Industry Certification

An industry certification is a credential recognized by business and industry at the local, state or national level. Industry certificates measure competency and validate the knowledge base and skills that show mastery in a particular industry.

Earning an industry certification allows high school students to acquire and practice some of the most critical college and career-readiness skills, such as critical thinking, focusing, and the ability to prioritize. Ultimately, industry certifications can help students earn higher wages when they enter the workforce.

State Approved IRC List 2024 - 2025

Below is the state approved list of Industry Recognized Credentials (IRC) for the 2024 - 2025 school year. Please refer to the attached PDF for details of Program Area and links to sources approved by OSPI. Information can always be found on OSPI's CTE Resources Resources & Essentials page under Additional Resources. 

Download detailed list in PDF format 

• A*S*K Institute Certification
• Adobe Certified Associate Certifications (Various Certs)
• Amazon Web Services (AWS) Academy Cloud Certifications (Various Certs)
• American Design Drafting Assoc (ADDA) Certified Drafter
• American Institute of Floral Design Certification
• American Meat Science Association Culinary Meat Selection & Cookery Certification
• American Meat Science Association Food Safety & Science Certification
• American Meat Science Association Meat Evaluation Certification
• American Welding Society Welding Certification (Various Certs)
• Apple App Development with Swift Associate and Certified User
• Arduino Certification
• Autodesk Certified Professional/User- AutoCAD (Various Certs)
• Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Certification (Various Certs)
• AVANT ASL Certification
• BASF: Plant Science Certification
• Basic Life Support (BLS) Certification
• Biotechnician Asst Credentialing Exam (BACE)
• Bloodborne Pathogens Certification
• Boater’s License Certification (WA State)
• Center for Financial Responsibility Personal Financial Literacy Certification
• Certified Associate in Data Analytics with Python
• Certified Billing and Coding Specialist (NHA)
• Certified Coding Associate (CCA) (AHIMA)
• Certified Electrocardiograph Technician (CET) (NHA)
• Certified Electronic Health Records Specialist (CEHRS) (NHA)
• Certified Erosion & Sediment Control Lead (CESCL) (WA Dept of Ecology)
• Certified Irrigation Technician License (CIT)
• Certified Medical Administrative Assistant (NHA)
• Certified Medical Assistant (NHA)
• Certified Nursing Aide/Assistant
• Certified Peer Counselor
• Certified Personal Trainer
• Certified SolidWorks Associate (CSWA)
• Certiport Business: Communication Skills for Business, Entrepreneurship and Small Business
• Certiport Information Technology Specialist: Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, Data Analytics, Device Configuration and Management, IC3 Digital Literacy, ITS Computational, ITS HTML and CSS, HTML5 Application Development, Networking, Networking Security Certification, Software Developer
• Child Development Associate (CDA): Council for Professional Recognition
• CISCO Certified Network Associate (CCNA) (Various Certs)
• Clinical Medical Assistant Certification (NHA)
• Coding in Minecraft: JavaScript Certification
• Coding in Minecraft: Python Certification
• Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) Certification (WA State DOL)
• CompTIA A+ Certification
• Core Plus Aerospace: Advanced Manufacturing, Foundational Certificate of Competency
• Core Plus Construction: Foundational Certificate of Competency
• Core Plus Maritime: Foundational Certificate of Competency
• Cosmetology License (WA ST DOL)
• Course leads to an IRC (Utilize for CTE Graduation Pathway reporting only)
• Ducks Unlimited Ecology Conservation & Management Certification
• Early Childhood Education Short Certification (WA ST DCYF)
• Emergency Medical Technician: Basic
• Equipment & Engine Technology Certification (EETC)
• EVERFI Financial Literacy Certification
• Express Employment Professionals Business Office Technology Certification
• Express Employment Professionals Employability/21^st  Century Success Skills Career Prep Certification
• FAA Aviation Maintenance Technician: General
• FAA Private Pilot License
• FANUC Robotics and Advanced Automation Manufacturing (Various Certs)
• First Aid/CPR/AED
• Flagger Certification (WA State DOT)
• Food Worker Card (WA State DOH)
• Forklift Operator Certification
• Fundamentals of Animal Science Certification: Elanco
• Google Workspace Certification (formerly G-Suite)
• HIPPA Compliance Certification
• Home Care Aide (HCA) (WA State DOH)
• Incident Command System - ICS 100 or ICS 700 Certification
• Intuit Certified Bookkeeper, Intuit Quick Books Certified User
• Intuit Design for Delight Innovator Certification (Various Certs)
• Javascript/Java Programming Certification (Various Certs)
• JROTC: Leadership and Employability Skills Certification
• Licensed Veterinary Technician
• Mastercam Certificates (Various Certs)
• Merchant Mariner Credential (MMC) Certification (state-level TSA certification)
• Merchant Mariner Transportation Worker’s Identification Credential (TWIC) Card
• Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS)/Fundamentals (Various Certs)
• MSSC Certified Logistics Technician (CLT)
• National Center for Construction Ed and Research (NCCER): Welding, Construction, Maritime, Manufacturing
• National Entry Level Dental Assistant (NELDA): Dental Assist. National Board
• National Health Sciences Certificate (NCHSE)
• National Restaurant Assoc. (NRA): ProStart Certification
• National Restaurant Assoc. (NRA): ServSafe Certification
• National Retail Foundation Business of Retail: Operations & Profit
• National Retail Foundation Customer Service & Sales Certification
• National Retail Foundation Retail Industry Fundamentals Certification
• National Retail Foundation Warehouse, Inventory, & Logistics Certification
• National Sign Language Proficiency Interview (SLPI): ASL
• NC3 Lincoln Electric - Fabrication and Welding Certifications (Various Certs)
• NCCCO Mobile Crane Operator or Rigger Certification
• NCLCA Principles of Livestock Selection & Evaluation
• NHJTCA Equine Management & Evaluation
• Onshape Certified Associate
• Oracle Certified Associate (OCA): JAVA SE 8 Programmer
• OSHA 10/30 Hr. General Industry
• Other Industry Certification
• Paraeducator Certification (Various Certs)
• Pesticide Applicator License: Commercial/Private
• Pharmacy Assistant Registered (WA State DOH)
• PMI Project Management Ready Certification
• Principles of Small Engine Technology Certification (EETC)
• Python Coding Certification (Various Certs)
• Registered Apprenticeship or Apprenticeship Preparation: L&I Approved or Registered/Recognized by WSATC
• Registered Dental Assistant (RDA) (WA State DOH)
• Rhino Certified Level 1 and 2 Specialist
• ShopBot Tools Certification (Various Certs)
• Smart Automation Certification Alliance (SACA) Certified Industry 4.0 (Various Certs)
• Southwest Airlines Professional Communications
• U.S. Military: Airforce, Army, Marine Corps, Navy (Various Certs)
• United Brotherhood of Carpenters Career Connection Certifications
• Unity Certified User Programmer Certification (Various Certs)
• USITT- USITT State Level Backstage Technology Certification
• Veterinary Medical Applications Certification (Elanco)
• WA STARS Child Care Basics Certification
• Wastewater Treatment Operation Certification (WA Dept. of Ecology)
• WISHA 10 for Agriculture (L&I)
• WordPress (Certified Developer, Certified Administrator, Elementor Specialist, WooCommerce Specialist)
• You Science Digital Certifications: Digital Marketing, Digital Media
• You Science Nutrition: Food & Nutrition, Nutrition & Wellness
• YouScience Agriculture Certification: Agriculture Biology, Agricultural Science, Natural Resources Science, Plant & Soil Science, or Animal Science
• YouScience Art Certifications: Commercial Art, Commercial Photography, Video Productions
• YouScience Automotive Service Fundamentals Certification
• YouScience Business Certifications: Business Office Specialist, Business Communications, Business Law, Business Web Page Design
• YouScience Child Development Certification
• YouScience Computer Science: Exploring Computer Science Certification
• YouScience Construction Trades Foundations Certification
• YouScience Culinary Arts Certification
• YouScience Early Childhood Education Certification
• YouScience Exercise Science and Sports Medicine Certification
• YouScience Finance Certifications: Adult Roles Financial Literacy, Business Mathematics, General Financial Literacy, Personal Financial Responsibility
• YouScience Interior Design
• YouScience Manufacturing Certifications: CAD Mechanical Design, Welding Technician, Woodworking Technician
• YouScience Marketing Certifications: Advertising & Promotion, Marketing Fundamentals, Marketing
• YouScience Medical Certifications: Dental Assistant, Medical Anatomy & Physiology, Medical Forensics, Medical Terminology
• YouScience Robotics Certification
• YouScience Small Engine Repair Certification