What Are Micro-credentials?
Nowadays, most employers expect their workers to continually seek out learning opportunities. Micro-credentials offer students and working professionals alike a way to bulk up their resumes with field-specific skills.
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What Are They?
Micro-credentials are like certifications. Students or professionals take courses and develop specific skills in certain fields. This could include topics like: (1)
Teaching writing in K-12 classrooms
Leading effective business meetings
Customer service e-mail etiquette
Applying leadership skills in the workplace
Front-end web development
…and thousands more.
Micro-credentials are also sometimes called: (2)
Digital badges
Micro-certifications
Web badges
Mini-degrees
Nano-degrees
How Are They Earned?
Earning a micro-credential is like taking a shortened version of a college course. Some are online, some are in a classroom setting. For a badge, you might be asked to: (3)
Complete a number of assignments
Attend lectures/seminars
Present a portfolio of work on the subject
Pass assessments or skill tests
Attend national/international conferences
Display application of knowledge in a work setting
Earning a micro-credential can take anywhere from four weeks to a year, depending on the skill being developed and expectations of the course. (4)
Sites that offer micro-credentials:
Openbadges.org
Educase.edu
edX.org
Generalassemb.ly
DavinciCoders.com
Udacity.com
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Are Micro-credentials Important?
Employers and employees both seem to be in favor of gaining skills for professional development.
In a recent survey of human resource managers across different industries:
95% were interested in the micro-credentials of potential hires. (6)
76%
Percentage of employees who say they want opportunities for career growth (7)
15%
Rise of spending in training and development by employers in 2014 (7)
Sources:
1. http://study.com
2. http://study.com
3. http://www.usnews.com
4. http://www.higher-education-marketing.com
5. http://crl.acrl.org
6. http://blog.clearcompany.com