The growth of supply and demand of occupational‐based training and certification in the United States, 1990–2003

The 1990s and early 2000s saw the increased development of advanced training, skills standards, and certification exams by private organizations in the United States. Employers began accepting these skill certifications in lieu of traditional on‐the‐job training, thereby encouraging employees to acquire more credentials. This article examines the increase in the number of skill certifications available, discusses legislative causes of these increases, and notes the current lack of published peer‐reviewed analyses of statistical reliability and validity of certification exams. It presents a call for future research to determine the usefulness of certification.