Certificates, diplomas, work you did, and micro-credentials? Micro-credentials are the modern way of proving your knowledge in specific areas. These are the future for key resume builders and a must-have when attempting to attain industry-specific jobs. What are micro creds’, why are they important, and how can we attain them? These are all questions that are probably jumping around your head right now, but don’t worry, read on!
Let’s jump into it! What are micro creds’? Micro-credentials are a modern type of certification that confirms that a person has completed the necessary education and courses to be considered well-versed in a topic. These certifications are usually simpler to get and can be fine-tuned to be industry-specific.
Where did this idea come from?
The whole idea of micro-credentials stems from achievements or badges that people would get for doing cool tasks in video games. Micro-Credentials play on this tactic. By attaining them, you show that you’ve done/learned something specific – but in real life. To think of this in a different way, if you play a video game and you finish all the levels in the hardest mode possible it shows that you know how to play the game and play the game well. Attaining industry-specific micro-credentials shows that you know what you’re talking about and know how to use the specific skill.
How are they beneficial?
The main benefit of these is how effective and usable they are. Getting a micro-credential in a specific industry takes much less time than going out and getting a broad non-specific degree in a similar field. For example, I could go online and take a coding course because I need to learn a new language, or I could find a micro-credential I could get in learning that one specific language. This is big because it allows people to focus on what they actually wanna learn. Meaning that more and more people are able to get an education in something they actually like.
How to obtain them?
How can these be obtained? These can be obtained from a plethora of online sources. Here are a few:
- LinkedIn Learning
- Coursera
- Skillshare
- Masterclass
- Udemy
- Udacity
In closing, I hope that you have gotten a better understanding of what a micro-credential is and why you should get into them! Learning this new way of education may seem daunting but, in the future, it will pay off. Some helpful platforms that I recommend for you to check out to help learn more about micro-credentials and which ones to learn would be LinkedIn Learning. As always if you have any questions or are looking for more support in your employment or educational journey make sure to reach out to the team at Future North. See you soon!