Certificatesâ popularity on the rise

By Emily Laughlin
The Metropolitan

The increasing demand for updated skills in the professional arena is making certificate programs popular at Metro.

Metro has 25 certificate programs in subjects such as real estate and financial planning. Certificates show people have completed courses in specific fields. Most students seeking certificates want to learn more about their professions, or they need additional skills to get promotions.

ãThey are people who are trying to assemble a baseline knowledge of their fields,ä said Andy Breckel, Metroâs assistant vice president for Academic Affairs and Extended Education.

ãAcross the country, certificate programs with people who have a degree or work full time is the most popular way of continuing education,ä he said. ãPeople feel in order to remain current they need to acquire a second degree.ä

Breckel said the program, which started two years ago, has been a boon to hundreds of students.

ãItâs an excellent opportunity to study in a specific area that relates to an awful lot of opportunities in Denver,ä he said.

He said certificate programs are the second most popular education focus at U S West Communications,
Coloradoâs largest employer. He said 42 percent of those involved in U S Westâs continuing education program seek certificates.

Last semester, 353 U S West employees participated in the companyâs tuition assistance program, according to Barbara Shull, co-director of the ãPathways to the Futureä program.

J.O. Yunker, a Metro technical communications professor, is teaching a new class this semester on ãCommunications Law for Technological Media.ä
 

The class applies toward an international technical writing certificate and deals with the legalities of transmitting proprietary information.

People using high-technology devices, such as cellular phones or the Internet, sometimes donât realize the risks theyâre taking, Yunker said.

ãEvery tech writer I know has a cell phone,ä she said. ãThey go to different sites and they call from their cars and theyâre talking proprietary information.

Iâm talking about technical information that youâre working for a company and how much of it can just be lifted.ä

Certificates are awarded after students complete between 15 and 29 credit hours.  The class schedule booklet lists Metroâs certificates.

÷ Perry Swanson contributed to this story