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Professional Badging Programs on The Rise!

 By: Sarah Burrows, Ed.D., Providence College

Many colleges and Universities are launching professional Badging programs and Gen-Z students love it! The program structures vary according to what area of a college the program manages it- but some common features include:

• Based on NACE Career Readiness competencies
• Earned Badges are posted to LinkedIn or Handshake profiles
• Levels of mastery are available – such as Master, Advanced, or Developing
• Academic achievements may be aligned with a competency badge- to further integrate academic accomplishments with Career Development

A successful Badging program requires methodical planning, buy-in from several stakeholders across the campus, an effective marketing campaign, dedicated staffing, and relevance to employers and students. If a Badging program is too self-referential, (i.e. only makes sense to those within the community) – it may not resonate with employers and will likely fizzle out.

There are several options for the creation of the badges, many available through a learning management system such as Canvas or Blackboard, or a portfolio platform such as Portfolium and Digication. If you are not creating and running the badging program through a LMS- you can learn more about open badging programs by reviewing these sites:

• Badgecraft
• Badgr
• us
• Catalyst
• Credly
• DigitalMe
• EduOpen
• Madison College
• Michigan State University
• Seton Hall University

Some higher education programs that are well developed are:

• https://uwosh.edu/career/student-resources/career-ready-badge-program/
• https://www.usf.edu/career-services/career-ready/index.aspx
• https://eportfolio.nd.edu/

I believe that a Professional Badging program adds levels of depth and breadth to career development opportunities as well as generating student excitement and engagement.

AUTHOR: Sarah Burrows, Ed.D. is the Senior Associate Director for the Center for Career Education & Professional Development at Providence College.

Categorized in: Advice for CEIA Colleagues, Badging Programs, Best Practices, Career Development

This post was written by rich@ceiainc.org