As institutions globally respond to rapid technological change, there is increasing demand for flexible, human-centred approaches to workforce development. Durable skills such as communication, problem-solving, adaptability, and collaboration are consistently identified by employers as critical, yet they are often difficult to assess, credential, and scale in ways that are inclusive and adaptable.
This concise paper presents insights from a cross-sector durable skills microcredentials initiative that applies open education principles to the design, delivery, and dissemination of microcredentials. The project brings together Maricopa County Community College District, Bank of America, OpenStax, and Pressbooks to develop openly licensed, competency-based microcredentials aligned with employer needs while remaining adaptable for diverse institutional and regional contexts.
Pressbooks serves as the open publishing and learning content infrastructure supporting the creation, adaptation, and dissemination of microcredential learning materials. Drawing on experience supporting open educational resources (OER) across hundreds of institutions globally, the project leverages open licensing, accessibility-first design, and platform-enabled remixing to ensure that durable skills content can be localized, updated, and integrated into learning management systems and credentialing workflows; relevant for institutions across Europe and beyond.
The initiative organizes high-demand durable skills into 11 competency-based microcredential modules, each supported by openly available learning content and aligned assessments. By applying open education practices, the project aims to reduce barriers to participation, support institutional customization, and promote equitable access for learners.
This session shares early design insights and implementation considerations, focusing on how open publishing platforms and OER practices can strengthen microcredential ecosystems. It explores opportunities and challenges of applying openness to microcredentials, and how institutions can leverage open infrastructure to scale skills-based learning while maintaining quality and relevance.
Key takeaways include:
How open education principles enhance the design and scalability of microcredentials
The role of open publishing platforms in supporting adaptable, accessible microcredential content