by John Finamore and Daniel Foley[1]

The number of college graduates in the United States doubled between 1993 and 2015, from 29 million to 58 million, according to data from the National Survey of College Graduates (NSCG), sponsored by the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics within the National Science Foundation. During this time, the number of college graduates educated or employed in science and engineering (S&E) or S&E-related fields grew from 14 million in 1993 to 31 million in 2015.

The NSCG is an important source of information on the education and career paths of the nation's college-educated scientists and engineers as well as college graduates not educated or employed in S&E fields. In 2015, for the first time, the NSCG collected information to allow the examination of certification and licensure prevalence among the nation's college-educated population. In February 2015, 39% of the college-educated population in the United States held a currently active certification or license. Certifications and licenses generally are associated with an occupation, technology, or industry, and recognize professionals who meet established knowledge, skill, and competency standards necessary to perform a specific job. Some occupations require a certification or license as a condition of employment. For other occupations, these credentials are designed to improve an individual's abilities and increase the potential for promotion or advancement.

This InfoBrief describes certification and licensure prevalence among the nation's college-educated population and examines the effect of these credentials on employment. Among individuals with at least a bachelor's degree, the prevalence rate for certifications and licenses varied by degree level, labor force status, and occupation field. Within occupation fields that had higher certification and license prevalence rates, college-educated individuals with a certification or license typically earned more than those without these credentials.

Certification and Licensure Prevalence, by Educational Attainment

Certifications and licenses among the college-educated population were most prevalent at the professional degree and master's degree levels. Of professional degree holders, 87% also held at least one certification or license, as did 48% of all master's degree holders (table 1). For bachelor's and doctorate degree holders, the certification and licensure prevalence rates were similar at approximately 30%. The high certification and licensure prevalence rates among individuals with professional degrees and master's degrees may be attributed to the occupation fields these degree holders pursue and the credential requirements associated with these fields. The majority of professional degree holders work in health or legal occupations (82%), and a sizable percentage of master's degree holders are employed in education (22%). Most health, legal, and education positions have certification or license requirements to maintain employment.

TABLE 1. Prevalence of certifications and licenses among college graduates, by highest degree of educational attainment and labor force status: 2015

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. College graduates include individuals under the age of 76 with degrees at the bachelor's level or higher. Total includes an estimated 412,000 graduates who reported having never worked for pay or profit and were included in those with no certification or license.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Survey of College Graduates, 2015.

Table 1 Source Data: Excel file

Characteristic Total No certification or license   At least one
certification or license
Number Percent   Number Percent
All college graduates 58,006,000 35,403,000 61.0   22,603,000 39.0
Highest degree of educational attainment
Bachelor's 36,530,000 25,154,000 68.9   11,376,000 31.1
Master's 16,207,000 8,413,000 51.9   7,794,000 48.1
Doctorate 2,003,000 1,405,000 70.1   598,000 29.9
Professional 3,266,000 431,000 13.2   2,835,000 86.8
Labor force status
Employed 45,941,000 26,258,000 57.2   19,683,000 42.8
Full time 38,469,000 21,894,000 56.9   16,575,000 43.1
Part time 7,472,000 4,365,000 58.4   3,108,000 41.6
Unemployed 1,689,000 1,287,000 76.2   402,000 23.8
Not in labor force 10,375,000 7,858,000 75.7   2,518,000 24.3

Certification and Licensure Prevalence, by Labor Force Status and Occupation

Within the college-educated population, employed individuals were more likely to hold a currently active certification or license (43%) than unemployed individuals (24%) or individuals not in the labor force (24%).[2] Among workers, the certification and license prevalence rates varied across occupations. At the broad occupation level, workers in S&E occupations (24%) were less likely to hold a certification or license than those in S&E-related occupations (77%) or non-S&E occupations (38%). The specific occupations in which college-educated workers had the highest certification or license prevalence rates were legal occupations (94%), science and engineering pre-college teachers (91%), health occupations (89%), and other education-related occupations (84%)[3] (table 2).

TABLE 2. Prevalence of certifications and licenses and median annual salary for employed college graduates, by occupation: 2015

S&E = science and engineering.

NOTES: Detail may not add to total because of rounding. Salaries are rounded to the nearest $1,000. College graduates include individuals under the age of 76 with degrees at the bachelor's level or higher.

SOURCE: National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Survey of College Graduates, 2015.

Table 2 Source Data: Excel file

Occupation Total No certification or license   At least one
certification or license
Number Percent Median Annual
Salary ($)
  Number Percent Median Annual
Salary ($)
All employed college graduates 45,941,000 26,258,000 57.2 56,000   19,683,000 42.8 64,000
S&E occupations 6,407,000 4,891,000 76.3 83,000   1,516,000 23.7 85,000
Computer and mathematical scientists 3,156,000 2,510,000 79.5 87,000   646,000 20.5 89,000
Biological, agricultural, and environmental life sciences 631,000 526,000 83.3 55,000   106,000 16.7 62,000
Physical and related scientists 331,000 291,000 87.9 71,000   40,000 12.1 68,000
Social and related scientists 570,000 362,000 63.4 55,000   208,000 36.6 66,000
Psychologists 213,000 52,000 24.2 40,000   161,000 75.8 66,000
Other social and related scientists 357,000 310,000 86.9 61,000   47,000 13.1 60,000
Engineers 1,719,000 1,204,000 70.0 90,000   515,000 30.0 90,000
Civil, architectural or sanitary engineers 251,000 70,000 28.1 64,000   180,000 71.9 85,000
Other engineers 1,468,000 1,133,000 77.2 92,000   335,000 22.8 95,000
S&E-related occupations 7,867,000 1,844,000 23.4 64,000   6,024,000 76.6 68,000
Health occupations 4,883,000 562,000 11.5 35,000   4,321,000 88.5 70,000
S&E managers 967,000 475,000 49.2 125,000   491,000 50.8 120,000
S&E pre-college teachers 1,029,000 96,000 9.3 35,000   933,000 90.7 50,000
S&E technicians and technologists 782,000 612,000 78.2 70,000   170,000 21.8 68,000
Other S&E-related occupations 207,000 98,000 47.3 60,000   109,000 52.7 75,000
Non-S&E occupations 31,667,000 19,523,000 61.7 50,000   12,143,000 38.3 60,000
Non-S&E managers and management-related occupations 10,290,000 6,888,000 66.9 75,000   3,403,000 33.1 90,000
Non-S&E pre-college teachers 4,080,000 675,000 16.5 22,000   3,405,000 83.5 48,000
Lawyers and judges 1,252,000 81,000 6.5 96,000   1,171,000 93.5 105,000
Other non-S&E occupations 16,044,000 11,880,000 74.0 40,000   4,165,000 26.0 49,000

Certification and Licensure Prevalence and Median Annual Salary

Overall, employed college graduates with a certification or license earned more than those without a credential beyond their highest college degree. The median annual salary for an individual with a certification or license in addition to a college degree was $64,000 compared to $56,000 for an individual with only a college degree. The association of a certification or license with a higher median salary varied by occupation. For occupation fields in which at least one-third of workers reported a certification or license, the individuals that held a certification or license generally showed a higher median annual salary compared to those with no credential beyond their highest college degree.

Definitions

In the NSCG, college graduates are defined as individuals under the age of 76 who have earned a degree at the bachelor's level or higher.

A certification refers to a credential awarded by a certification body based on an individual demonstrating through an examination process that he or she has acquired the designated knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform a specific job. The examination can be either written, oral, or performance-based. Certification is a time-limited credential that is renewed through a recertification process.[4]

A license refers to a credential awarded by a government agency that constitutes legal authority to do a specific job. Licenses are based on some combination of degree or certificate attainment, certifications, assessments, or work experience; are time-limited; and must be renewed periodically.[4]

For detailed information on the occupation categories and degree field categories collected in the NSCG, please see https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/docs/occ03maj.html and https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/docs/ed03maj.html.

Data Sources and Limitations and Availability

Data presented here are from the 2015 NSCG, an ongoing longitudinal survey that biennially collects a wide range of information on the employment, education, and demographic characteristics of the nation's college-educated population. Through the use of a rotating panel sample design, the NSCG collects data from individuals during four survey cycles over a 6-year period.

The 2015 NSCG surveyed approximately 90,000 individuals representing college graduates residing in the United States as of February 2015 with at least one degree earned before January 2014. By surveying the college-educated population, the NSCG provides information on individuals educated or employed in S&E fields as well as those educated or employed in S&E-related and non-S&E fields. For further survey information, please visit the NSCG website (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygrads).

The estimates in this InfoBrief are based on responses from a sample of the population and may differ from actual values because of sampling variability or other factors. As a result, apparent differences between the estimates for two or more groups may not be statistically significant. All comparative statements have undergone statistical testing and are significant at the 90% confidence level unless otherwise noted. In this report, the variances of estimates were calculated using the successive difference replication method.

Data presented in this report are available through NCSES's Scientists and Engineers Statistical Data System data tool at https://sestat.nsf.gov/sestat/sestat.html. The 2015 NSCG public use data files are available at https://sestat.nsf.gov/datadownload.

Notes

[1] John Finamore (jfinamor@nsf.gov; 703-292-2258) and Daniel Foley (dfoley@nsf.gov; 703-292-7811), Human Resources Statistics Program, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, National Science Foundation, 4201 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 965, Arlington, VA 22230.

[2] There is no significant difference in the certification and licensure prevalence rates for unemployed individuals and individuals not in the labor force.

[3] There is no significant difference in the certification and licensure prevalence rates for workers in legal occupations and S&E pre-college teachers, and there is no significant difference in the certification and licensure prevalence rates for S&E pre-college teachers and workers in health occupations.

[4] The Interagency Working Group on Expanded Measures of Enrollment and Attainment (GEMEnA) developed these working definitions of industry-recognized certifications and occupational licenses to establish and maintain consistency in measurement across federal statistical surveys. For more information, please visit the GEMEnA website (https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/GEMEnA/).