The Era of Unbundling & Micro-Credentialing

With international enrollment on the decline, sinking completion rates, and reduced state funding, schools are in serious need of fresh ideas to help them adapt and find new ways to offset lost revenue. And, some higher ed experts argue, an entirely new approach to education needs to be put into play. One particular concept that is gaining attention and discussion is known as unbundling education.

What It Means to Unbundle

The current college program model typically requires a standardized number and variety of courses. Some of these courses will be directly relevant to the major in question, while others will be more general education-focused. In unbundling, the program is stripped down to the bare essentials that are needed, not to obtain a degree per se, but rather to obtain the skills necessary to perform in a specific job function.

In an unbundled model, students would only take classes directly relevant to their target career path. The result would be a “micro-credential” – an alternate degree that shows the student’s proficiency in their particular area but doesn’t necessarily contain all the additional coursework that goes into a typical bachelor’s degree.

For students, the benefits of this model are immediately perceivable. Fewer courses means lower cost and less time to complete, and thus, a faster route into the workforce. And for a generation where immediacy and cost-effectiveness are essential life tenets, these advantages may become the deciding factor in choosing a school.

Yet the benefits to an unbundled model extend far beyond the students who wish to fast-track their careers – it would also become a source of distinction for institutions themselves.

Doors of Opportunity Thrown Open

Understandably, offering faster degree paths may initially appear to negatively affect institutional revenue. But, ultimately, offering more versatility – especially in the face of declining enrollment and retention – could be the key to long-term revenue for many institutions.

Unbundled program options could be leveraged in marketing, demonstrating to prospective students the diversity of program and credentialing options. But not only would it show students they can more quickly achieve their goals, it also, by extension, would build rapport and show that your institution is committed to helping students succeed. Unbundling would be the point of differentiation that sets progressive institutions apart from the competition.

There is insufficient evidence to indicate a model like this would drive down the number of degree-seeking students. In fact, the argument could be made that, by tracking program data – including student interest, the employment market and burgeoning fields – schools can potentially discover new degree tracks and convert more students from a larger pool of “unbundled” learners to full-time students.

Further, this strategic approach could enhance the ROI of all programs, and allow schools to reduce wasted marketing spend while increasing program offerings.

Charting a New Course

With unbundling and micro-credentialing, there is perhaps an emerging new era in education – one that’s built on the principle of focused education and rapid growth for student and institution alike. And, while there’s not yet much research on how employers view micro-credentials in comparison to other degrees, some have expressed the sentiment that skill sets are more crucial to hiring than a specific degree, and in this case, micro-credentials or certificates would verify the desired skill set (US News and World Report).

By offering more compact and defined degree paths, institutions pave the way for a more prepared workforce, better accountability and less wasted resources – while still expanding on specific long-term goals like better ROI and boosted revenue.

Micro-Credentialing and More:
Higher Ed Builds off of Blockchain

It’s one of the biggest technological buzzwords of the past couple years, and it’s continuing to make its appearance in almost every industry. It’s blockchain, and it’s finally emerging in higher ed, potentially as the ideal micro-credential topic.

For those who are less familiar with the concept, blockchain is essentially a decentralized, public digital ledger that is used for recording transactions. Because it’s decentralized and uses verification from a number of sources rather than just one, transactions recorded in blockchain are more reliable, more secure and unalterable.

This is the technology behind cryptocurrency, but it can also be used in other contexts to verify authenticity and prevent forgery.

Tech industry news giant Tech Crunch recently reported blockchain-related jobs to be the second-fastest growing in today’s labor market. Does this make blockchain an ideal candidate for micro-credentialing?

As the market seeks more ways to use and further this technology, it may be beneficial for schools to shore up their own expertise in blockchain and build unbundled programs that center around this new technology. In this way, schools would expand their offerings to a relevant and in-demand field, while providing students more opportunities to expand their knowledge base and keep pace with what’s happening in the labor market.

But the uses of blockchain in education expand beyond the walls of the classroom; it may also be useful for protecting and securing transcripts, student loan info and other sensitive information. It could even be used as a classroom learning medium, for example, as a platform where students could receive information and perform work digitally.

Although some skeptics decry blockchain as “flash-in-the-pan” technology, others believe it will be as disruptive as the internet itself. It’s difficult to predict which way the tides will turn, but developing and furthering blockchain technology may provide more opportunities for students, while bringing institutions into an important part of the technological climate.