Convergence Accelerator Phase I (RAISE): A Universal Framework of Micro-Credentials for Nation-Wide Employment

NSF融合加速器支持以团队为基础的多学科努力，以应对国家重要性的挑战，并在不久的将来展示可交付成果的潜力。 这个融合加速器第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/潜在好处将是增加美国工人的机会，使他们能够以将他们与工作联系起来的方式获得特定知识和技能的认可。这一好处将通过建立一个微型认证系统来实现，该系统利用高等教育和雇主之间的伙伴关系，共同开发可以教授和验证的行业价值技能和知识。微证书是一种专注于特定高需求能力的证书，可以在在线，基于工作甚至非正式环境中获得，并且通常可以在更短的时间内获得，成本低于传统的高等教育证书。该系统将采用融合的方法，将来自目前包括人才和招聘，数据科学，工程等行业的专家教师，研究人员，雇主和求职者聚集在一起-所有这些都是为了应对只有通过合作才能应对的挑战。由此产生的实施微证书的系统将是可扩展的，以确保不同的机构能够高效和有效地与雇主合作，执行直接满足劳动力需求的计划，从而影响全国范围内的就业能力。这个融合加速器第一阶段项目解决了对全国人才生态系统的需求，以响应雇主寻求具有21世纪技能的个人。在全球竞争日益激烈的经济中，成功要求雇主能够快速招聘，以满足特定的劳动力需求--这是传统证书无法单独解决的问题。这一挑战也是一个重要的机会，可以研究所需的资源和战略，以更好地将具有高需求技能的求职者与未来的雇主相匹配。该项目将形成求职者，教育工作者和雇主的合作伙伴关系，共同设计一个通用的微证书计划模型，可以部署在任何高等教育机构，以适应区域或国家的就业需求。研究将侧重于实施微证书所需的流程，程序和资源，以及（多利益相关者）设计团队如何运作，从而创建关于如何设计微证书以确保质量，可持续性和利益相关者接受的理论和操作结果。该项目的成果将是一个开放许可、可扩展和可定制的微证书系统网络，以及一个可以支持进一步开发改进的认证过程的研究基地。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The NSF Convergence Accelerator supports team-based, multidisciplinary efforts that address challenges of national importance and show potential for deliverables in the near future. The broader impact/potential benefit of this Convergence Accelerator Phase I project will be to increase opportunities for American workers to earn recognition for specific knowledge and skills in ways that connect them to jobs. This benefit will be made possible by the creation of a micro-credentialing system that uses partnerships between higher education and employers to co-develop industry-valued skills and knowledge that can be taught and verified. A micro-credential is a credential that focuses on specific high-demand competencies, can be earned in online, work-based, or even informal settings, and can generally be earned in less time and at less cost than conventional post-secondary credentials. This system will employ a convergent approach, bringing together expert faculty, researchers, employers and job-seekers from industries that currently include talent and recruiting, data science, engineering, and others - all to address a challenge that can only be met by collaborative efforts. The resultant system for implementing micro-credentials will be scalable to ensure that diverse institutions are able to efficiently and effectively collaborate with employers to execute programs that directly address the needs of the workforce, thereby impacting employability on a national scale.This Convergence Accelerator Phase I project addresses a need for a national talent ecosystem that responds to employers seeking individuals with 21st century skills. Success in an increasingly, globally competitive economy requires that employers be able to quickly hire to match specific workforce needs - a process that traditional credentials cannot address alone. This challenge is also a significant opportunity to research the resources and strategies that are needed to better match job-seekers with high demand skills to their future employers. This project will form a partnership of job-seekers, educators, and employers to co-design a universal model of a micro-credential program that can be deployed at any higher education institution to accommodate regional or national employment needs. Research will focus on the processes, procedures, and resources that are necessary to implement micro-credentials, as well as how the (multi-stakeholder) design teams operate, leading to creating theory and operational findings on how micro-credentials can be designed to ensure quality, sustainability, and stakeholder acceptance. Outcomes from the project will be a network of openly licensed, scalable, and customizable micro-credential systems and a research base that can support further development of improved credentialing processes.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.