Certification and Entrepreneurial Development in Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

This study examined the relationship between certification and entrepreneurial development in Nigeria. The specific objectives were to ascertain the relationship between certification as a cosmetic chemist, certification as Esthetician, and entrepreneurial Development in Nigeria. This study was delimited to three local government areas in Akwa Ibom States, namely Uyo, Eket and Ikot Ekpene. This study adopted a survey research design and utilized primary data collected from a sample of two hundred and forty-two (242) respondents across the three Local Government Areas selected for this study in Akwa Ibom State. The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and multiple regression analysis via SPSS 25.0 statistical package. The study findings revealed that Certification as a cosmetic chemist has an insignificant positive relationship with entrepreneurial development in Nigeria. This suggests that having certifications as a cosmetic chemist does not significantly impact entrepreneurial development in Nigeria while Certifications as an esthetician has an insignificant negative relationship with entrepreneurial development in Nigeria. This result indicates that having certifications as an esthetician is negatively correlated with entrepreneurial development in Nigeria. It was thus concluded that certification exerts a significant effect on entrepreneurial development at 5% level of significance. The study recommended, amongst others, that individuals holding certifications as estheticians should consider supplementing their expertise with additional skills or exploring alternative pathways within the cosmetics industry that align more closely with entrepreneurial opportunities.