Maximise potential with ‘micro courses’
‘‘Micro credentials’’ are set to be tried out as the Government looks to improve the tertiary education system, and make it more studentcentred.
New qualifications in the pipeline would allow people to upskill without slogging through a threeyear degree or 18-month certificate, potentially gaining a new qualification in as little as three weeks, Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Minister Paul Goldsmith said.
Responding to a report by the Productivity Commission released in March, Goldsmith said the New Zealand Qualifications Authority was working on three micro credential pilots.
Over the next few decades, people would be more inclined to do different things over the course of a lifetime, and needed to pick up new skills in a simple and efficient way, so the Government would make it easier for students to move between work, study, and different types of learning, he said.
The courses could be offered through a range of tertiary providers.
The commission’s report made recommendations aimed at freeing up the tertiary sector, including making it easier for new providers to enter the sector and making it easier for students to transfer from one provider to another.
The Government would not reconsider the recommendation to put interest on new student loans, or the recommendation to scrap the university entrance qualification.
Universities New Zealand executive director Chris Whelan said it was good to see the Government had acknowledged there was a high-quality system.
He was pleased the Government rejected some of the more ‘‘extreme and nonsensical’’ recommendations made by the commission. There were a number of recommendations the Government had yet to say yes or no to.