Certify your way to career excellence
OCTOBER 8, 2023
The most successful executives are constantly learning new skills in order to adapt to changing job demands. Specialized solutions such as open enrollment classes, certificates and custom modular graduate degree programs offer a quick way for executives to upskill. These short, turnkey solutions are ideal to fast track into a specialized career, advance with an existing employer or gain an additional level of specialization alongside a master’s degree.
“As new roles are added to the C-suite, demand has increased for executive education — both from organizations seeking people with more expertise as well as individuals interested in pursuing these new senior roles,” said Brett Josephson, associate provost for learning initiatives at George Mason University School of Business.
“Many individuals pursue the non-degree graduate certificates to strengthen their resume in a specific area of focus versus seeking additional graduate degrees.”
Certificate programs can ramp up more quickly than full-degree programs and can respond more nimbly to trends in the marketplace.
The number of graduate-level certificates awarded has grown over the last five- and 10-year periods, according to Graduate Enrollment and Degrees, a report from the Council of Graduate Schools. Between the 2015-16 and 2020-21 school years, the number of graduate-level certificates awarded increased eight percent; and between 2010-11 and 2020-21 school years, the number of graduate-level certificates awarded increased 11.5 percent.
“Students like graduate certificates because they provide a quick way in which to re-tool their skills mid-career or to explore an entirely new pathway,” said Robert Wojtowicz, vice provost and dean of the Old Dominion University Graduate School. “Employers value a better-prepared, up-to-date workforce.”
“The Kogod School of Business at American University offers eight credit-bearing graduate certificates in analytics, business fundamentals, forensic accounting, Islamic finance, marketing analytics, real estate, sustainability and taxation,” said Ayman Omar, associate dean for graduate programs and student services at Kogod. “After completing the core courses required for each master’s degree, students can design their program to obtain a graduate certificate using their electives.”
“We’ll also be offering a new certificate in sustainability management, as it’s an area that has become in high demand,” Omar continued. “We have offered the master’s of science in sustainability management program for a while, and lately we have seen requests for a certificate in that area.”
Kogod also plans new certificates in ESG (environmental, social and governance) and in climate risk, Omar said. At George Mason, data analytics and risk management are experiencing growth in demand, Josephson said.
To address the growing demand for cybersecurity expertise, the Master of Information Technology (MIT) program at the Virginia Tech Pamplin College of Business offers a master’s degree and professional graduate certificates in three cybersecurity areas: management, policy and technologies.
“Each concentration’s curriculum prepares students with a working knowledge of cybersecurity threats, an understanding of data collection and risk assessment, and the ability to use technology to implement regulations or protective measures,” said Parviz Ghandforoush, associate dean and executive director of the MIT program.
These certificates are ideal for working or aspiring IT professionals that would like to upskill, gain a new skill, or enhance their career goals with developing knowledge and tools in the field of cybersecurity.
“MIT certificates can be earned as a stand-alone credential or complement a master’s degree,” Ghandforoush said. “Most MIT students come from the fields of engineering, healthcare, finance and commerce, marketing and media, and manufacturing industries.”
In “The Future of Higher Ed is Stacked,” the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business noted many graduate schools offer students the ability to create modular master’s degrees by combining certificates.
For example, the Smeal College of Business at Pennsylvania State University offered four master’s programs and one online graduate certificate in 2014. By the end of 2019, Smeal was offering 14 master’s programs and 11 online graduate certificates with a course-sharing model enabling students to stack courses and online graduate certificates toward multiple degrees.
Non-credit options are also increasingly popular.
George Mason’s School of Business first began offering C-suite programs in 2016. The C-suite programs that started in October include chief data and analytics officer; chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer; chief learning officer; and chief risk officer. The programs are non-credit, but some participants continue their studies through PhD programs at the business school.
“Participants can complete our non-degree executive certificates in five months, in a hybrid setting, allowing flexibility for professionals to easily fit the program into their busy schedules,” Josephson said. “Employers are attracted to people with these specialized certificates because it showcases that these individuals have formalized training in a specific area, and they possess the skills needed for a strategic leadership role.”
George Mason’s School of Business graduates work at a number of prominent companies and agencies, including Altria Group, the Defense Logistics Agency, Leidos, the Department of State and WellSpan Health.
“Kogod offers non-credit-bearing certificates as part of its custom-designed executive education offerings,” Omar said. Examples of these certificates include Leadership in the Age of Digital Transformation, the Future of Sustainability and Corporate Governance, Sustainability Transformation, and Leading Organizational Change.
Old Dominion University Graduate School offers more than 50 graduate certificates, spanning fields from teaching English as a second language to modeling and simulation engineering. Most ODU graduate certificates require 12-15 credit hours of coursework, and about 10-15 percent of certificate students go on to earn a related master’s degree.
“For the right individual, a graduate certificate can be a life-changer,” Wojtowicz said.
This content is paid for by advertisers. The Washington Post newsroom was not involved in the creation of this content.
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