The Short-Term
Credential Landscape
Over the past decade, the market for short‑term training programs that lead to credentials has exploded—supercharged by scalable online learning platforms and COVID‑era shifts that have led to wider use and acceptance of remote online learning b vmodels. Learners and employers now have to navigate more than 50,000 IT credential programs offering online, in-person, and hybrid instruction. But within that vast number of options, our research indicates that employers generally prefer a small set of well-recognized credentials—primarily those offered by CompTIA, Microsoft, and Cisco.
This section features a road map to the IT credential landscape. It breaks the offerings down into four dominant types—Industry‑Led, Brand‑Aligned, Academic Nondegree, and Online Platform Provider‑Led—and offers comparisons of their cost and the time it takes to complete them. It also discusses potential barriers that could limit people’s ability to pursue certain credentials and identifies those that do (and don’t) offer wraparound supports for learners who face challenges such as lack of access to child care, transportation, or housing.
Short-term IT credential programs have multiplied in recent years
- There are now more than 50,000 training programs that lead to IT credentials.
- Delivery methods range from fully online to fully in-person, with many programs offering hybrid instruction models.
- The emergence of scalable online teaching platforms has allowed training providers to enroll learners from around the world. Gaining access to this previously untapped market helped them to see the revenue potential of the online instruction model, leading to the creation of many new credential programs—a trend that accelerated during the COVID lockdowns, when online work and learning became more common.
Credential programs can be sorted into the following categories:
Industry Led
Certifications designed and awarded by well-known national or international trade associations or other industry groups.
Qualities: Industry-wide recognition; very likely to appear on lists of desired qualifications in job postings; learners must pass an exam to earn the certificate; programs often include both general and specialized trainings—a model that allows learners to stack credentials as they reach more advanced levels.
Examples: CompTIA certifications, the Project Management Institute’s Project Management Professional (PMP) credential
Brand-Aligned
Training programs in which participants learn how to use a specific brand’s products.
Qualities: Industry-wide recognition; very likely to appear on lists of desired qualifications in job postings; enable learners to gain specialized expertise in widely used products; may not include training in other brands’ products.
Examples: Microsoft Fundamentals certifications, Cisco Certified Network Associate
Academic Nondegree
Credentials offered to the public by community colleges or universities through courses that don’t immediately lead to a degree.
Qualities: More likely to be offered in-person or via hybrid models; associated with academic institutions that are well recognized, especially in local markets; courses may include access to the institution’s career services and other supports; may award transferrable credits that can count toward degrees; typically cost less than degree programs.
Examples: Cloud Computing Specialist Certificate at Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) (credit-bearing; often hybrid; maps to AWS skills; credits can stack into NOVA associate’s degree programs); college credit certificate in Cybersecurity at Miami Dade College (credit-bearing; recognized locally by employers; offers transferable credits that can be applied to degrees).
Online Platform Provider-Led
Credential courses offered via online learning platforms (including Coursera, edX, and Emeritus) and sponsored by academic institutions and/or companies.
Qualities: Low barriers to entry (it’s generally easy to sign up and they typically cost less than other programs); often self-paced with flexible timelines; generally associated with well-known companies and leading academic institutions, including IBM, Google, Harvard, and MIT; less likely to include career services or wraparound supports.
Examples: Google IT Support Certificate (Coursera), IBM IT Support Professional Certificate (edX), Computer Science for Artificial Intelligence (edX via Harvard).
The table below offers comparisons of the costs and timelines of five IT credential programs, along with examples of potential barriers that might limit people’s ability to participate in them.
| Cost | Time | Barrier to Entry | |
|---|---|---|---|
| CompTIA A+ | $506 (Exams only, no prep) | Approximately 3 months (estimate of time required for study and preparation) | None |
| Google IT Support Professional Certificate (Coursera) | $49/month, $150-300 total | 3 to 6 months (part-time, about 10 hours per week) | None |
| IBM IT Support Professional Certificate (edX) | $275 | 8 months (at 6 to 8 hours per week) | None |
| Bunker Hill Community College (Boston) IT Support Certificate | $6,000 (in-state) | 24 credits (eight 3-credit courses) | Basic application and enrollment process |
| Boston University Certificate in Computer Science | $8,800 (part-time tuition rate) | 16 credits (four 4-credit courses) | Application process (including submission of high school transcripts and prior college transcripts) |
A Vast Marketplace
In a market of more than 50,000 IT credentials, JFF research shows that only these five certifications are consistently requested by employers. They all fall into the Industry-Led and Brand-Aligned categories:
- CompTIA A+
- CompTIA Network+
- CompTIA Security+
- Microsoft Certified Professional
- Cisco Certified Network Associate
This indicates that employers have a clear preference for established certifications over newer credentials. One explanation may be that credential programs have proliferated so quickly that employers are unable to keep track of them all or have difficulty discerning differences between the many offerings. Therefore, they lean toward the credentials that they’re familiar with.
Credential Personas
We drew on our scan of the credential landscape and prior research on short‑term IT credentials to create vignettes featuring fictional personas of learners and workers to illustrate the numerous pathways people can follow to IT careers in the real world. Each of these hypothetical narratives shows how credentials that are aligned with employers’ needs can lead to opportunities for economic advancement.
A Pathway Prodigy
From high school hallways to the heart of local government IT, Sayon’s journey started with a spark. Enrolled in a high school career pathway program focused on technology, he dove into hands-on training in IT support—tinkering with hardware, troubleshooting software, supporting learning networks, and helping users stay connected. His high school covered the cost of the CompTIA A+ exam, and he aced it.
Inspired by that early experience, Sayon didn’t hesitate—he headed to a state university to study information systems. By the time he graduated, he had acquired not only in-demand credentials but also the confidence he needed to land a job in the IT department of his hometown’s municipal government. For Sayon, a career pathway wasn’t just a course of study—it was a launchpad.
A Cybersecurity Breakthrough
When Surbhai graduated from high school, she was uncertain about her future—until her cousin sent her a link to a website with information about a scholarship for an online cybersecurity boot camp offered by edX. With a growing curiosity for tech and a sense that cybersecurity was the next big thing, she jumped in. The boot camp was no walk in the park—late nights, error messages, and tough concepts—but the support of instructors, tutors, and peers pulled her through.
The turning point? Through the boot camp program, she was able to secure a cybersecurity internship at a consulting firm. In that role, she earned security clearances, worked on live projects, and performed well enough to get a full-time job offer. Now, Surbhai is building a career in a field that once felt out of reach.
A UX Design Career Reboot
Jordan’s career began in marketing and communications. But after working closely with user experience (UX) designers on projects, they felt a creative itch that needed scratching. So when an alert announcing a Google UX Design Certificate course popped up in their feed, they took it as a sign.
Driven by curiosity, Jordan powered through the self-paced coursework, added new tools to their skill set, and built an entirely new professional network. They didn’t just pivot—they blended their storytelling, design sensibilities, and digital know-how into a whole new career. For Jordan, it wasn’t about starting over. It was about evolving and moving forward.
From the Help Desk to Data Analytics
Jorge has always had a knack for tech. In high school, he picked up gigs doing IT support, and after graduation, he landed a steady job in tech support at a local hospital. But over time, two things became clear: It was hard to get a promotion without a degree, and he was hungry for more than just help desk tickets.
With guidance from career coaches at his local community college, Jorge discovered a four-course health informatics certificate program. It lit a fire—connecting his tech skills with the growing demand for data analytics in health care. Thanks to credit transfers, a smart articulation agreement, and a prior learning assessment, Jorge mapped out a part-time path to a bachelor’s degree in health informatics. Three years later, he had earned the degree and moved into a more strategic role at the hospital—proof that learning and persistence lead to career acceleration.