Becoming a project manager is something that many people aspire to. Rightly so: it's an interesting job that comes with a decent salary. Project managers also often work remotely, which allows for a great work/life balance. But the question is, how to get a job as a PM, right? Answer: there are lots of different roads to becoming a PM. Here's mine. A decade+ into my career as an educator and general worker of odd jobs, I decided that I wanted to shift gears and become a clinical research project manager. How did I decide that? I made that decision by reading ads on Indeed.com, looking for careers that offered a solid middle-class salary and remote work options. I was also looking for a career that involved technology and/or science. Clinical Research has plenty of both. Once I set my sights on becoming a Clinical Research Project Manager, I found a temp job at a university working as a...wait for it...graduate program coordinator. Why did I make this my first step? I wanted to get my foot in the door at that employer. Once I was in, I started applying to every clinical research project manager job that was posted. 8 months later, and voila! I got my first research administration gig. This is the equivalent of a CTA (clinical trial assistant) in the private sector. From there, I was promoted to Research Project Manager within a year or so. Now, almost a decade later, I have experience as a Research Project manager in both academia and the private sector, and still am learning and growing in my career every day. My advice for those of you who are trying to score your first PM gig? Don't hesitate to take a temp or contract job, or a job at a lower salary than you want. I would compromise on those things, and would even work for an employer that I don't particularly want to work for if I could gain good experience there. The most important thing is to start building experience. Landing a salaried employee project manager role with no experience is unlikely. Once you have a couple of years of experience, it will be relatively easy to get another PM role. So, if you get an opportunity that looks like it is putting you on the PM path you want to travel, go for it!