Frequently Asked Questions Why is a Career Readiness Certificate needed? Why a portable skills credential? Why use the WorkKeys® Assessments to certify employability skills? Why a tiered approach to Career Readiness credentialing? 1. Why is a Career Readiness Certificate needed? In the private sector, there is great concern about the skills gap that exists between those skills required on the job and those exhibited by potential and incumbent workers. Employers experience great difficulty in hiring people who have basic employability skills and who are therefore trainable for specific jobs. The Career Readiness Certificate is a portable skills credential, ensuring employers of a job seeker’s skills. back to top 2. Why a portable skills credential? A portable skills credential that is easily and universally understood and valued by employers, educators, and recipients will facilitate job placement, retention, and advancement in our mobile society. Such a credential would be a supplement to a high school diploma, a GED, post-secondary credential, and/or a college degree. It is a great economic development tool for the workforce and business. The Career Readiness Certificate is available to all adult citizens, upon successful completion of the WorkKeys® assessment. back to top 3. Why use the WorkKeys® Assessments to certify employability skills? Over the last ten years, WorkKeys has become a widely accepted common language for skills definition among employers, educators/trainers, and potential/incumbent employees. The power of the WorkKeys system lies in its: 1) objectivity, 2) simplicity, 3) compliance with federal law (ADA, EEOC), and 4) legal defensibility. Across eight assessments, WorkKeys skill levels are described in terms of single digit numbers whose meanings are clearly defined and readily accessible. There are three components to the WorkKeys system: Job profiling which identifies the basic employability skills required on the job Assessment of skill levels of potential or incumbent workers Training to close any skills gap that exists between the skills required and those demonstrated. This latter component is efficient and cost effective because training is done ONLY in the specific skills areas where it is required. Of the tens of thousands of jobs that have been profiled nationally using WorkKeys, about 85% of them use three WorkKeys assessments: Reading for Information Applied Mathematics Locating Information WorkKeys assessments may be administered in One-Stop Career Centers, in Community Colleges, or other ACT-approved sites. back to top 4. Why a tiered approach to Career Readiness credentialing? A tiered model for a portable credential allows for a progression of development, therefore we have created a three-tiered (bronze, silver, and gold) Career Readiness Certificate based on the three assessments listed above. back to top