{"id":2678,"date":"2015-08-17T11:00:02","date_gmt":"2015-08-17T16:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/?p=2678"},"modified":"2016-01-29T13:34:06","modified_gmt":"2016-01-29T19:34:06","slug":"what-is-a-graduate-certificate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/what-is-a-graduate-certificate\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is a Graduate Certificate?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why get a graduate or post-graduate certificate? If you already have a degree, what value could a certificate bring? Capella University\u2019s Product Manager Leigh Johnson and Senior Product Manager Nancy Alliegro share two benefits of this short-term program.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What Is (or Isn\u2019t) a Certificate Program?<\/h4>\n

There are two types of certificate programs depending on your highest level of education completed: the graduate certificate (or post-baccalaureate) and the post-graduate certificate (or post-masters).<\/p>\n

Johnson cautioned that a certificate is a different achievement than an industry certification. \u201cAn industry certification, for example a Project Management Professional (PMP)\u00ae<\/a> credential in IT, is independent of any academic requirement,\u201d she said. \u201cA certificate is an academic credential with coursework involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coursework is the key difference. Courses for a certificate are usually pulled from degree curriculum. \u201cIn Capella\u2019s online certificate programs, we use the specialization courses,\u201d said Alliegro. \u201cStudents get deep knowledge and training in specific subject areas.\u201d And certificate courses accrue academic credits that can be applied towards a future degree.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Who Should Pursue a Graduate or Post-Graduate Certificate?<\/h4>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a broad range,\u201d said Johnson. \u201cA candidate can be looking for more expertise beyond a bachelor\u2019s, wanting to test what it\u2019s like to pursue a master\u2019s, working on career advancement, or beginning a doctoral program.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Why Get a Certificate?<\/h4>\n

There are two primary reasons to earn a certificate: career advancement or a trial run for an advanced degree.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

1. Career Advancement<\/strong>. \u201cA certificate sets you apart in the job market. It\u2019s a way to differentiate yourself, a way to grow your expertise,\u201d said Johnson. That\u2019s especially true in the education market, noted Alliegro. \u201cIn the field of education, the more graduate courses you take, the more your income will increase,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd a certificate makes someone highly marketable.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not just advancing in an existing career, though. \u201cIt\u2019s a good way to try out a new program,\u201d said Johnson. \u201cA certificate program is a way to gain enough expertise to make a move to a new career without committing to a full master\u2019s or doctoral program. And it can be done in increments.\u201d She also noted that there are employers who will pay tuition for an employee to work towards a certificate, because it also benefits the employer.<\/p>\n

Depending on the industry (such as nursing), a certificate may be aligned to industry certifications, too. For example, a nurse who earned a post-graduate certificate could also sit for industry certifications, boosting his or her credibility and marketability in the field.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

2. Advanced-Degree Test Run. <\/strong>As mentioned earlier, a certificate program is a way to what an advanced degree program would be like without committing to the full program. \u201cThey\u2019re taking the same specialization courses that students enrolled in a degree program in that field will take,\u201d said Alliegro. \u201cSome people don\u2019t need the advanced degree; they just want the expertise. But others will complete the certificate, realize that they are well positioned for an advanced degree, and go on to get the higher degree.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Learn more about Capella\u2019s <\/em>certificate programs<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A graduate or post-graduate certificate can boost your skill set and prepare you for pursuing an advanced degree. Find out more about this targeted, short-term program option.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":81,"featured_media":2730,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[24],"tags":[78],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2678"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/81"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2678"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2678\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4019,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2678\/revisions\/4019"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2730"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stgwww.capella.edu\/blogs\/cublog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}