Q: I am tasked with creating non-credit professional development programs, and I want to call some of them certificate programs and offer a certificate of completion or achievement or mastery or something. I know the difference between a certification program and a certificate program, but I am getting push back from academic colleagues when I tell them I cam creating certificate programs. The University has credit certificates, and I know the difference between those and what I am trying to do; mine will not offer college credit – nor will they transfer into a credit program. By and large the certificate programs I have in mind are 36 – 45 contact hours; maybe more – but always short term on subjects that can be mastered in short periods of time. So what’s the question, you ask? I want to know if LERN has a template for the creation of short-term, non-credit certificate programs that I can use to demonstrate reliability and validity for the programs I plan to create – and at the same I need to clearly demonstrate that these programs are not-for-credit and are not pretending to confer any kind of certification or designation. Our market is asking for short term certificate programs, and I want to respond!
A: Yes we can help you with templates and standards for certificate programs. First, tens of thousands of non-credit certificate programs are offered by colleges and universities throughout the United States without any conflict or negative impact on credit certificates. LERN has tracked the offering of certificates by universities since 2001, and no major issues or conflicts have been reported by institutions of higher education in regard to any negative impact of non-credit certificates on credit certificates. One of the advantages of non-credit certificates for the university is as a testing for credit programs, as many non-credit certificates have been converted into credit certificates and even credit courses at universities. Second, the demand for certificates is so large and continuing to grow at such a pace that certificates are likely to be the primary way that businesses want their people to be trained and upgraded. To decline to offer non-credit certificates will likely have a seriously negative impact on the quality of your state workforce; it also will likely involve other institutions filling the gap, another possible negative impact of not serving your business community and workforce. Third, LERN has created national Certificate and Certification Standards for continuing education units. A copy is attached. The standards have several levels of benchmarks, including 1.Calculating the level of intensity and comprehensiveness; 2.Creating outcome based measurements; 3. Benchmarking the knowledge skills; and 4. Externally benchmarking the level of difficulty. Your program does not have to do all of these things before creating your certificate, but even if you comply with just the first standard, you can say you subscribe to the standards. Fourth, we have a complete manual on certificate programs with curriculum, development, and marketing best practices. The publication is called Successful Certificate Programs. We can offer it to you for half price if you wish to have it as your guide. Fifth, in terms of communication with others in your institution, use, quote, refer and rely on the data and research of the Learning Resources Network, the largest continuing education association in the world. Our independent and objective studies and research are undertaken with the best interests of learners and the welfare of society at the top of the list, and can best convey the data institutional leaders need to know regarding their questions and concerns.