Credential Quality

EERC's recent work on credential quality consists of four projects outlined below. 

Non-degree Credentials Blog Series

“The Real Deal” is a blog series published monthly on https://workshift.org/the-real-deal to explore the landscape of quality improvement for non-degree credentials. The series will explore the meaning of quality in relation to non-degree credentials, profile the quality influencers who seek to understand and strengthen learners’ quality outcomes, and document the points of leverage stakeholders have, particularly policymakers at the state level. This initiative, supported by Lumina Foundation and the Walmart Foundation, will continue through 2025.

Mapping the Non-degree Credential Quality Market

As non-degree credentials (NDC) become increasingly common offerings in the education and training marketplace, the importance of developing systems to ensure their quality is a policy imperative. To create a more systematic approach to NDC quality, this project addresses two overarching questions: Who are the organizational actors in the NDC marketplace? How do they influence quality? This project examines potential influences on NDC quality in the credential marketplace and provides a roadmap of the organizations and initiatives currently involved in overseeing NDC quality. It seeks to contribute to the discussion of how to build on this existing infrastructure to create a more robust and coherent system to promote quality in the NDC marketplace.

Quality in Community College Non-Credit Education

Student interest in noncredit educational programs at community colleges has grown considerably since the outset of the pandemic. Yet little is known about the quality of these programs and the credentials they lead to in a range of industries.

This study examined noncredit program offerings at 29 community and technical colleges around the country, including in-depth case studies of several of these programs. Using student surveys, the project also explored the decision-making process students use to enroll in a noncredit program.

Supported by the Lumina Foundation, this study was guided by the Rutgers Education & Employment Research Center’s non-degree credential quality framework.

Non-Degree Credential Quality: A Conceptual Framework to Guide Measurement

Making sense of the increasingly crowded market of non-degree credentials can be a challenge. A wide range of credentials, from industry certifications to badges and micro-credentials, are offered by educational institutions, private training providers, industry associations, and unions, among others.

Within the credential marketplace, there is no single set of standards for individuals, policymakers, employers, and educational institutions to evaluate the quality of non-degree credentials. A system is needed to measure quality and ensure these credentials do not offer false promises, particularly to individuals from marginalized groups who may be drawn to non-degree credentials for their potential to lead to employment and rewarding career pathways.

This paper, supported by the Lumina Foundation, outlines a broad definition of non-degree credential quality, which focuses on four key elements: credential design, demonstrated competencies, market processes, and outcomes of value. The framework provides recommendations for key stakeholders to promote the measurement of quality in non-degree credentials.

This project was supported by Lumina Foundation.

Review of the Evidence on Noncredit Education

Noncredit programs and courses are increasingly important in advancing the skills needed in today’s labor market, but there has been very little data on this type of education compared to credit programs. This review looked at the target audiences, quality, costs and benefits, and outcomes of noncredit programs compared to credit programs using recent ECMC Foundation-funded data and other data collected over the past 5 years. It led to an overall assessment of the education and employment outcomes each type of education leads to.