Learning and digital skills
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Cisco Networking Academy
Cisco Networking Academy is one of the longest-standing IT skills-to-jobs programs in the world. We aim to transform the lives of learners, educators, and communities through the power of technology, education, and career opportunities to power an inclusive future for all. We work to bridge digital divides for underrepresented communities, opening them up to a world of opportunities in the evolving digital economy.
Cisco Networking Academy’s impact is the result of collaboration with our unmatched ecosystem of partnerships, including governments, academic institutions, and nonprofits. In honor of our 25th anniversary, we set a ten year goal to provide digital and cybersecurity skills training to an additional 25 million people by the end of fiscal 2032, with regional targets around the world. Examples of our goals for Cisco fiscal years (noted below) include:
In FY23:
3.7M learners
190 countries
29,700 instructors
11,700 academies
47 courses in up to 27 languages
18 industry certifications with corresponding courses
- Train 200,000 people with cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2025; announced at the White House Cyber Workforce and Education Summit
- Launched a cybersecurity apprenticeship program aligned with U.S. Department of Labor's Registered Apprenticeship Program
- Train 6.2 million people in Latin America with digital and cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2032
- Train 6.7 million people in APJC with digital and cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2032
- Train 500,000 people in India with cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2025
- In tandem with the U.S. Department of Commerce initiative to bring free digital upskilling opportunities to women in Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF)-participating countries, Cisco will provide digital upskilling training for 50,000 women annually in Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand through end of fiscal 2032
- Train 10 million people in digital and cybersecurity skills, over the next 10 years, across EMEA
- Train 3 million people in Africa by fiscal 2032, estimated at US$200 million in-kind contribution
- Train 10,000 Ukrainian refugees in Poland via Cisco4Ukraine by end of fiscal 2024
- Train 2.6 million people in the European Union (EU) with digital and cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2032
- Train 250,000 people in the EU with cybersecurity skills by end of fiscal 2025
digital skills section of the Cisco Purpose Report.
We’re proud to have reached over 20 million learners around the world who have participated in Cisco Networking Academy courses since 1997 through one of our academies or directly through Skills for All. Our emphasis on providing equitable access to education and inclusive workforce development has led to women representing 27 percent of students since the program began. Additionally, 188,000 students have declared a disability since self-reporting began in fiscal 2019.
95%
of students participating in Cisco career certification courses say Networking Academy helped them obtain a job and/or educational opportunity
3.57M
students who participated in Cisco career certification or IT Essentials courses say Networking Academy helped them obtain a new job
Career-focused for learners
Our students tell the story best. Between fiscal 2005 (when exit surveys began) and fiscal 2023, the program helped 3.57 million students who participated in Cisco career certification or IT Essentials courses obtain a new job. Among students who participated in Cisco certification coursework, 95 percent obtained a job and/or educational opportunity, according to these same surveys.
Career resources from the Cisco Talent Bridge program are a powerful way to connect learners to jobs globally, preparing them no matter where they are on their journey with resources like:
- An equitable online job-matching platform available in 18 languages in an inclusive and accessible format
- Career advice articles and webinars on demand
- Self-enroll career preparation workshop
- An alumni network on LinkedIn
We also introduced a new category of courses focused on Professional Skills. These practical, interactive courses complement technical training and equip learners with essential interpersonal skills for success in the workplace. Learners can earn a digital badge to showcase their skills on their resume and online profile and validate their skills to employers.
“This would not have been possible if I had not decided to upskill and I will always be thankful to Cisco Networking Academy, to my faculties for their guidance and to EdCreateFoundation.”
-Kishan,
Java Developer and Cisco Networking Academy Alum, West Bengal, India
Academies
Partnerships with governments, academic institutions, NGOs, and other organizations make the Cisco Networking Academy program possible. We continue to grow this network. Some of our academies support underrepresented communities, including women, rural populations, people with disabilities, veterans, and persons within the justice system. Our ecosystem of partners helps to grow skilled workforces to power a competitive digital economy. To help ensure inclusive access, Cisco Networking Academy’s curriculum and tools are free to eligible education partners.
For example, we signed a memorandum of understanding in 2019 with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for Digital Transformation Centers to train underserved communities with digital skills. See more on our global impact.
94%
of instructors say Cisco Networking Academy helped them become a better educator.1
Instructors
Skilled and passionate instructors are essential to Cisco Networking Academy’s success. We offer comprehensive professional development and training for our instructors throughout the year. The Instructor Professional Development program is designed to help ensure our instructor community is well-trained on the latest Cisco Networking Academy curriculum while being up-to-speed with the most relevant technological advancements in areas such as networking and automation, cybersecurity, data science, and programming. Instructors have access to a variety of communities within Cisco where they interact directly and share insights with product teams and peer experts. Additionally, feedback from instructors on program direction and enhancements is collected through surveys and instructor advisory boards around the world. This data collection also helps us understand the impact of Cisco Networking Academy on instructors’ lives and careers.
1 Based on Instructor Survey participants in fiscal 2023 who were actively teaching
“I recommend Cisco’s networking fundamentals training to anyone who wants to work in the field of IT, and CCNA Routing and Switching and Cisco security training to those who want to work in the field of networking or cybersecurity.”
- Cihat Emlik, SOC Continuous Security Monitoring Team Leader and Cyber Security Incident Responder, Bachelor of Management Information Systems, Master of Computer Forensics, Cisco Networking Academy Instructor, Turkey
Curriculum
Our technology and education experts design skills-to-jobs curriculum and experiences to support people on their learning journeys, from curiosity through career development. We continue to innovate to keep our curriculum relevant as industry needs evolve and learning technology enables new ways to facilitate effective learning.
As a leader in technology, Cisco brings our industry expertise in areas like networking and automation, cybersecurity, data science, and programming to develop high-quality learning backed by learning science. Courses are developed with the end in mind: the skills to get jobs. We translate those skills into learning objectives and then build purpose-driven, practice-oriented courses aligned to industry-recognized certifications to prepare learners with transferable, vendor-neutral skills. For example, learners get practical experience through leading-edge remote and hands-on learning with physical equipment and the powerful network simulation tool Cisco Packet Tracer.
The program is available to a range of learners—from young adult to lifelong learner—including those pursuing higher education, seeking a new career path, or wanting to gain tech skills. It is delivered through universities, colleges, high schools, NGOs, governments, and directly to learners through our education platforms, allowing the program to reach diverse learners in 190 countries. With 34.5 percent of our 3.7 million participants in fiscal 2023 from the Americas, 28 percent from APJC, and 37.5 percent from EMEA, Cisco Networking Academy is making major strides to help address the global technology skills gap. The program is:
- Comprehensive. A skills-to-jobs learning experience where learners develop skills they will use in the workplace.
- Accessible. Content is available through instructor-led or free online self-paced courses and through compatible assistive technologies. It’s also localized in up to 27 languages worldwide.
- Career-focused. Our curriculum aligns to 18 industry-recognized certifications, designed to develop the skills needed for real job roles. Our Professional Skills courses complement technical training to develop well-rounded, job-ready candidates. Learners can access comprehensive career resources and connect with over 1000 potential employers through the Cisco Talent Bridge program.
- Proven. Year after year, student surveys show the program provides valuable skills that help them obtain jobs and grow their careers.
Visit netacad.com for more student success stories.
“As a nontraditional student with no background in technology, I was impressed with the hands-on labs and Cisco Packet Tracer. These tools and methods allowed me to see and understand networks at every layer. This, coupled with the security classes, allowed me to grow my interest in cybersecurity and understand how it impacts every part of a functional network.”
– Amanda, Cybersecurity Analyst and
Cisco Networking Academy Alum
“Our Cisco Networking Academy global partner system creates unmatched breadth and depth to reach millions of learners who might not otherwise have access to technology education. The combination of our partners’ reach, resources, and proximity to students is a unique and powerful approach to powering an inclusive future for all.”
- Laura Quintana, Vice President and
General Manager,
Cisco Networking Academy
Skills for All
We continue our innovation on Skills for All with Cisco Networking Academy, a free learning platform scaling access to education with mobile-first design. Our mission is to empower people worldwide with career possibilities. Skills for All makes learning more broadly accessible and relevant for new types of learners, new approaches to learning, and new types of education partners. It is now available in five languages: Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish.
The educator experience now provides class management features, a learner adaptive assessment tool (My Knowledge Check), and a Resource Library to equip instructors with supplemental tools, files, and resources. And Academies have more flexible course delivery options, including self-paced and instructor-led options for many courses, to support in-person, remote, and hybrid learning.
As part of Cisco’s purpose to power an inclusive future for all, Cisco Networking Academy strives to broaden web accessibility. Our design vision is that all students should be able to access all web content, and we continue to make enhancements across Skills for All that align with the standards of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
As a part of Cisco Networking Academy, Skills for All also provides connections to entry-level jobs and comprehensive career resources through Cisco Talent Bridge.
Women Rock-IT
The Women Rock-IT program encourages girls and women to consider careers in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM). It highlights the various opportunities that technology careers can offer, particularly in shaping a young person’s future. Established in 2014, the program has reached a global audience of over 2 million people, featuring 156 female speakers, 91 live TV broadcasts, and 78 blogs. As a result, more than 974,000 people have enrolled in a Cisco Networking Academy course.