What are micro-credentials? Who are the major providers? Who is benefiting from micro-credentials? Are they the future?

Micro-credentials arose as a response to a need for faster and more efficient pathways from school to work. Many would say that societies are facing a problem: student graduates are unable to find good entry-level jobs, and employers are generally unhappy with the quantity and quality of workers. It became evident that there is a gap in the offerings of higher education. As a result, micro-credentials arose as a solution in par with employability. They are a form of non-degree qualification which offers flexible, short and inexpensive assessed knowledge, skills and competencies that are industry-aligned.

Some scholars are concerned with the rise of this phenomenon. They say that it reflects a neo-liberal ideology where higher education is sold as a commodity and is moving away from being a public good. However, the public good nature of higher education was being justifiably questioned even before the rise of micro-credentials. Additionally, micro-credential providers are not all for-profit.

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Forsyth Tech. (2022). Forsyth Tech Community College has received more than $100,000 in funding from the National Science Foundation Advanced Technical Education (NSF/ATE) to support micro-credentials.
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