Are you wondering if it’s better to get a web development certificate program or earn a college degree? The answer isn't as straightforward as you might think; it depends on your goals, budget, and availability. To help you make an informed decision, let's compare web development certificate programs and college degrees in six key areas: the amount of time required for completion, content covered, affordability, career outlook, and earning potential. Armed with this information, you can more clearly see which option might be right for you.
1. Time Required for Completion
The difference between the amount of time it takes to complete a web development certificate program versus a college degree is significant. If you enroll in a full-time certificate program, you can finish in just one to five months. Part-time study is a popular option for those who already have a full-time job, but it does increase the time to completion. However, the good news is you can still complete the program in less than a year when studying part-time.
The length of time required to complete a college education depends on the type of degree you’re pursuing and whether you’re taking classes full or part-time. An associate’s degree—the lowest level of post-secondary education offered—usually takes two years of full-time study to complete. If you want to obtain a bachelor’s degree, you’ll need to invest at least four years of full-time study; earning a master’s degree will require two additional years beyond that.
If you were to pursue any of these degrees part-time, you’d need to expand the time required for completion by doubling it. That means it could take anywhere from two to twelve years to finish your post-secondary education. That’s a considerable investment of your time—significantly longer than it would take to complete a certificate program.
2. Content Covered
There’s also a substantial difference between the content that’s covered in certificate programs and universities. Generally speaking, universities offer an education that’s much broader in scope compared to the content that certificate programs cover. This can be attributed to the fact that a university education is meant to develop the whole person while a certificate program aims to equip students for a new career.
To reach their goal of creating a well-educated, well-rounded person, universities require students to study a wide range of topics. This means students earning a bachelor’s degree must complete approximately two years of general education classes in addition to courses in their major. These requirements contrast sharply with the curriculum you’ll find in a certificate program; because the goal is career readiness, certificate programs only teach skills that will directly apply to a career in web development.
Though you might expect a degree in computer science to help you attain the skills you need for a web development career, that isn’t exactly the case. Yes, at some point in your education you will learn web development skills and how to apply them, but there’s also a wide range of theoretical classes you’ll also be required to take. In contrast, students in certificate programs learn very little of the theoretical and focus solely on the practical.
It seems taking theoretical and general education classes at university doesn’t make you better equipped to work as a Web Developer. In a 2017 survey conducted by Indeed, 72% of employers reported that college and certificate program graduates are equally prepared for the jobs they’ve been hired to do. What’s even more interesting is that another 12% of employers stated that those who complete a bootcamp/certificate program are better prepared than college graduates and are more likely to succeed at their jobs.
3. Affordability
There’s also a significant gap between the cost of a certificate program and how much you’ll end up paying for a college education. Let’s take an in-depth look at the numbers to see how they compare.
The amount you pay for a college education will vary depending upon the type of school you attend and degree you pursue. In order from least to most expensive, the three options for post-secondary education are a community college, state-sponsored university, and private university. In the United States, the average cost of tuition at a local community college is $3,400 per year. A state-sponsored university will cost considerably more, with the average tuition equalling $9,580. Keep in mind, these tuition rates will be higher if you’re attending a school outside your home state; out-of-state tuition averages $8,210 for community colleges and $27,437 for state schools. Private universities are even more expensive, with yearly tuition averaging around $37,200.
It’s important to note that these dollar amounts only include tuition; there are additional expenses associated with attending university that haven’t been factored in. For example, college students will also need to pay for housing, books, and meal plans, which makes the cost of attending college even higher. Students who attend community college end up paying a total of $10,300 per year. Local students at a state-sponsored university spend an average of $25,615 annually while those at a private school pay $53,949 per year on average.
When calculating costs, you should also consider how long it will take to complete your degree. For example, if you’re studying full time to earn an associate's degree, you’ll need to multiply the average annual cost by two to get the total amount you’ll end up spending; assuming that you’re studying at a local community college (the least expensive option), it'll cost you $20,600 total to complete your degree. For a bachelor’s degree at a private university (the most expensive choice), you’ll end up paying more than $200,000 over a four-year span.
This adds up to quite a lot of money. And how exactly do you plan to pay for that education? Do you have multiple thousands of dollars sitting in a bank account somewhere set aside for your education? If so, that’s great! But few people have that kind of money available to them. Some scholarships and grants can help cover costs, but they’re not enough to pay for all of your tuition plus expenses. If you’re like a lot of students, you’ll need to take out student loans, which can put you under a financial burden for many years to come.
Now let’s look at the cost of completing a certificate program. The cost of a bootcamp or certificate program averages around $12,500 but this doesn’t accurately reflect the widely varying tuition rates that are available throughout the industry; if you check on Noble Desktop’s convenient Classes Near Me tool, you’ll see that the prices for web development certificate programs can range anywhere from $4,000 to $20,000.
As opposed to the college costs that were quoted above, the $4,000 to $20,000 tuition is paid one time only, not annually for multiple years. Completing a certificate program also means you’ll have lower costs outside of tuition. While you may need to pay for a workbook or two, those costs are significantly reduced compared to paying for four years’ worth of university textbooks. With a certificate program, you also don’t have to worry about paying for on-campus housing, parking passes, and cafeteria meal plans, making certificate programs the most economical choice by far.
There’s also good news on the financing front; many web development training schools offer tuition assistance and payment plans to make costs more manageable. If you’re unable to pay for tuition up front, your school will likely allow you to spread payments out over several months to make your education more affordable. You can even find some training facilities that allow you to take classes at no charge then pay them back a percentage of your income after graduation. And since certificate programs take a fraction of the time to complete compared to a university degree, you’ll be able to pay that tuition back sooner and not have it hanging over your head for the next decade like you would with traditional student loans.
4. Career Outlook
The career outlook for Web Developers is exceptionally bright; the industry’s job market has experienced tremendous growth in recent years and desperately needs new recruits to fill open positions. According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be an estimated 17,900 web development jobs opening up every year from now until 2030. That equals a 13% job growth rate, which is much higher than the 8% average growth rate predicted for all occupations over the next decade.
Not only are there many web development positions to fill, but employers are also eager to hire graduates of bootcamps and certificate programs to fill those jobs. In a survey conducted by Indeed.com, 80% of the employers who responded indicated that they had hired a bootcamp/certificate program graduate for a tech role within their company. Employers also report being satisfied with the performance of these employees; 99.8% of those who had hired graduates in the past said they would do so again.
5. Potential Earnings
Not only are employment opportunities virtually the same for certificate programs and college graduates, but so is their earning potential; both can live comfortably on six-figure salaries working as Web Developers. Let’s look at wages for some of the most common positions in web development as an example.
The average annual salary for a Front End Web Developer in the United States equals approximately $102,000. Full Stack Web Developers earn a bit more than that on average, bringing in $107,000 per year. Back End Web Developers are typically the highest earners out of the three main specialties, making an average of $115,000 annually.
Keep in mind that these numbers reflect the average earnings for Web Developers, not starting wages. The first web development job you land after graduation—whether you’re completing a certificate program or college—will be an entry-level position where you’ll likely earn $60,000 to $80,000. This is still quite a bit higher than the average annual salary in the United States, which was $56,310 in 2020. While you might be eager to increase your earnings quickly, the good news is that as you continue to work in web development and gain more experience, your earning potential will consistently increase.
6. Accreditation
One of the major differences between certificate programs and universities is that the former are largely unregulated while the latter are accredited. What does it mean to be accredited? In simple terms, it means that an outside governing body has evaluated the school and its programs and determined that they meet the organization's high educational standards. The vast majority of not-for-profit colleges and universities are either regionally or nationally accredited.
In contrast, there are no governing bodies overseeing the curriculum of web development certificate programs. That means the quality of the education you’ll receive could vary considerably from school to school. If you’re considering enrolling in a certificate program, you must spend time researching the training facility’s reputation, paying particular attention to the opinions of former students. The singular purpose of a certificate program is to provide you with the skills you need for a career in web development; check the school’s ratings and recommendations to see if students have been able to secure a job in the field after graduation.
Certificate Program v. College Degree: How to Decide?
Choosing between a certificate program and college degree will depend on three factors: your career goals, financial situation, and how much time you want to devote to completing your education. If you want to start your career quickly or don’t have the money to invest in a college education, your best option is to complete a web development certificate program. Because certificate programs focus on skills acquisition with no general education requirements, they only take a few months to complete. That will allow you to finish your education and begin your web development career in less than a year.
Choosing a certificate over a college degree also won’t limit your earning potential; many of the same opportunities are available to graduates of both types of programs. If you want to eventually work in management or earn a degree later on in life, you can always sign up for college classes. If the courses you enroll in are job-related, your employer might even pay for them.
Of course, there’s nothing wrong with earning a degree instead of completing a certificate program. If you want the full college experience and have both the time and finances to do it, pursuing a university degree might be the better option for you. Whichever path you choose—certificate program or university education—the field of web development is wide open and ready to accept qualified candidates.
Enroll in a Certificate Program to Start Your New Career
Are you ready to start your career in web development? The most efficient way to do this is by completing a web development certificate program that can get you career-ready within just a few months. Depending upon your location, you may be able to find a web development certificate program in your area. If there are none available, a viable alternative would be enrolling in an online web development certificate program. By taking your classes online, you get the same expert instruction and live feedback as you would from an in-person class except you don’t have to deal with troublesome traffic.
If you’re interested in learning more about web development but you’re not quite ready for a comprehensive certificate program, another possibility would be enrolling in individual web development classes. That way you can get started on your learning journey while gauging your interest in web development as a career. If you’re trying to fit your education in with a full-time job or busy home life, then online web development classes might be the best option for you. They offer you the convenience of learning at home with the same skills-focused curriculum as in-person classes.