Micro in the Macro

Rethinking What a Degree Looks Like

What might a university degree of the future look like? I’ve been focused on that question over the last week, prompted by some of the case studies from US Universities at the Badge Summit, and then the headline from the new Adelaide University, “No longer a failure if you drop out.” Adelaide University are embedding formal exit points at every year level across all degrees. And they are also embracing stackable microcredentials, challenging the notion that success only comes at the finish line. Will be watching with interest to see what and how they recognise as they move to implement this and if the credentials are embedded across the curriculum or just linked to subjects.

Across the globe at Badge Summit in Colorado, I sat in on a presentation from Collin Sullivan, Program Director for Digital Credential Innovation at UMBC (University of Maryland, Baltimore County), about a microcredentialling project they’ve been running since 2016. That’s almost a decade of experience recognising learning in a way that doesn’t wait until the end. Their initiative, Badging Essential Skills for Transitions (B.E.S.T.), focuses on career readiness and the durable skills that aren’t always visible on a transcript.

And they do it in a beautifully uncomplicated way: they don’t create new content. They shine a light on what’s already there to make the hidden curriculum explicit.

I asked Colin if these badges were tied to new programs or additional learning. His answer was clear: “No, all of our microcredentials are built on things we’re already teaching.” And yet, they’ve wrapped this with a robust governance framework, an advisory board, and ongoing research. The result, a recognition system that adds value for students without adding burden for educators. Following line from their website sums up their approach brilliantly.

“Badges answer three questions: who did something, what did they do, and who says they did it? Badges often represent competencies not shown on a transcript, such as expertise in communicating complex scientific information, agility in a particular software solution, or project management skills.”

And huge shout out to UMBC for so generously making all of their work on this publicly available on their website.

So, What’s Changing?

When you look at what UMBC is doing and what Adelaide University just announced, you can start to see a bigger shift happening. It is reviewing how degrees might better serve the needs of learners in this changing environment. It’s not one massive thing you either finish or fail. Imagine a degree that:

• Recognises you at the end of every year, or even sooner

• Allows you to pause and re-enter without penalty

• Gives you portable evidence of what you’ve gained along the way

• Embeds recognition in the learning itself, not bolted on later

• Never gives you a drop out label

Instead of a straight, fixed track where you board at the beginning and only succeed if you make it to the final stop, the degree starts to feel more like a map that can direct you to different destinations. Some people might follow a clear, direct path from start to finish. Others might take a more winding journey, pausing when life gets busy, detouring into work or other opportunities, then returning later when the time is right. You might gather pieces along the way, stack them together, or even change direction entirely. And that’s the point. It’s not about doing it all at once. It’s about building something that fits your life, not the other way around.

And for some part of a degree that provides evidence of learning might be ‘just enough learning’ to get them where they want to go and that should be seen as success by all stakeholders. We may need to review how attrition and funding are managed and reported as students opt to engage in higher education without always completing the macro qualification.

Micro Isn’t Small, It’s Precise

In Australia, we’ve often treated microcredentials as extras, short courses on the side, badges you collect outside your main program. But what UMBC and Adelaide University are showing us is that microcredentials inside the degree have a different kind of impact.

They’re not just about skills. They’re about signals. Signals of confidence, employability, and progress. Sometimes, what learners need isn’t more content, it’s more clarity. A way to understand what they’ve gained, where it could take them, and when it’s enough for now.

And that, to me, feels like the future of education: a place where micro builds the macro, where recognition is routine, and where learning is allowed to flex around life, not the other way around.

Next week I’ll be continuing to share case studies and insights from the Badge Summit focusing on the human perspective rather than platforms and metadata.