Project officer

Project officers work in teams with project managers, programme managers and administrators to support and coordinate project activities. This includes scheduling tasks, negotiating with suppliers and creating progress reports.

Starting your career

Subject choices

If you’re thinking about a career as a project officer, useful subjects to choose at school include:

• English
• Maths
• Administration and IT
• Business Management
• Information, Communications and Technology

Work placements and volunteering

You may find it helpful to get some experience of working in healthcare by doing a work placement. There may also be opportunities to volunteer. This could help you when applying to university, college or a new job in the health service.

Apprenticeships

Foundation Apprenticeships

A Foundation Apprenticeship is a good way to get the skills, knowledge and work experience you’ll need for an administrative role.

Find out more about the Foundation Apprenticeship in Business Skills.

Modern Apprenticeships

A Modern Apprenticeship is a great way to start your career in the NHS. By learning on the job, you’ll get the experience you need and an industry-recognised qualification.

Find out more about the Modern Apprenticeship in Business Management.

College and university

You’re likely to need an HND or a degree to get into a job as a project officer.  

Many Scottish colleges and universities deliver courses in these areas:

• Business Information Systems
• Business Management
• Management and Leadership

You should check specific entry requirements before applying.

If you’re an adult with few or no qualifications, you could get into higher education through the Scottish Widening Access Programme (SWAP). The programme supports adult learners who would like to do a degree.  

Some universities also provide access courses to help you get the entry qualifications you need for a degree programme. 

Search for college or university courses on My World of Work.

Other career pathways

Some project officers start their careers in roles such as:

• project administrator
• administrative assistant

The role

As a project officer, you’ll work with the project manager to plan, monitor and evaluate the project against objectives. You’ll also provide administrative support and attend meetings with stakeholders, suppliers and other external groups.

What you’ll do

Tasks include:

• prepare, update, publish and distribute project documentation
• use data, information and knowledge to improve, inform and support the delivery of the project
• work with the project manager to identify and manage issues and risks
• schedule tasks, manage resources and monitor quality to make sure the project is delivered on time
• respond to enquiries from stakeholders, suppliers, other departments and external agencies
• deliver presentations and facilitate workshops

Top skills

You’ll need these skills:

• communication
• teamwork
• time management
• attention to detail
• problem-solving
• working with technology

Who you’ll work with

As a project officer, you’ll work with a wide range of people:

• project manager
• programme manager
• service manager
• administrative assistant

Working environment

Project officers work in an office, or remotely.

Did you know?

There are just over 25,000 administrative services staff in NHSScotland. They make up around 6.5% of the workforce. 

Learning and development

During your career as a project officer, you could gain additional qualifications, such as:

• PRINCE2 Foundation-level qualification
• Agile Project Manager Foundation-level qualification

Other short courses will help you learn about new tools, technologies, systems and processes.

These qualifications could lead to more senior roles, such as:

• project manager
• programme manager

Professional bodies

Administrative assistants can join:

• Association of Medical Secretaries, Practice Managers, Administrators and Receptionists (AMSPAR).