Panacea (medicine)

Affordance

Public relations

Accounting

Operating system

Reset (finance)

Computer science

Business

Alternative medicine

Snapshot (computer storage)

Political science

Revenue

Medicine

Finance

Human–computer interaction

Pathology

Smart Learning Environments

This article provides university leaders an introduction to the emerging micro-credentials field, including a snapshot of the global landscape. Despite the accelerated interest in micro-credentials, this article also raises a fundamental strategic question for leaders at the outset: Are micro-credentials right for our university? Part I discusses the basic elements of mcro-credentials, definitions, types of micro-credentials, and affordances and barriers and various providers of micro-credentials. Part II presents a snapshot of what is happening on the global playing field and the challenges inherent in trying to standardise micro-credentials globally. The final section of the article provides some general observations by the authors, lessons from practice, and brief example of how institutions may implement a strategic reset using micro-credentials. The authors close by emphasising micro-credentials are not a panacea for resolving institutional challenges and they are unlikely to become a major revenue enhancement. They may provide strategic value in their integration with other major institutional initiatives.

A strategic reset: micro-credentials for higher education leaders