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Recent Report Shows Technical Certifications Lead To Job Opportunities

The cover of the report "Certified Value: When do Adults without Degrees Benefit from Earning Certificates and Certifications?".
Strada Education Network
The cover of the report "Certified Value: When do Adults without Degrees Benefit from Earning Certificates and Certifications?".

Two Indianapolis-based foundations teamed up to study the value of certificates and other non-degree certifications.

A report published in partnership with Strada Education Network and The Lumina Foundation found that those with non-college degree certification found full-time employment more often than those without any credentials. It also showed that credentialed workers without college degrees typically earn $15,000 more per year.

Carol D’Amico is the executive vice president of Strada Education Network. She says the findings demonstrate the importance of stressing technical certifications to the future workforce, not just formal education.

“And so I’m hoping that policy makers pay attention to this report and they consider that there are multiple pathways and not necessarily that involve a college degree,” D'Amico says.

Strada and Lumina also plan to study employment issues among veterans in the near future.

Justin Hicks is a workforce reporter for IPB News based at WVPE in Elkhart. He comes to Indiana by way of New York. He has a master's degree from the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University and earned a Bachelor of Music Degree from Appalachian State University where he played trumpet. He first learned about Elkhart, Indiana, because of the stamp on his brass instrument indicating where it was produced. Justin was born and raised in Mt. Olive, North Carolina. He currently lives in South Bend with his dog, Charlotte.
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