Basic Microsoft Project
Basic Microsoft Project is a foundation course in planning projects with Project desktop, from creating a project and its working calendar, defining tasks and dependencies and assigning resources to calculate costs, to finding the critical path, setting a baseline and tracking progress. It suits people starting to run projects, team leaders, engineers and IT teams.
- Duration12 hours · 2 days
- FormatOnsite / live online
- Next roundOn request
- CertificateIncluded
Course overview
Planning a project on paper or in an Excel sheet works while the project is small. Once there are dozens of tasks that depend on one another, several people responsible and a budget to control, moving a single task means correcting dates across the whole plan. Microsoft Project calculates start and finish dates for you, and shows which work cannot slip, who has more work than hours and how much the project has spent compared with the plan.
This course lays the foundations of Microsoft Project on the desktop. It starts with today's Project product line, then covers creating a project and its working calendar, building tasks, summary tasks and milestones, linking tasks with dependencies and using the Gantt chart and timeline. Learners then create resources, assign people and costs to tasks, find the critical path, set a baseline, record progress and produce reports, finishing with a workshop that plans a small real project from start to finish. (2 days, 6 hours per day, 12 hours in total, Beginner level.)
What you’ll gain
- Understand the current Microsoft Project product line and find your way around Project desktop
- Create a new project and set its start date, calendar and working time correctly
- Create tasks, summary tasks and milestones, and link tasks with dependencies
- Use the Gantt chart, timeline and other views to read and communicate the plan
- Create resources and assign them to tasks to calculate project costs
- Find the critical path and spot people who have more work than working time
- Set a baseline, record progress and produce project status reports
Who this course is for
- People who are starting to run projects, team leaders and project coordinators
- Engineers, IT teams and staff who plan and track work in stages
- Teachers, lecturers, students and anyone interested in project management
- People who have planned work in Excel and want to move to Microsoft Project
Prerequisites
- Able to use a computer and Windows at a basic level
- Some experience with Excel or other Microsoft 365 apps
- No previous experience of Microsoft Project is needed
- A Windows laptop that can run Project desktop
Curriculum
Course Details
This is the 2026 edition of the Basic Microsoft Project course. It runs for 2 days, 6 hours per day, 12 hours in total (09:00-16:00), hands-on with sample project files, at Beginner level. The content has been rewritten from Project 2016/2019 for today's Project desktop, both the version included with Planner and Project Plan 3 or 5 and Project Professional 2024. It keeps the original topics of tasks,
resources, costs, the critical path, baselines and reports, and adds auto and manual scheduling, the timeline and Task Inspector. It also explains that Project Online was retired on 30 September 2026 and that Project for the web has been folded into Microsoft Planner. This is the foundation level before Advanced Microsoft Project. Learners need their own or their employer's licence for Project desktop, and take home the course handbook and sample project files.
Day 1 Planning the Work and Building the Project
Section 1: Microsoft Project Today and the Program Window
- Project desktop in Planner and Project Plan 3 or 5 compared with Project Professional 2024
- The retirement of Project Online, and Project for the web folded into Planner
- The ribbon, Backstage view, Quick Access Toolbar, entry bar and status bar
- Planning concepts: scope, tasks, sequence, people and budget
Section 2: Lab: Starting a Project and Setting the Calendar
- Create a project from a blank file or a template and set the start date
- Project Information, options and saving the .mpp file
- The project calendar: working days, working hours and public holidays
- Lab: set up an organisation calendar with the year's holidays
Section 3: Lab: Creating Tasks and Milestones
- How auto scheduled differs from manually scheduled tasks
- Enter tasks and durations, and insert, delete and move tasks
- Summary tasks, subtasks, and indenting or outdenting
- Milestones, task notes and recurring tasks
- Lab: break a sample project down into a task structure
Section 4: Lab: Linking Tasks with Dependencies
- Predecessors, successors and finish-to-start links
- SS, FF and SF links, and when to use them
- Basic lag time, and editing or removing links
- Lab: put the sample project's work in the right order
Section 5: Lab: Gantt Chart, Timeline and Other Views
- Gantt Chart, Network Diagram and Calendar views
- Adjust the timescale and Gantt bar styles for easy reading
- Timeline: add key tasks and milestones, then copy it into a presentation
- Lab: build a summary timeline for management
Section 6: Lab: Building the Resource Sheet
- Resource types: work, material and cost
- Max units, standard rate, overtime rate and cost per use
- Resource calendars and individual leave
- Lab: list the team, materials and costs for the project
Day 2 Assigning Resources, Tracking and Reporting
Section 7: Lab: Assigning Resources and Costs to Tasks
- Assign Resources, and putting several people on one task
- Task type basics: Fixed Units, Fixed Duration and Fixed Work
- Fixed cost and cost resources for expenses that do not depend on time
- Lab: calculate the project's total cost with the cost table
Section 8: Lab: Finding Over-allocated People
- The over-allocation indicator and the Resource Usage view
- Team Planner: see each person's work and move it by drag and drop
- Fix it by changing the person, moving the work or adjusting units
- Lab: fix a schedule where people have overlapping work
Section 9: Lab: Finding the Critical Path
- What the critical path and slack are, and why they matter
- Show critical tasks on the Gantt chart and filter to critical work
- Task Inspector to find why a task starts later than expected
- Lab: shorten the project by adjusting work on the critical path
Section 10: Lab: Baselines and Recording Progress
- Set a baseline before work starts, and reset it properly when the plan changes
- Status date, Update Tasks and Mark on Track
- %Complete, actual start and actual finish
- Tracking Gantt to compare plan with actual and spot late work
- Lab: record two rounds of progress on the sample project
Section 11: Lab: Reports and Exporting
- Built-in reports: Project Overview, Cost Overview and Late Tasks
- Adjust reports with the charts, tables and fields you need
- Page setup, printing and exporting to PDF or Excel
- Lab: produce a one-page project status report
Section 12: Workshop: Planning a Project from Start to Finish
- Workshop: build a small real project plan with calendar, tasks and dependencies
- Assign resources and costs, then check for over-allocation
- Set a baseline, record progress and produce a report with a timeline
- Wrap up with a planning checklist and the next steps towards the advanced level
Schedule & training options
For individuals — public rounds
No public rounds are open right now. Join the waiting list and we will contact you first when the next round opens, or ask us on LINE. Or call 02-570-8449 or 088-807-9770
For organisations — in-house / private
- Tailor the content to your team’s tools and projects
- Your dates, at your office or live online
- Quotation with tax ID for procurement
Instructors
Frequently asked questions
What is the critical path, and how do you see it in Microsoft Project?
The critical path is the chain of linked tasks that sets the project's finish date. If any task on it runs late, the whole project finishes late, because these tasks have no slack left. In Project, open the Gantt chart and tick Critical Tasks on the Format tab so critical work shows as red bars, then filter to critical tasks to find where to speed things up.
What are the steps for planning a project in Microsoft Project?
Start by setting the project start date and a working calendar with holidays. Break the work into tasks and summary tasks, add durations and milestones, and link tasks with dependencies in the right order. Create resources and assign them to tasks to calculate costs, then check the critical path and any over-allocation. When the plan is ready, set a baseline before the real work begins.
What is a baseline in Microsoft Project, and why should I set one?
A baseline is a snapshot of the approved plan that stores the start, finish, work and cost of every task. When you record actual progress, Project compares it with the baseline to show which tasks are late or over budget. Without a baseline there is no original plan to compare against, so set it before work starts and reset it carefully when the scope changes.
Who is the Basic Microsoft Project course for, and what should I know beforehand?
It suits people who are starting to run projects, team leaders, project coordinators, engineers, IT teams, teachers and students. You do not need any previous experience of Microsoft Project, but you should be able to use Windows and Excel at a basic level and have a Windows laptop that can run Project desktop under your own or your employer's licence.
What will I be able to do after the Basic Microsoft Project course?
You will be able to create a project with a working calendar, build tasks, summary tasks and milestones, link tasks with dependencies, use the Gantt chart and timeline, create resources and calculate costs, find the critical path, spot over-allocation, set a baseline, record progress and produce status reports. Participants who complete the training receive a Certificate of Completion with its own number, which can be verified online.
Can the Basic Microsoft Project course be run in-house for our team?
Yes. It can be run in-house for your team, with the sample project adapted to your own work, such as construction, system installation or IT projects. You can request a quotation from this page, or contact us on LINE @itgenius or by phone on 02-570-8449.