Rafael Castañeda is SVP of Strategic Partnerships & Workforce Development at MedCerts and was the Dean of Education at CBD College.
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The online training and credential marketplace has more than tripled in size since 2018. There are now more than 1.07 million different credentials, degrees, badges, certifications and apprenticeship programs and over 59,000 providers.
As someone in the training and certification program space, I've seen firsthand that employers are welcoming more avenues through which to equip and train employees. But with so many programs and no industry-wide standards for course quality or curriculum, separating dross from gold is difficult, at best.
So, how can employers (and job seekers themselves) select training programs that not only suit their needs in terms of skill development but also are high quality and set a foundation for individuals to advance in their careers? In this article, I'd like to make the case for why both groups should focus on programs that offer articulated credits. I'll also dip into a couple of advancements we're seeing in this space that should help employees navigate training and recruiting more clearly in the near future.
The Benefits Of Articulated Credit
Validates Training Program Efficacy
More academic institutions these days are aligning training programs from third-party providers to their college course catalog for articulated credit. When that occurs, trainees have the option to earn college credits while they pursue skills-based training programs. The benefit to the learner is easy to see: get trained in a skill and simultaneously earn college credit. However, this is also a benefit to employers.
When an external training program is accepted as being worthy of earning credits at an institution of higher education, that means it has likely been evaluated with the same academic rigor as the institution’s own course offerings. Knowing this can help employers select the best training programs for their staff for upskilling and reskilling. Those aligned with articulated credit options are of high enough quality to meet an institution’s benchmark standards.
There are several reasons why we are seeing more institutions take this action. The first is that academic institutions realize this country needs skilled labor and that training programs are usually the quickest path to developing that pool of skilled workers. When colleges offer these training programs in their professional development divisions and extension services, they are better serving the individuals and companies in their communities. After all, many businesses look to the professional development divisions of their local college and university to upskill and reskill their employees.
The second reason is that when these training programs are added to a college’s course catalog, enrolled students at that college benefit, too. Training programs in fast-changing, high-demand fields like healthcare and IT are developed by industry experts who have their fingers on the pulse of the latest technologies and techniques. These training programs are up-to-date with the latest workplace skills, so for the student pursuing a bachelor’s degree, the applied nature of such training programs rounds out their education and may make them more employable upon graduation.
Offers A Pathway To A College Degree
A learner who has completed a training program that is aligned with a college course offering might have earned the equivalent of one or two semesters of college credit by the time they complete the training and earn their certification. Considering that the national average in-state tuition costs $307 per credit hour, the potential to gain a skill and be on the path to a college degree at a fraction of the cost of college tuition is very attractive. Furthermore, if that institution is part of a regional accreditation system, those credits could be transferred to another institution, which broadens their options even more.
Knowing this, employers can leverage these articulated credit models in recruiting skilled workers. Instead of searching for already trained and certified workers, employers can recruit for aptitude and then train specifically for their needs. Then, when an employer can point out how that training could lead to a four-year degree, that is a compelling offer to a new hire, especially for someone for whom college was previously unattainable.
Other Programs Are Helping Employers Determine The Value Of Training Programs
There are several other workforce development programs that employers should know about, particularly to help them find high-quality training programs.
A More Transparent Framework For Measuring Quality
In April, Jobs for the Future, which recently acquired the nonprofit Education Quality Outcomes Standards (EQOS), received a grant to help build out the EQOS framework to measure training program impact based on employment and earnings. This effort will help individuals understand the pathway and earning potential within a particular career. Employers will benefit from knowing the specific skills trainees will have when completing training programs.
A Bigger Focus On Skills
The National Association of Workforce Boards (NAWB) is pushing for the widespread adoption of skills-based hiring. NAWB, along with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and eight other education and labor stakeholders, have developed an interactive LER (learning and employment records) Ecosystem Map, introduced in mid-September. The tool is intended to help employers hire and promote job openings based on skills and experience rather than on possessing a college degree. These digital LERs capture an individual’s skills regardless of whether they were acquired through high school CTE (career and technical education), a college education, workforce training or professional and life experiences.
Conclusion
As new programs and partnerships continue to gain momentum, we are witnessing a shift in the fundamental perceptions about the career pathway. While programs that offer articulated credits are a likely way to ensure mutual benefit and high quality, we're also seeing a blurring of the lines between skills-based training and academic degrees. It is recognition that both bring value to the table for the employer and the individual. This is the time to explore and experiment with new workforce development and recruitment models.
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