Alternative Credentials: New Ways to Certify Learning - David Schejbal, UPCEA Unbound

One serious challenge to increasing educational attainment in the U.S. is the higher education credential itself, i.e., the degree. At best, it is a very blunt instrument that signifies in very general terms disciplinary knowledge and skill. At worst, it is a document noting only that the holder spent time in college, but provides no information at all about what the holder actually knows and can do. Even in the best circumstances, however, degrees are expensive in both time and money, and they meet the needs of only a fraction of the population that requires more knowledge and skills to remain gainfully employed. Many Americans need short bursts of education culminating in targeted credentials that clearly signal what they can do with the knowledge they have. Those credentials should be stackable, combinable, readily available, and clearly indicative of ability and expertise.

https://unbound.upcea.edu/innovation/alternative-credentialing/alternative-credentials-new-ways-to-certify-learning/