Certificates: Gateway to Gainful Employment and College Degrees. Executive Summary

In an American economy where the advancement of technology and globalization means that a high school diploma alone is no longer able to provide family-sustaining earnings to many, certificates represent one piece of a multi-pronged solution on the road to a workforce with 60 percent postsecondary attainment. Though certificates currently aren't counted in many measures of postsecondary attainment, often they provide the outcomes that degree-seeking students are looking for: gainful employment. Certificates can also serve as the first rung on the ladder to a college degree or as training for workers with degrees engaged in the process of lifelong learning and career advancement. The rapid growth of certificates over the past 30 years is a promising signal that students and institutions are recognizing the value of certificates at an increasing rate. Today, policymakers do have a role: to ensure that all parties involved know, to the greatest extent possible, that the value of the programs they are funding are transparent for all to see. Certificate programs are successful if they promote either: (1) gainful employment and long-term job and income security or (2) the pursuit of a higher-level credential, typically a college degree. If they are successful in these two areas, certificate programs will ensure that students considering them will be able to make informed choices about what to study and where to study it, with reasonable expectations about their prospects after graduation. (Contains 5 figures and 14 footnotes.) [For the full report, "Certificates: Gateway to Gainful Employment and College Degrees," see ED532679.]