By: Tara White Kee

Finding the opportunity to update credentials and get the education needed for a career move can be a challenge. Certificate programs provide an excellent way to earn a credential, learn new skills or retool for a job change.
The University of Delaware’s Division of Professional and Continuing Studies offers a range of certificates in the health care, legal and business fields. These practical programs offer concentrated study in a specific area and can be completed in a relatively short time through part-time study.
Students say that their certificate classes are interesting and informative and that they learn practical tools and techniques.  In addition to benefiting from the knowledge they gain in the programs, certificate graduates report that the certificate credential has helped them demonstrate to future employers that they are willing and able to learn new skills.
This fall the following certificates will be offered: Business Analyst, Clinical Trials Management, Finance for Non-Financial Managers, Financial Planning, Health Care Risk Management and Patient Safety, Legal Nurse Consultant, Paralegal, Project Management, Six Sigma Green Belt, and Strategic Human Capital Management.
University of Delaware certificate program instructors combine strong academic credentials with extensive experience in management, training and the professions. They bring a wealth of experience gained from working with outstanding organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, small businesses and not-for-profit organizations. One student notes, “It was wonderful to be taught by practicing professionals in this program. They brought real-world knowledge and examples, anecdotes and case studies, from their own professional experiences. When you have practical knowledge versus book knowledge, the practical knowledge wins every time.”  She adds, “The instructors cared about the students in their classes and wanted them to succeed. They were mentors as well as teachers.”

Classes for the certificates meet at the UD Downtown Center at 8th and King Streets in Wilmington, except for Financial Planning which meets on the Newark campus. Directions to the UD Downtown Center are available at www.pcs.udel.edu/uddc. Convenient, covered parking is available diagonally across King Street from the UD Downtown Center under the Doubletree Hotel.
For all certificates, classes are scheduled to suit people who are already working. Time required to complete these certificates ranges from four months to one year.

The University of Delaware also offers the MyBrand career transition program to help job seekers stand out from the crowd.  MyBrand is a powerful, strategic career transition program that helps people discover what sets them apart – to find their focused, highly-differentiated “brand.”  It provides tools and resources to help find the best opportunities, perform well in interviews. network effectively, and review job offers strategically.
For maximum flexibility and convenience, the MyBrand program is accessed online. Sixty minutes of online and phone-based individualized career coaching are also included in the program.

More information can be found at www.pcs.udel.edu/mybrand.

For more information about
UD certificate programs,
call (302) 831-7600, visit
www.pcs.udel.edu/certificate/
or write to continuing-ed@udel.edu.

Tara White Kee is the marketing manager for the University of Delaware’s Division of Professional and Continuing Studies.
The Division can be contacted
at 302-831-7600.