Credentials 101 Credentials 101 March 29, :00 a.m. March 29, :00 a.m.

2 Credentials 101Presenter/Moderator Pamela Frugoli O*NET/Competency Assessment Team Lead Employment and Training Administration

3 Credentials 101 Why Postsecondary Credentials?  President Obama’s Goals: –U.S. leads the world in percentage of college graduates Every American completes one year of postsecondary –Restore Economic Competitiveness Labor market projections on skill demands –Reduce Income Inequality Skills gap = income gap

4 Credentials 101  Improve labor market outcomes for individuals –Lower unemployment –Higher lifetime earnings –Women and minorities – increased gains from credentials Why Credentials: Job Seekers Why Credentials: Job Seekers

5 Credentials 101 Increasing Credential Attainment in the Public Workforce Investment System  DOL High Priority Performance Goal to increase credential attainment by 10 percent by June 2012  TEGL 15-10, issued on December 15, 2010, includes guidance, strategies, and information on credentials

6 Credentials 101 Credential Resource Guide (TEGL 15-10, Attachment 2) Information and resources on credentials 1.Defining Credentials 2.Tools for Identifying Credentials 3.Attributes of Credentials  Current Models of Industry-Recognized Stackable Credentials 4.Acquiring and Leveraging Credentials  Credit for Prior Learning

7 Credentials 101 TYPES OF CREDENTIALS  Educational diplomas, certificates and degrees  Registered apprenticeship certificates;  Occupational licenses (typically awarded by State government agencies)  Personnel certifications from industry or professional associations  Other skill certificates for specific skill sets or competencies within one or more industries or occupations

8 Credentials 101 Tools to Identify Credentials – Education Programs –National Center for Education Statistics—College Navigator site: –ETA’s CareerOneStop Training Finder: Short-Term Training Finder: TermTraining.aspx TermTraining.aspx –State and Local Resources

9 Credentials 101 Tools to Identify Credentials— Career Clusters  The Carl Perkins Career and Technical Education (CTE) Act of 2006 emphasizes programs of study in 16 career clusters and pathways  The National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc) provides related information at:e  Recently added related credentials listings at:  Southern Regional Education Board study on the quality and rigor of CTE-related credentials at: _2009.pdf _2009.pdf

10 Credentials 101 Occupational Licenses  Granted by Federal, state or local governmental agencies  Mandatory  Intended to set professional standards and ensure safety and quality of work (such as medical licenses for doctors)  Required in addition to other credentials (educational awards, apprenticeship, or certification)  Defined by laws and regulations  Time-limited - occupational licenses must be renewed based on meeting on-going requirements  Violation of the terms of the license can result in legal action

11 Credentials 101 Tools to Identify Credentials--Licenses  CareerOneStop provides a searchable Licensed Occupations database  Contains federal and state-provided information –Licensing agency name, address, and contact information, –Internet links if available; –License description and applicable fees –Examination requirements, if applicable

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13 Credentials 101 COS Licensed Occupations Database

14 Credentials 101 Personnel Certifications  Granted by third-party non-governmental agencies - usually associations, and by companies;  Intended to set professional standards for qualifications: Crane Operator certification Novell Network Certified Engineer  The standards for certifications are not defined by government laws or regulations;  Usually require successful completion of an examination or assessment indicating mastery of competencies against a set of standards

15 Credentials 101 Tools to Identify Credentials--Certifications  CareerOneStop provides a Certification Finder tool to identify industry or occupational personnel certifications.  This tool provides information including the certifying organization’s name, address, and related Web links; certification description; and certification details such as examination and/or work requirements.  Information about occupational and industry certifications associated with particular industry competency models is available through the Competency Model Clearinghouse, through the Find Resources search tool.

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17 Credentials 101 Certification Finder Results for EMT

18 Credentials 101 Tools to Identify Credentials Transferable skills  CareerOneStop has introduced a new online tool, to assist dislocated workers and others with work experience who may need to change careers to find employmentwww.mySkillsmyFuture.org  Links through to related credentials –Short-term training (certificate) –Apprenticeships –Licenses –Personnel certifications

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21 Credentials 101 Attributes of Career-Enhancing Credentials  Industry-recognized  Stackable  Portable  Quality/Accredited  Labor Market Value

22 Credentials 101 Industry-Recognized Credentials  3 Industry examples –Advanced Manufacturing –Energy –Information Technology  Often based on industry competency models

23 Credentials 101 Industry-Recognized Stackable Credentials Advanced Manufacturing  The Manufacturing Institute has endorsed a Manufacturing Skills Certification System  Pilot implementation through community colleges  Enable participants to advance along a manufacturing career pathway  Beginning at entry level work readiness and employability skills to technical competencies associated with specific types of manufacturing

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25 Credentials 101 Industry-Recognized Stackable Credentials  Center for Energy Workforce Development  Get into Energy Career Pathways Model  3 categories of education and training that align with the tiers of the Energy Competency Model: –Basic Training (Tiers 1-3), –Industry Fundamentals (Tiers 4-5) –Job Specific Skills and Credentials (Tiers 6-8).

26 Credentials 101 Get Into Energy

27 Credentials 101 Industry-Recognized Stackable Credentials Information Technology  The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) has developed several online tools  The Getting America Back to Work (GABTW) site guides individuals through an integrated process: 1) Assessment 2) Training 3) Certification 4) Job placement  At each stage, there are referrals to relevant information—including to local One-Stop Career Centers and other training resources

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29 Credentials 101 Competency Model Clearinghouse Competency Model Clearinghouse  18 industry competency models (and counting)  Framework for stacking credentials  Interactive online tools to build or customize: –Industry competency model –Related Career Ladder or Lattice—with associated credentials

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31 Credentials careerpathway/cpwoverview.aspx

32 Credentials 101 Health Information Technology Career Pathway Central Oregon Community College

33 Credentials 101 Major Accreditation Organizations for Personnel Certifications The American National Standards Institute (ANSI)  Provides accreditation of personnel certifications and certificates  Maintains a Directory of Accredited Personnel (ANSI/ISO/IEC 17024) Certification Bodies, Applicants and Suspended Certification Bodies available online The Institute for Credentialing Excellence (ICE)/ National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA)  Provides accreditation of personnel certifications and certificates  Maintains a listing of Accredited Certification Programs at: ICE/NCCA also has recently begun a program to accredit Personnel Certificates

34 Credentials 101 Credential attainment strategies  Design around Needs of “Working Learners” –Contextualization –Flexible Scheduling –Flexible Delivery (on-line, workplace, etc)  Shorten Time to Credential Attainment –Integrating Basic Skills Education and Training –Credit for Prior Learning –Accelerated program designs –Chunking/Modularization  Provide Extensive Wrap-Around and Support Services 

35 Credentials 101 Resources for leveraging credentials  Importance of credit for prior learning –Persistence –Shorten time to completion –Save tuition dollars –Reduce educational loan burden

36 Credentials 101 Credit for Prior or Other Learning or Work Experience National  American Council on Education (ACE) College Credit Recommendation Service (CREDIT) helps adults gain access to academic credit for formal courses and examinations taken outside traditional degree programs. ACE provides reliable course equivalency information to facilitate credit award decisions.College Credit Recommendation Service (CREDIT)   ACE National Guide to College Credit for Workforce Training publishes credit recommendations for formal instructional programs offered by non-collegiate agencies, both civilian employers and the military. 

37 Credentials 101 Credit for Prior or Other Learning or Work Experience Local  Experiential Learning Assessments: also known as individualized student portfolios or interviews.  Evaluation of Local Training: program evaluations done by individual colleges of non-collegiate instructional programs.  Challenge Exams: local tests developed by a college to verify learning achievement.  Center for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) has resources to assist educational institutions in incorporating prior learning to help their students achieve certificate and degree completion.  Online Prior Learning Assessment Certificate Program

38 Credentials 101 Credit for Prior or Other Learning or Work Experience Credit by Examination  The College Level Examination Program® (CLEP) gives individuals the opportunity to receive college credit by earning qualifying scores on any of 34 examinations for knowledge acquired through independent study, prior course work, on-the-job training, professional development, cultural pursuits, or internships.College Level Examination Program  Advanced Placement (AP) Exams exams in 19 subject areas (initially for high school courses).  DSST Credit by Exam Program (formerly known as the DANTES Subject Standardized Test Program). These exams test knowledge of both lower-level and upper-level college material through 38 exams. DANTES is the Defense Activity for Nontraditional Education Support, designed to assist military personnel in obtaining civilian educational credit for military training.

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