Credential Transparency

Washington has been on a path to increase access to and attainment of postsecondary credentials for all its residents, and to strengthen the connection between industry and education to improve economic outcomes for its students and the competitive stature of its businesses. The state has been recognized nationally for the tremendous gains it has made, especially over the past decade. Successful advancements have been achieved in articulating and accelerating pathways from high school to postsecondary credentials, including registered apprenticeships and 2- and 4-year degrees.

But more work remains to be done. In an effort to increase credential transparency efforts, the Workforce Board helped launch Washington’s first-ever Credential Transparency Advisory Committee, as part of a grant-funded project with the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, Credential Engine.

The Credential Transparency Advisory Committee—representing Washington’s public and private higher education institutions, registered apprenticeship, K-12 education, the workforce development system, and policymakers—was convened to explore the role that credentialing plays in the educational and economic mobility of Washingtonians, and talent development for the state’s businesses.

The Committee reviewed data, literature and survey research, and promising practices to develop recommendations to advance Washington’s efforts toward a credential transparency framework that:

• Is learner-centered, and can meet a learner’s needs throughout working life.
• Accommodates, and views as assets, all cultures, lived experiences, and learning styles of credential-seekers.
• Deconstructs student learning by commonly defined knowledge, skills, and abilities.
• Provides momentum, mobility, and permeability along educational and career pathways.
• Can be reliably evaluated.

The Committee issued a final report (see sidebar) that includes recommendations to build on and take to scale promising practices from Washington and elsewhere that will support the educational, career, and economic momentum of all Washingtonians.

Why credential transparency and why now?

The credential marketplace now includes a much wider range of private entities, individual employers, industry associations and others. With no viable public means to police much of what is offered on-line or how those programs and credentials are described and marketed, seekers of information, whether students, workers, or employers are left to fend for themselves.

As credential transparency advances, job listings and descriptions will better align and be made visible in real-time with the common credential language, CTDL. It will be immediately evident when additional learning is required. By using the same description language, courses will be easier to find, as will other details including cost, likely skill gains, and whether courses are offered online or in person.