The intent of the Wisconsin Employability Skills Certificate Program is to recognize a student’s mastery of employability skills valued by employers, to help students explore career interests, and to provide a state credential of student mastery. This program allows:

Students to document their employability skills
Employers to assess the skills they are looking for in quality employees
Educators to customize instruction to help learners to acquire skills that today’s workplace requires.

The Employability Skills Certificate Program consists of the following required components:

Reinforcing 21st Century Skills in Personal Work Habits and Attitudes
Completion of 90 on-the-job work hours
Career Exploration and Planning

It is also designed to provide local flexibility in its coordination and implementation.

Today’s worker must be conscientious of 21st Century Skills framework needed for success in the workplace. This framework describes the skills, knowledge and expertise students must master to succeed in work and life; it is a blend of content knowledge, specific skills, expertise and literacies. 21st Century Skills embraces life and career skills; information, media and technology skills; and learning and innovation skills. Within the context of core knowledge instruction, students must also learn the essential skills for success in today’s world, such as critical thinking, problem solving, communication and collaboration.

The work-based component of the program may be met in any number of jobs/activities. School districts are encouraged to review current local work-based learning programs against the program requirements for offering this program to their students.

Students already involved in a school-supervised work-based learning activity such as regular cooperative education, a work experience program, an internship, or service learning can use that experience for the work-based portion of this program.

If a school district has a work-based program that is locally certified it may want to consider applying for approval from DPI to offer it as a state certified program.

Schools that operate a school-based enterprise (in lieu of work-based opportunities in the community) may be permitted to have participating students do a job shadow to fulfill the work-based requirement. (Note: This is a special case, which requires prior discussion with DPI. Typically, job shadowing in and of itself will not meet the work-based component requirement since job shadowing is nonproductive work, by definition. For students to learn employability skills they must be engaged in work.)

Students participating in a certified cooperative education program or a youth apprenticeship may also enroll in the Wisconsin Employability Skills Certificate Program, to earn both certifications.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction issues the state certificate.

Students aged 14 and above are eligible to participate in this program.

The minimum number of work hours required of students is 90 hours which can be completed over the course of a quarter, semester, summer, year or longer, depending on individual student capacity to learn and district capacity to deliver.

Occupationally related instruction is not required for the Employability Skills Certificate Program although it could be a part of a given work-based learning program such as cooperative education wherein related instruction in skill development is taught in addition to student’s learning employability skills.

Career exploration and planning are essential components of career development and the cornerstone for making appropriate career, educational, and occupational choices. Selecting a relevant Program of Study (POS) offered by your school leads to the development of an Individual Learning Plan (ILP) which will facilitate students' smooth transition from school to work or further learning. An ILP will assist students and parents in relating each student's career interests and post-secondary higher education aspirations to individual aptitudes and achievements. The specific objective is to create a plan of action that the student will follow after graduation. The plan provides concrete post-secondary plans and tentative career goals, identifies the steps that are required, and reinforces the commitment and responsibility of each student to take charge of his or her career. This written document is developed jointly by students, parents, and school personnel. Although ILP development is a joint venture and the post-secondary plan ultimately reflects decisions made by students and parents, the school is responsible for managing the process and for providing students and parents with objective data that enable them to periodically re-evaluate the plan. This career exploration will lead to the creation of a portfolio the students can utilize to transition from high school to further education or a career.

The certificate earned by the student will be issued by the State of Wisconsin and becomes a part of the student’s portfolio.

For questions about this information, contact Denise L. Byrd (608) 266-7262

Last updated on 11/22/2011 2:33:04 PM

Employability Skills - General Program Design