National Career Readiness Certificate | Employers
Employers
The National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC™) gives employers a reliable way to verify essential workplace skills — Applied Math, Graphic Literacy, and Workplace Documents. Recognizing the NCRC helps employers improve hiring, reduce turnover, lower training costs, and increase productivity. The NCRC is a versatile tool to use in your hiring process:
- Acknowledge it when presented by applicants
- Accept it in place of a high school diploma or GED®
- Prefer it on job postings
- Match verified skill levels to job needs to ensure the right fit
- Consider it during promotion decisions
Benefits
Increase Hiring Effectiveness
The NCRC measures the core skills proven to matter on the job. The NCRC is not a tool to reject applicants — it helps place individuals in roles where they can succeed.
- Identify qualified, trainable candidates
- Match skills to job requirements
- Improve job fit and onboarding
Reduce Hiring Costs and Improve Performance
Individuals who earn an NCRC have verified foundational skills. This allows employers to:
- Spend less on basic skills training
- Focus training dollars on job-specific skills
Lower Employee Turnover
When skills and job requirements align, individuals are more likely to stay and succeed.
- Reduce turnover
- Build a more dependable workforce
- Identify candidates who show motivation and initiative
Matching Skills to Occupations
ACT® maintains an Occupational Profiles Database of 20,000+ job profiles. This information helps guide hiring and training decisions across industries, identifying:
- Key skills for specific occupations
- Skill levels recommended for success in specific roles
- Opportunities for upskilling and workforce planning
Verifying Certificates
The NCRC is issued at four levels: Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze.
On the front of the certificate, you will see the level earned and a 9-digit registration number. If an individual has made their certificate publicly available, employers can verify the certificate by entering the registration number. On the back of the certificate are the WorkKeys assessment scores earned, and the skills verified for each of the assessments. Since the levels build upon each other, the full list of skills is verified at each level.
For additional information, please contact your Job Service office.