How Certifications Help with Upskilling and Career Advancement

Earning a bachelor’s or master’s degree is a major accomplishment that often leads to career success, growth, and advancement opportunities. However, if you’re looking for more ways to get ahead in your career or expand upon your already valuable skills, don’t forget that a degree doesn’t have to be the end of your educational journey.

Continuing education and certifications can help professionals take their skill sets to the next level or learn new skills that may translate into additional or more diverse career paths and opportunities. Many employers are willing to provide reimbursement for continuing education efforts related to their employees’ skill sets and industry needs, and many partner with universities to help working professionals save money while gaining new expertise that will benefit all sides.

Upskilling benefits employers and employees in a variety of ways:

Employee retention. When companies invest in their employees’ continuing education, those employees feel valued and look forward to opportunities for advancement within the company they work for. This makes often leads to increased company loyalty, motivation, and integrity.

More opportunities for career and salary growth. Highly skilled employees have more advancement opportunities available to them within the company for which they work, and are more sought out by competitors, as well. A highly skilled employee also needs less training and development, which saves the company money. The more skilled a candidate is, the more a company is willing to invest to compensate them accordingly, therefore retaining them so they’re less likely to seek out a job with another company.

Being on the leading edge of changing industry standards. Upskilling and continuing education often involves employees’ learning and retaining information about current and changing trends, policies, methods, and standards in their respective industries. When the employee implements this newly acquired knowledge into his/her work, it helps the company grow and remain relevant.

Obtaining certifications and continuing to learn about one’s industry provides a significant return on investment that benefits employees and employers for the long term. Learning is a lifelong process that is rewarding and essential for everyone involved.