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Transparency
Credential Engine develops its data standards through open, inclusive, and transparent processes
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March 20th, 2025
Welcome to Transparency, Credential Engine’s monthly newsletter. Our mission of supporting global credential and skill transparency is the driver for all of the work we do at Credential Engine, and we are continuously thinking of innovative ways to support open and transparent ecosystems. Through the work of our staff and partners, we have established OPEN, an initiative to transform publicly available credential, skill, and job data into structured linked open data. The work we cover in this newsletter has and always will support open and transparent systems, and we encourage our audience to keep reading to learn more about how we support an OPEN ecosystem.

Credential Finder Numbers ([link removed]) : 92,703 Credentials, 4,344 Organizations, 33,564 Learning/Training Opportunities, 9,449 Competency Frameworks, 175,472 Competencies, 19,845 Transfer Values, and more! We encourage readers to explore the Credential Finder and learn more about the data in the Credential Registry.
Jump ahead:

> Spotlight (#Spotlight)
> U (#Policy) pdates (#Updates)
> Partnerships (#State)
> C (#Technology) TDL Solutions (#Technology)
> News (#News)


** Spotlight.
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Empowering Student Choice: Industry Recognized Credentials in an OPEN Ecosystem

Credential Engine and its partners are working to transform how we understand educational and career credentials in the United States. With nearly 60,000 providers offering more than 1 million credentials ([link removed]) , the current system is overwhelming and unclear. This makes it difficult for people to make informed decisions about their education and careers, creating barriers to opportunity. Credential Engine aims to address this by making all reliable information about credentials, skills, programs, jobs, and outcomes available as open, structured data that can be easily shared and used.

As part of our strategy to achieve this, Credential Engine is establishing an Open Education and Occupation Data Network (OPEN) to transform publicly available credential, skill, and job data into structured Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL) linked open data. To make the biggest impact, OPEN will focus on information that helps learners navigate their options of learning and career pathways. Adding OPEN data will make the Credential Registry more robust, allowing partners to further explore labor market data, dual enrollment offerings, apprenticeship providers, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) data, and more.

Industry-recognized credentials are an important part of OPEN. Our partners maintain lists of industry-recognized credentials - often issued by national or global assessment and certification bodies - that have undergone comprehensive and transparent review and approval processes. These credentials are often found to be in high demand by employers, meet or exceed average wage thresholds for employment, and/or are available for high school students to achieve.

While industry-recognized credential lists are publicly available online, they are often in downloadable spreadsheets or PDFs, which don’t allow for easy search and comparison. By bringing these lists into a structured, CTDL linked open data format, our partners will be empowered to use, share, or present this information through websites, applications, or other interactive means to benefit their stakeholders, workers, and students.

Through our existing partner relationships, we will be working to publish their lists of industry- recognized credentials in the Credential Registry using publicly available information provided by assessment and certification bodies. Through this process we will also inform and assist data owners to understand the value of linked open data and support maintaining their data in the Credential Registry themselves.
If you are an industry-recognized credential provider, we invite you to get involved. View our informational resources online ([link removed]) or contact [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) for more information.


** Updates.
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Discover CTDL-Powered Solutions: [link removed] Engine kicked off our new Solution Showcase webinar series yesterday, highlighting our partner's tools that leverage CTDL data: the Indiana Achievement Wallet & Western Governors University (WGU) Achievement Wallet. Audiences learned how the Indiana and WGU Achievement Wallets use CTDL-integrated digital credentials to help learners showcase their skills, connect with employers, and align education with career pathways. You can watch the recording ([link removed]) of that webinar here.

See our Solution Showcase webpage ([link removed]) to keep up to date on all upcoming webinars. You won’t want to miss out!

The Credential Connection: Shttps://www.linkedin.com/build-relation/newsletter-follow?entityUrn=7303086911198294018ubscribe to our monthly LinkedIn newsletter, The Credential Connection, a new resource from Credential Engine for a better understanding of the solutions, data, and insights that shape the credential and skills landscape. Every month, we will break down a complex topic crucial to understanding and advancing credential and skill transparency. In our first edition, we tackled the foundation on which all of Credential Engine’s work is based: advancing credential and skill transparency. Subscribe ([link removed]) to automatically receive these insights into the credential landscape and learn how you can take action to make transparency in credentials a reality.

Simple Access to Complex Data -The Credential Registry as Your Research Companion: The Credential Registry, with its vast collection of structured data on credentials and competencies, offers a powerful resource for researchers exploring education and workforce trends.

Here are two recent examples of research that leveraged Registry data:
* EdTrust published a research report and interactive dashboard ([link removed]) on the full cost of short-term credentials. Their research used Credential Registry data on the cost and duration of postsecondary certificates and industry-recognized certifications that take one year or less to earn.
* The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report on Training Provision for the Green and AI Transitions ([link removed]) provides information from 27 OECD countries on skill alignment for workers in green and AI jobs and novel quantitative analysis of four data sources including the Credential Registry. Data from several non-OECD countries was included for comparison, with the Credential Registry serving as the source for the United States data presented.

We make accessing Credential Registry data easy. Researchers can use the JSON download option for all Registry data, or search and filter limited Credential Registry data that is most important to your research in our Credential Finder ([link removed]) tool and export it directly. For data access options, please visit our Consuming Guide ([link removed]) online to additional consuming options. Or reach out to us for more information at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .


** Partnerships.
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Understanding Credential and Skill Transparency and Interoperability with the Groningen Declaration Network and Credential Engine: In a three-part webinar series, The GDN Network hosted Credential Engine and some of our partners to dive deeper into understanding credential and skill transparency and interoperability. The sessions ranged from learning the benefits of the CTDL and how it can support transparency and interoperability to the technical implementation of CTDL solutions. If you missed these informative sessions, you can watch all of them here ([link removed]) . Learn more about our partnership with the GDN network here ([link removed]) .

Advancing Credential and Skill Transparency in Arkansas: Credential Engine is partnering with the State of Arkansas to enhance credential and skill transparency by integrating data from the Arkansas Credential Registry into the Arkansas LAUNCH platform ([link removed]) . This platform allows job seekers, employers, and policymakers to access structured, up-to-date credential information, improving connections between education and workforce opportunities. Since 2023, Arkansas has been building the Arkansas Credential Registry, a comprehensive database of degrees, certificates, and training programs, using a standardized data format for clarity and accessibility. Moving forward, the Arkansas Credential Registry will expand to include occupational licenses, apprenticeships, and job opportunities, strengthening Arkansas' workforce and serving as a model for other states. Learn more about this work here
([link removed]) .


** CTDL Solutions.
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CTDL Advisory Group Welcomes New Principal Members: The CTDL Advisory Group brings together a principal group of global leading experts in areas critical to powering talent ecosystems internationally. This group provides important updates on CTDL developments and opportunities to provide input to planning, expanding, and global positioning of CTDL. We welcome our newest members:
* Anastasia Pouliou, Expert, Qualifications and Credentials, European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training
* Kelly Shiohira, Director, Global Science of Learning Education Network
* Melanie Gottlieb, Executive Director, AACRAO
* Nadia Starr, CEO, South African Qualifications Authority
* Rita Fennelly-Atkinson, Sr. Director, Credentials, Digital Promise

To learn more about the CTDL Advisory group, its members, and how to join, click here ([link removed]) .


** News.
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1. The Power of a Common Language: Creating a Crystal Clear Map of the Credential and Skill Landscape | Credential Engine ([link removed])
2. Machine-Discoverable Data at O*NET Resource Center ([link removed])

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