The CyberLearning Workforce Grant helps adult learners, career-changers, and employer partners offset the cost of industry certification training and test fees. Grants are awarded to qualifying participants to cover all or part of the coursework in our workforce and adult-education catalog — including IT certifications (CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, Server+; Cisco CCNA; ITIL 4 Foundation), business-analyst (CBAP) and project-management (PMP / CAPM) credentials, Microsoft Office Specialist, and test-preparation packages.
Why This Grant Exists
Most adult learners who would benefit from a credentialed career path are blocked by the combined cost of training, practice materials, exam vouchers, and the time away from earning while studying. The Workforce Grant is designed to close that gap for qualifying participants — especially unemployed, under-employed, and career-changing adults for whom the credential is the difference between a stuck wage and the next rung of the career ladder. Employers and workforce boards can also use this program to fund team-based upskilling without building it from scratch.
Who It’s For
- Unemployed or under-employed adults seeking a credentialed career path
- Workers reskilling into IT, cybersecurity, business analysis, or project management
- Military veterans and transitioning service members complementing education benefits
- Employers sponsoring staff upskilling or cohort-based certification programs
- Workforce development boards and community-based nonprofits running reskilling cohorts
- Community colleges and adult-education providers adding industry credentials to existing programs
What the Grant Covers
- Access to the online course library for the funded pathway (single credential or stacked sequence)
- Practice assessments, full-length timed practice exams, and scenario-based exercises
- Instructor-reviewed study plan and optional live review sessions before each exam attempt
- Lab environment access (Cisco Packet Tracer, cloud VMs, sandboxed labs) where relevant
- Certification exam vouchers for supported credentials (availability varies by cohort)
- Progress dashboards, cohort rostering, and consolidated reporting for sponsors
Pathways Typically Funded
- MSP / Managed IT Services Technician: CompTIA A+ → Network+ → Security+ → ITIL 4 Foundation
- Cybersecurity Analyst: CompTIA Network+ → Security+ → CySA+ (or EC-Council CEH)
- Network Engineer: CompTIA Network+ → Cisco CCNA → CompTIA Security+
- Business Analyst → Program Leader: CBAP → PMP
- Office Productivity Specialist: Microsoft Office Specialist Associate → Expert
Eligibility
Individual eligibility is assessed during scoping and typically considers employment status, household income, prior training or credentials, and alignment of the target credential with local labor-market demand. Organizational eligibility (for employer-sponsored or workforce-board cohorts) is scoped against the cohort size, target roles, and local employer base. We confirm fit and paperwork requirements on the scoping call so there are no surprises later.
Application Flow
Typical flow: (1) a 30-minute scoping call to confirm eligibility and pathway fit; (2) a light-weight application capturing goals and context; (3) CyberLearning review and award decision; (4) kick-off with rostering, account provisioning, and the first progress-report cadence. Most individual awards move from scoping to kick-off within two to four weeks.
Stacking With Other Funding Sources
Workforce Grants are commonly stacked with WIOA funds, state workforce-board allocations, employer CSR contributions, veteran education benefits, and community-college Perkins CTE funding. Stacking is standard for any cohort large enough to need a real budget — we help applicants map which sources combine cleanly without double-dipping issues.
Measurement & Reporting
Every funded cohort is tracked through enrollment, activity, completion, certification attempts, and pass rates. Sponsors receive periodic reports that map directly to the milestones they set at kick-off. For workforce boards, we also package reports against common public-workforce-system metrics such as credential attainment.
Related Programs
See also: grants overview · Full Professional Development Grant · Matching Grants · Teacher Training Grant · Adopt-A-School Grant.
How to Apply
Districts, schools, community colleges, workforce boards, nonprofits, employers, and individual learners who want to explore this option should review our grant and funding programs or contact CyberLearning to request a scoping conversation.