
Online
RSVP
At Cal State East Bay, we pride ourselves on putting students first, from the moment you inquire until you graduate. We hope you've found answers to your questions in this support center, but if not, please get in touch.