Women can make $1 million more in their career through this free upskilling program

Women are back at work after COVID shoved millions of them out the door. But that time away calls for some extra support to make sure they can thrive. 

At digital career marketplace, The Mom Project, their training and mentorship program is committed to making the transition back to the workplace seamless and supportive. Since launching in 2020, RISE has offered free technical skills training, mentorship and job placement for thousands of women, with the goal of providing certifications and training to 10,000 participants by the end of 2023. In 2022, the program grew nearly 200%, and 74% of participants were eventually placed in full-time roles, according to their annual impact report.  

"We launched this program to give moms and women of color the opportunity to gain access at no cost to high digital in-demand skills, such as UX design, IT support, data analytics, digital marketing and e-commerce," says Chandra Sanders, vice president of RISE. "This allows for the highest economic opportunity out there — not just for today, but for the years to come." 

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The purpose of RISE was to initially address the disproportionate impact the pandemic has had on women, Sanders says. Throughout 2020, 3.5 million mothers with school-aged children lost jobs, took a leave of absence or voluntarily left the job market, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 

While the number of women in the workforce has returned to pre-pandemic levels, according to the Census Bureau, even a small gap on a resume can have a big financial impact: The Center for American Progress's "career break calculator" estimates that a five-year career break results in a $467,000 financial loss, due to lost retirement benefits, as well as lost income and promotion opportunities.  

RISE is tackling these economic hurdles and has seen great success with not just job placement for women after their training and certifications, but throughout their early tenure in their new roles, too. Within six months of completing RISE, Sanders says women are being promoted to managerial positions and other leadership roles. RISE estimates their participants will earn $1 million more in lifetime income than women who did not participate in the program. 

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"Many of the women who come to our program were out of work because of the pandemic, and we were able to get a really high number of them back into the workforce within just a couple of months," she says. "But they're not just getting back to work — they're able to get promotions from administrative roles to individual contributor roles. We've even seen managers go to directors in less than six months after completing our program." 

Not only does this improve their own economic outlook, but it can have multi-generational effects, Sanders says. And this commitment to supporting women at work has been top of mind for many organizations — a signal that the impact will be felt for years to come. 

"This is something that really helps to change the trajectory of not just their lives, but their kids' lives," Sanders says. "Companies really want to provide pathways and are being more intentional about keeping the women that they have, but also being intentional about creating pathways for more women down the pipeline. It's something that can really continue to have an impact for many, many years to come." 

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Looking ahead, Sanders says employer-investment into women, specifically women of color, will continue to be the focus at RISE. And now, with a growing alumni network, today's participants can tap into the community of women that want to give back and help other women succeed. 

"We're really arming our alumni to be our ambassadors out there in the world for their communities, but also in their workplaces, and to really provide pathways for more women to come through," Sanders says. "It is the most important element, honestly. You can get a certification anywhere. But what you can't get is the holistic approach that really fuels our success and transforms them from the inside out."