Community training qualifications can help people work in a variety of fields. These include healthcare, education and information technology. Some programs prepare students to work as healthcare aides or nurses, while others offer education in a computer science field. Other programs can provide education for a career in public service, such as helping children get on the right track. Community training can also include professional development courses for current employees of non-profits and other organizations.

“Building Skills: Community Training Qualifications

University-community partnerships are often the basis for community training. These are ongoing relationships between a university (department or faculty) and community partners in which students participate as part of their academic coursework. These projects are often research-based and focus on a particular community issue, such as an environmental policy or criminal justice ethics. They can also be service-based and involve the community in solving a local problem or developing an alternative to a problem. For example, a student taking a course on Urban America and Catholic Social Teaching might conduct interviews with doctors, urgent care professionals and individuals without health insurance to learn more about their struggles with accessing healthcare services.

A few countries have formalized community training as a distinct employment sector. In the United Kingdom, for example, a UK-wide organisation sets professional standards for community learning and development. This organisation, formerly known as LLUK, was founded in 1999 and is still active today. It has promoted the identity of this sector in wider UK public policies and the private and non-profit sectors.