Durham Technical Community College in cooperation with the N.C. Community College System, the Durham and Regional Partnership Workforce Development Boards, and the Durham and Orange County JobLink Centers, is offering the North Carolina Career Readiness Certificate (CRC). The Career Readiness Certificate provides existing and potential job candidates with a credential that proves their skill level to enhance employability. This certification allows employers a more efficient way to assess work skills.

The certificate is designed to complement other traditional credentials, such as a high school diploma or community college degree, and confirms the person's competence in specific workplace skills in Applied Mathematics, Reading for Information, and Locating Information. Employers use the certificate, along with other education and background information, to make employment and training decisions. Higher scores indicate an individual's readiness for a greater range of jobs.

“Over the last 10 to 15 years there has been a weakening confidence in the academic credentials with which people graduate from high school and college,” according to Barbara Bolin, pioneer in the development of the certificate and president of the North Carolina Association for Career Credentialing. “The CRC is the perfect complement to those credentials.” Read more about why the CRC is “an idea whose time has come” at http://insidehighered.com/news/2008/07/09/certificate

What Employers Want
As jobs in the United States continue to become more complex, employers are asking their employees to have command of increasingly higher skills. Every organization wants to attract the most qualified employees and match them to jobs for which they are best suited. The Career Readiness Certificate, through the ACT WorkKeys® system, provides a standardized measurement to compare employees and job applicants with established profiles. The KeyTrain® training system develops and sharpens workplace skills of students and employees.

Learn more about how to unlock the power of your workforce WorkKeys® employee selection and development system by viewing the Employer's Guide to WorkKeys® Assessments.

Work and College Readiness
If students are going to be adequately prepared for the workforce, they need to understand the requirements for jobs they are considering. WorkKeys® helps students determine the skill levels and education required for various jobs. The WorkKeys® database contains over 13,000 job profiles outlining the Math, Reading, and Locating Information skill levels utilized in each occupation. After taking the ACT WorkKeys® tests you will know exactly where your skills stand in being able to perform well at a specific job.

Career Readiness Certificate Skill Levels
The North Carolina Career Readiness Certificate uses test results from assessments to award certificates in three categories:

• Bronze Level signifies an individual has scored at least a level 3 in each of the three core areas (Reading for Information, Applied Mathematics, and Locating Information) and has the necessary skills for 35 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys® database.
  
  
• Silver Level signifies an individual has scored at least a level 4 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary skills for 65 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys® database.
  
  
• Gold Level signifies an individual has scored at least a level 5 in each of the three core areas and has the necessary skills for 90 percent of the jobs in the WorkKeys® database.

Information for Students and Employees
Anyone over 18 years of age is eligible to take the WorkKeys CRC assessments. Assessment test schedules are being created and will be posted on campus, in the non-credit schedule, and on the website. Assessment tests can be taken at Durham Tech's main campus or at the Durham and Orange County JobLink centers. Employers may also arrange special assessment sessions for promotion purposes. The cost of WorkKeys® assessment testing is $30 for an individual. Contact Mary Moore at 919-536-7222, ext. 4014 or email crctest@durhamtech.edu for corporate pricing.

Pre-register by contacting Mary Moore at 919-536-7222, ext. 4014 or email crctest@durhamtech.edu. Scores can be accessed via the Internet, but individuals are encouraged to schedule a counseling appointment with Mary Moore. The certificates are signed by Governor Perdue and are available 35-45 days after taking the test. You may use your score report until then to confirm your competency level.

If you wish to improve your score, KeyTrain software has self-paced tutorials that will help people address the gaps in skills that they have. The KeyTrain labs are under the umbrella of the HRD/Workplace Preparation program and are free to qualified participants. Once enrolled, individuals can use the lab whenever they wish during labs hours.  Qualified participants are unemployed, have been notified of a lay-off, or are underemployed. Underemployed persons are working part time and/or are eligible for the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit. All other participants are charged a $55 fee.

WorkKeys Assessment Testing Site:
Durham Technical Community College
Continuing Education Center, room 609
Call 919-536-7222, ext. 4014 to reserve a place in testing session
(see the dates below)

The cost for the assessments are as follows:
$10 per assessment (single test or retest)
$30 for the full set of CRC assessments: Applied Mathematics, Reading for Information, and Locating Information
$5 for a replacement CRC certificate
Costs include certificate signed by Governor Purdue and registration in the North Carolina CRC database.

To accommodate increased demand, test sessions are now held on Durham Tech's Main Campus every Friday from 8:50 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Call 919-536-7222, ext 4014 to reserve a seat in a testing session. No walk-ins. The cost for the CRC is $30 and additional tests or retakes are $10 each.

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