The federal government has implemented a significant change in how higher education outcomes are measured. For the first time, all programs involved in the federal student loan program will be accountable for their graduates’ earnings. This is termed the Student Tuition and Transparency System and Earnings Accountability rule. The rule presents a basic requirement but overlooks long-term outcomes.
Using earnings as a metric for assessing program outcomes is convenient but insufficient. The job market is evolving rapidly due to artificial intelligence, automation, and global changes, altering the needed skills and job structures.
Today, employers increasingly prefer skills-based hiring. According to a survey, 7 in 10 employers have adopted this approach. As job roles change, it becomes more effective to reskill existing workers rather than hiring afresh.
Technological advancements allow for better assessment of skills and aptitudes. Learners can now showcase what they know without traditional time constraints. Innovative online methods validate learners’ skills as they progress toward a degree.
Despite this shift, the public often emphasizes metrics like class time or immediate earnings. The current focus on skills offers a chance to rethink quality measurement. Instead of assessing education’s value based on recent graduates’ earnings, we should evaluate skill mastery.
Previously, college quality was judged by factors like institutional prestige or credit hours. Completion implied knowledge acquisition but rarely specified attained skills. Policymakers then relied on wage benchmarks to evaluate college graduates. However, wages do not reflect the skills individuals have.
Engineering graduates often earn high salaries, while talented graduates in fields like education or liberal arts might choose community-focused careers that pay less. Now, we have the means to measure outcomes based on skills and competencies that are applicable in the workplace.
Employers need a clear understanding of their workers’ skills due to rapidly changing work environments. Automation may affect entry-level coding roles, but workers still possess valuable skills that can be utilized elsewhere.
Prioritizing skills can identify transferable capabilities across industries, creating opportunities for workers and aiding employers in filling vital roles. In Alabama, healthcare employers recruited metal pickling equipment operators for surgical roles due to shared competencies, expanding talent pools and career paths.
Institutions are developing effective competency-based education programs. These programs define required skills for credentials, ensuring transparency, credibility, and comparability of skills.
This evolution leads to a future-ready quality assurance model that verifies credentials and skills relevant to today’s economy. This model provides clarity about competencies for learners and employers, allowing states to ensure programs supply needed skills.
A better system than earnings-focused metrics, this model confirms that credentials deliver verifiable skills and enable measurable advancement for learners, employers, and communities. While supporting new federal standards, colleges must strive to improve and ensure graduates possess competencies for lifelong success.
Charla Long is the president of the Competency-Based Education Network.
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