The Shift in Measuring Higher Education Outcomes: Focus on Skills
The federal government has introduced significant changes in how higher education outcomes are assessed. All programs participating in the federal student loan system will now be accountable for the earnings of their graduates. This is part of the new Student Tuition and Transparency System and Earnings Accountability rule and described as a ‘do no harm’ provision. Though earnings serve as a straightforward metric to judge initial program outcomes, this rule falls short of capturing what truly matters in the long term.
Merely preparing students for their first job is insufficient, especially in a rapidly changing job market influenced by artificial intelligence and automation. These forces alter job roles, economic demands, and the skillsets required. Employers are increasingly emphasizing skills over degrees when hiring. A recent survey shows that 70% of employers now prefer skills-based hiring. With evolving job responsibilities, employers find it efficient to reskill and upskill current employees rather than hire new ones.
The capability to assess skills and abilities is improving, enabling employers to find suitable talent and allowing learners to showcase their skills. Innovative online platforms and credit for prior learning offer flexible ways for students to validate their knowledge and skills as they progress toward a degree. However, public rhetoric still focuses on degree metrics like class time or immediate earnings.
The focus on skills presents an opportunity to reconsider how we measure educational quality. Rather than simply evaluating graduate earnings, we should measure skill mastery. Historically, institutional reputation, seat time, and credit hours have gauged graduate quality. Wage thresholds have been a crude tool for assessing graduates, reflecting only their pay, not their skills. For instance, engineering graduates often earn nearly six-figure salaries, while equally talented graduates in education or liberal arts may choose careers that contribute value but offer lower pay.
Now, with our current capabilities, we can measure outcomes based on skills and real-world applications. The modern workforce demands precise knowledge of employees’ competencies. Even as automation disrupts certain roles, workers possess valuable skills that can be reallocated within organizations. Prioritizing skills will ensure thriving learners and a successful economy.
By focusing on skills, we identify how abilities transfer across industries, opening opportunities for workers and assisting employers in filling key positions. A notable example from Alabama demonstrates how healthcare employers recruited metal pickling equipment operators for surgical positions by recognizing shared competencies. This approach expanded the talent pool and connected workers to new career paths they had not considered.
We already know successful methods. Institutions are crafting innovative, high-quality competency-based education programs that explicitly outline what students must master for credentials. These programs, rooted in competencies, offer transparent, credible, and comparable skills, resulting in valuable credentials. Clear credentials enable employers to validate worker skills, and states can hold institutions responsible for meeting skill demands.
The next step in this approach is a quality assurance model tailored to the modern economy. This model ensures that credentials represent valid skills and competencies. It offers clarity for learners and employers, eliminating the need to interpret competencies from transcripts or job descriptions. This enables states to assess if programs produce graduates with regionally necessary skills. More effective than the current first-job earnings metrics, this model verifies credential skills and their impact on mobility for individuals and communities.
Applauding the new ‘do no harm’ standards and accountability measures, it’s vital that colleges aim higher. They should focus on equipping graduates with competencies that propel them beyond initial jobs to lifelong career success and upward mobility.
Charla Long is president of the Competency-Based Education Network.