Earlier this year, the European MOOC Consortium (EMC) announced the launch of the Common Microcredential Framework in partnership with Europe’s main MOOC providers, FutureLearn (UK), France Université Numérique (France) OpenupEd (pan-European), Miríadax (Spain), and EduOpen (Italy). The aim is to lay the foundations for a new international credential for universities to meet the needs of lifelong learners globally and comes in response to demand from learners to develop new knowledge, skills and competencies from shorter, recognised and quality-assured courses, which can also be used to earn traditional university qualifications.
Understanding the Common Microcredential Framework
To ensure microcredential courses are built to high quality standards, the CMF requires that microcredential courses are capable of earning academic credit. This requirement ensures courses must be developed within the university’s national qualification framework and, in Europe, in line with the European Qualification Framework (EQF), a common European reference framework whose purpose is to make qualifications more readable and understandable across different countries and systems.
In order to qualify as a microcredential within this framework, a course must adhere to the following specifications:
The first microcredentials as part of this CMF are expected to be ready for enrolment on the partner platforms, in the second half of 2019. Among them will be a microcredential course from Dublin City University on “Fintech and Strategy in the 21st Century” delivered on FutureLearn.
More information about the EMC can be found on their website here.
Understanding the Common Microcredential Framework
To ensure microcredential courses are built to high quality standards, the CMF requires that microcredential courses are capable of earning academic credit. This requirement ensures courses must be developed within the university’s national qualification framework and, in Europe, in line with the European Qualification Framework (EQF), a common European reference framework whose purpose is to make qualifications more readable and understandable across different countries and systems.
In order to qualify as a microcredential within this framework, a course must adhere to the following specifications:
- Have a total study time of no less than 100 hours and no more than 150 hours, including revision for, and completion of, the summative assessment.
- Be levelled at Level 6 or Level 7 in the European Qualification Framework or the equivalent levels in the university’s national qualification framework.
- Provide a summative assessment that enables the award of academic credit, either directly following successful completion of a micro-credential or via recognition of prior learning upon enrolment as a student on the university’s course of study.
- Operate a reliable method of ID verification at the point of assessment that complies with the university’s policies and/or is widely adopted across the platforms authorised to use the CMF.
- Provide a transcript that sets out the learning outcomes for a micro-credential, total study hours required, EQF level and number of credit points earned.
The first microcredentials as part of this CMF are expected to be ready for enrolment on the partner platforms, in the second half of 2019. Among them will be a microcredential course from Dublin City University on “Fintech and Strategy in the 21st Century” delivered on FutureLearn.
More information about the EMC can be found on their website here.
