Providers, industry, and governments have embraced microcredentialing as a solution to the volatility and velocity of changes in labour markets, workplace competencies, and the needs of the 21st century lifelong learner (Oliver, 2019). However, microcredentials do not, in and of themselves, guarantee career or employment success. Seeking a…

The new world of work demands not only academic knowledge and skills but also transferable skills such as communications, creativity, and collaboration--skills that are rarely captured formally. Meeting that demand will require a new approach to the high school diploma. The opportunity is ripe to redesign credentials to enable competency-based…

The aim of this analysis of data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey is to compare labour market outcomes between individuals who have Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications only, VET and Higher Education (HE) qualifications and HE qualifications only, but who work in the same occupations. In…

The earnings of individuals who participate in education and training after high school can provide information about the value of those credentials. This Perspective provides a review of the evidence on earnings gains associated with various types of postsecondary credentials, including college credit--bearing degrees and certificates, noncredit…

Given the rapid growth in short-term programs, and policymakers' fast-growing interest to invest federal higher education dollars into very-short-term credentials, we explore what the research does--and does not--show us about such credentials' utility in the labor market. With concerns about equity, our review of the literature guides us towards…

Interest in the field of career and technical education (CTE) has experienced a resurgence over the last decade, as the global economy has grown increasingly competitive while students have continued to leave school underprepared for well-paying twenty-first century jobs. Together and separately, the education and workforce sectors have sought to…

When the Obama administration implemented the first gainful employment (GE) rule in 2014 to protect students from education credentials that lead to unaffordable debts, virtually all programs at public institutions passed the test. The Biden administration is developing its own GE rule after the Trump administration repealed the Obama-era rule. A…

The good news? Texas is growing. In 2022, Texas joined California to be only the second U.S. state with a population of over 30 million people. The bad news? Texas is growing. More specifically, the Texas labor market is growing. One strategy to improve career readiness is the creation of Pathways in Technology Early College High Schools (P-TECH).…

This Perspective summarizes recent trends in young peoples' entrance into and completion of postsecondary educational programs. Education is an important pathway into well-paying jobs and the American middle class. Education levels have been rising for the past 50 years, including large gains for many demographic groups. But declining public…

This paper argues that micro-credentials are gig credentials for the gig economy. Micro-credentials are short competency-based industry-aligned units of learning, while the gig economy comprises contingent work by individual 'suppliers'. Both can be facilitated by (often the same) digital platforms, and both are underpinned by social relations of…

Current career pathways initiatives recapitulate in many ways both the issues motivating the school-to-work movement of the 1980s and 1990s and its recommended solutions, notably more work-based learning, especially apprenticeship. But that movement's energy dissipated in the face of college for all. Nonetheless, some of its achievements and many…

A major focus of sociological research is on the role of the credential as a 'currency of opportunity', mediating the relationship between education and occupational destinations. However, the labour market has largely remained a 'black box' in sociological and education policy studies. This article draws on 'big data' from over 21,000,000 job…

This brief is part of a broad landscape analysis focused on policy and practice issues related to the recognition of prior learning. The landscape analysis focuses on issues arising in the practice of the recognition of prior learning, policies that encourage or limit its adoption, and key research needs and future directions for the field. This…

Rising employer demand for skilled workers has driven efforts to better align occupational training programs to industry needs. Yet, even as the demand for skilled workers increases, less than half of students who enter occupational training programs receive a credential within six years. Community colleges are working to find faster and more…

Rising employer demand for skilled workers has driven efforts to better align occupational training programs to industry needs. Yet, even as the demand for skilled workers increases, less than half of students who enter occupational training programs receive a credential within six years. Community colleges are working to find faster and more…