Portability: A New Measure for Comparing the Value of Career Certifications

Career certifications represent a cost-effective avenue for post-secondary education, offering immediate employment prospects and facilitating entry into the middle class. The National Science Board estimated that the US economy will have 3.4 million unfilled skilled technical workforce (STW) jobs by 2022, which are essential to maintaining a competitive economy. STW jobs are those that demand specialized technical competencies without a four-year college degree. This research describes a novel measure for certification portability to gauge the potential opportunities of certification in the transition to occupations affording higher remuneration than their initial certified employment. Researchers can use this measure to estimate the value of certifications and to advise policies and practices for equitable technical education. Portability also sheds light on the geographic variability in certification value, providing crucial insights for regional planning. Career development advisors can use this methodology to suggest better training options, which is particularly important for individuals who do not seek a typical four-year college degree. The portability metric not only enhances the precision of certification valuation but also contributes to incentivizing preferences for technical careers.

Montalvo C, Tomlin H, Siwe L (2024). Portability: A New Measure for Comparing the Value of Career Certifications. University of Virginia, Biocomplexity Institute. June 4. https://doi.org/10.18130/8673-ew54