Nondegree credentials (NDCs) continue to gain popularity, but most learners pay for them out of pocket, according to a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Attainment of NDCs — which include certificates and licenses, and can range in time from a few weeks to less than a year — tripled from 2009 to 2021, but more than half of participants cover the costs themselves because of limited employer support and access to grants, says the report, which analyzed data on 15,000 adults gathered by the National Training, Education and Workforce Survey.
Most survey respondents said they used their own money — 51% for their most recent vocational certificates and 71% for their most recent professional licenses. About 20% indicated government or private loans (20% and 19%, respectively). About 15% said they received financial support from their employer for their most recent vocational certificate, and 24% for their most recent professional license.
While Pell grants currently cannot cover NDCs, they will be allowed to soon. Congress included Workforce Pell — which opens eligibility for the grants for qualifying short-term workforce education programs — in the budget reconciliation law passed this summer. The U.S. Education Department in December and January will hold negotiated rulemaking sessions to help draft proposed regulations for the program.
Deeper dive
The cost of NDC programs vary widely, but the Pew report noted a 2024 study that found the median monthly cost of attendance for NDCs, including living expenses, was $2,112 or $2,552, depending on the type of provider.
“While NDCs can offer flexible, fast pathways to economic mobility, they remain largely inaccessible to low-income learners and veterans without better financial support and outcome data,” the report says. “Our analysis suggests that without greater transparency on costs, financing and results, these programs risk leaving behind the very people they aim to help.”
Pew observed that while NDC attainment is increasing, degree attainment has dropped — by 1.1% among baccalaureates and 7.8% among associate degrees — from spring 2020 to spring. However, the credentials are often earned in addition to a degree or a separate NDC, the report says. The research shows that among all holders of NDCs (34% of U.S. adults), about half have no degrees (16%) and a similar share (18%) have one. (The report noted that the survey did not ask whether respondents who held both credentials earned their NDC before, after or during attainment of their degree.)
Pew noted areas for further research. For example, it is uncertain how many learners use credit cards–often with higher interest rates–to cover NDC costs. It is also unclear how many of them use income-sharing agreements, where the program covers the student’s costs in exchange for a portion of the student’s earnings later. Researchers also suggested taking a closer look at how Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits finance NDCs, as well as the quality of the programs.
