The Influence of Earning an Industry Certification in High School on Going to College: The Florida CAPE Act
In 2007, Florida enacted the Career and Professional Education (CAPE) Act, through which schools receive support to give students the opportunity to earn industry certifications while in high school. Drawing on data from the Florida Department of Education, this research article in the Journal of Career and Technical Education compares college enrollment and degree attainment for Florida public high school students who earned industry certifications (certification earners) and those who did not (non-earners). Relative to non-earners, certification earners had higher rates of immediate enrollment at 2-year colleges and higher rates of earning an associate degree. Outcomes for certification earners within each career cluster were also compared. Among certification earners, few career clusters had positive associations with postsecondary outcomes relative to other career clusters.