L2L Micro-credentials Project

About the Project

Micro-credentials also known as MicroCreds have gained significant attention in recent years, both in Europe and globally.  Micro-credentials are short, University accredited, assessed and enterprise powered qualifications. These bite-sized courses allow learners to control their own professional development. 

An important political ambition is for micro-credentials to serve as a useful and flexible tool for the workforce, contributing to inclusion and employment. They also offer employees and job seekers reliable and transferable evidence of qualifications that can be used across workplaces or educational institutions.

The L2L Micro-credential project will focus primarily on vulnerable groups and aims to enhance their self-efficacy and increase their chances of finding employment in their local area/region through the use of micro-credentials.

One challenge identified so far is that it is primarily those who already have higher education who benefit from micro-credentials, rather than the groups that need them the most. Another challenge is how to implement these as building blocks within educational institutions, alongside existing studies.

The project will, among other things, conduct a needs assessment and create an educational toolbox for micro-credentials. Thereafter, high-quality courses will be developed, tested, and evaluated together with the target group. These micro-credentials will help improve life skills, increase employability and promote social inclusion. Finally, the results will be shared so that educational institutions worldwide can adapt and use both the methodology and the courses.

Collaboration

The project involves educational institutions from four countries and two continents: the University of Limerick (UL - Ireland), LUMSA (Italy), Central Queensland University (CQU - Australia), in addition to Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences (INN University), which coordinates the project. Both UL and CQU have extensive experience with the use of micro-credentials. The project received full funding, in total 400,000 Euros.

Regional footprint

L2L Micro-credentials will have a significant regional footprint, as it involves collaboration between educational institutions, associated partners, the business sector and the target group. In this way, the project contributes not only to increased employment and inclusion within and across the participating regions in Europe and Australia, but also to addressing local labour market needs and promoting regional economic development.