Purpose: This study aims to present the evaluation of a competency-based online professional development training program, PhD Progression, tied to a digital badge system, created to support PhD students across fields. Design/methodology/approach: This study took place at Boston University, a large, nonprofit, Carnegie Classified R1 research-intensive institution located in the northeastern region of the USA. Through internal campus collaborations, the authors developed a PhD core capacities framework. Building from this framework, the authors designed the first learning level of the program and ran a pilot study with PhD students from various fields and at different stages of their PhD. Using surveys and focus groups, the authors collected both quantitative and qualitative data to evaluate this program. Findings: The quantitative and qualitative data show that the majority of the PhD student participants found the contents of the competency-based training program useful, appropriate for building skills and knowledge and therefore relevant for both their degree progress and their future job. Gaining digital badges significantly increased their motivation to complete training modules. Practical implications: This type of resource is scalable to other institutions that wish to provide self-paced professional development support to their PhD students while rewarding them for investing time in building professional skills and enabling them to showcase these skills to potential employers. Originality/value: This study demonstrates, for the first time, that tying a digital badging system to a competency-based professional development program significantly motivates PhD students to set professional development goals and invest time in building skills.