TMCnet News
College certificates are cheaper post-secondary option [Detroit Free Press](Detroit Free Press (MI) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Nov. 09--Two parked ambulances are the backdrop for life-saving lessons in a lab at Wayne County Community College District's Downriver Campus. There, Sarah Ormerod, 34, is working toward becoming a certified Emergency Medical Technician. She expects to complete the course in December after having class twice a week over four months. "EMT basic is a great course if you're considering a career in the health-care field, public health, emergency medicine," the Detroit woman said. "This is a good way to get sort of a bite-sized taste of it." Ormerod is part of a growing number of adults who are turning to certificates rather than -- or as a supplement to -- college degrees. Certificates recognize a completed course of study in a certain field. They're the fastest growing form of post-secondary credentials in the U.S., becoming the most common award after the high school degree, said Anthony Carnevale, a labor economist and director of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. He said certificates are an increasingly attractive option because they're affordable and don't take long to acquire. Many programs last a year or less compared with about four years for a bachelor's degree. Popular fields of study include health care, business or office management, computer and information services, construction trades and electronics. The "explosive" growth in certificate programs over the last two decades has been fueled largely by two-year colleges and private for-profit schools, Carnevale said. Certificate programs bring in additional revenue to schools and often are easier to add or update than traditional academic programs. Some universities also offer certificates. Carnevale, who coauthored a 2012 study and report about certificate education in the U.S., said certificate holders on average earn 20% more than high school graduates without any post-secondary education. But a certificate's value is strongly linked to being in the right field. "If you get a technical certificate in computers or technology of any kind, like HVAC (heating, ventilation, air-conditioning), you'll tend to earn more. Probably 20 to 25% more than a person with a bachelor's degree (on average across all fields)," Carnevale said. "You can get a certificate in music appreciation, but it won't get you a job." Carnevale said under the study, about half of certificates were found to produce a significant earnings difference over just a high school degree. And in some cases, a certificate was a better investment than a degree. The study found that men with certificates in computer and information services earned more than 72% of men with an associate degree and 54% of men with bachelor's degrees. Students should research whether a certificate program is worth their time and money. "The key is you need to find out what happened to the people who got one before you did. Ask the instructors," Carnevale said. "(Ask for) the name of somebody who graduated last year and talk to them." Wayne County Community College District has 53 certificate programs, a number that has roughly doubled in the last 10 years, said Ronald Harkness, provost for career preparation and campus operations. Programs added within roughly the last year include auto body technology and patient care technology. "A lot of people envision a community college student as someone who is just coming from high school," Harkness said. "With the economic downturn of the last several years, we get a lot of displaced workers who have come back and are seeking a new career path to maintain themselves." Ormerod, who is taking the EMT course, dropped out of high school at 16. The thought of going back to school was intimidating, but only at first. "They didn't require any major prerequisites," she said. "Nobody's asking for high-level calculus or physics, or a dissertation of Shakespearean tragedies. It's very much, 'Just come on in and learn.' " Ormerod said the program doesn't require a huge time commitment and is relatively inexpensive. "I had no idea if I was going to be able to sink or swim. I wasn't a very good student when I was younger," she said. "This is no risk. I'm only out a thousand bucks and four months of my time. If I really suck at this, I shouldn't be doing it. "As it turns out, I'm doing pretty well, and I'm thinking about going into a medical career." Contact Ann Zaniewski at 313-222-6594 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @AnnZaniewski. Certificate programs Here's a sample of programs offered by local community colleges: Macomb Community College --Administrative assistant, elder care specialist, floral design, jewelry trades, nursing assistant, pharmacy technician, project management, personal fitness trainer, social media, workplace computing. Oakland Community College --CAD (computer aided design) level I fundamentals, CIS (computer information systems) web software engineering, EMS paramedic, landscape design, landscape horticulture, medical insurance coding and billing, medical office clinical procedures, ophthalmic assisting, phlebotomy, welding technology. Wayne County Community College District --Alternative fuels technology, American sign language, criminal justice, CIS website designer, CIS video game design & animation, dental assisting, fire protection technology, homeland security, hotel and restaurant management, renewable energy. ___ (c)2014 the Detroit Free Press Visit the Detroit Free Press at www.freep.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |