Mobility & Digital Credentials Special Interest Group
Citizens now more than ever are demanding the convenience and speed of digital services without compromising the security of their private data. The process of issuing and verifying diplomas is one of the core workflows in universities operations, hence there have been numerous initiatives from different institutions across Europe that are exploring the digitization of this process.
The digitization of issuing and verification of diplomas and micro-credentials has been in the focus of numerous initiatives at national and European level in response to EU’s digital single market strategy. At the same time multiple privacy enhancing technology innovations have emerged in order to cope with the privacy challenges in these data exchange scenarios. These factors have led to a rapidly evolving ecosystem of players, solutions and specifications that haven’t yet converged into a single framework.
The SIG Mobility and Digital Credential was established in September 2023. All the EUNIS members and invited stakeholders can join to help align the latest developments in the area and exchange ideas is imminent. Experts will gather to discuss and exchange knowledge on current and future developments in the field of student mobility and cross-border education and diplomas.
- The SIG will focus on convergence of architecture and technical specifications, alignment of workstreams, prevent reinvention of the wheel
- The SIG will be an information disseminator and incubator
For more information, click on ‘Mission & Scope’
Situation
Students and academics as well as workers that learn are demanding the convenience and speed of cross border digital services without compromising the security of their private data.
This applies to all processes that allow students to study and have access to digital services at more than one university (mobility) and build and own a portfolio of internationally recognised and exchangeable diplomas or educational records (credentials).
Mobility and credential related processes and services are being developed in numerous projects and initiatives from different institutions across Europe, all aiming to deliver effective digitalised solutions. Student mobility information systems as well as diploma accreditation and verification systems are core and entangled workflows within Student Information Systems university operations.
Urgency
Initiatives concentrate either on student mobility, on credential frameworks, or on both. At the same time multiple privacy enhancing technology innovations have emerged in order to cope with the privacy challenges in these data exchange scenarios. These factors have led to a rapidly evolving ecosystem of players, solutions and specifications, all working – if not in isolation – in parallel.
In this complex landscape universities and central repositories face the challenge to understand the various developments, consider costs and benefits of their involvement and approaches to embed and integrate the new services, technologies and frameworks coherently and fully secure in daily operations.
There is a need for :
- information sharing between all involved on developments, scenarios, and practices in all areas of mobility and digital credentials
- common understanding of microcredentials, of badge versus accreditation (non-assessed versus assessed), of the different use cases for credentials (identity vs. educational, ‘micro’ vs ‘macro’)
- Common understanding of the consequences of the above aspects for educational business processes, educational information flows and related quality assurance.
- alignment, interoperability (governance, legal, technical, semantic) and collaboration between initiatives to establish coherent solutions
- interaction between universities and stakeholders (projects, initiatives) to align on the latest developments and desired future practice.
- a common position with regard to quality assurance on microcredentials
- an European approach to/from abroad systems
- common understanding of the different use cases for credentials (identity vs. educational, ‘micro’ vs ‘macro’) and their consequences for educational business processes, educational information flows and related QA.
Read more here.
Discussion papers
Current SIG members are working on a series of discussion papers, analysing a number of misconceptions. Working titles of the papers are:
- New technology replaces old technology
- Infrastructure ‘order in your own house’
- EU Digital Wallet and Unique Student ID
The analyses will address problematic challenges to the development of a reliable and trustworthy mobility and digital credential services and infrastructure.
Pre-conference workshop, 4 June 2024, Athens
The working papers will be presented to be discussed and validated in a pre-conference workshop on Tuesday 4 June, prior to the EUNIS Congress 2024 (5-7 June) in Athens.
The Mobility & Digital Credentials SIG has been formed on the basis of former EUNIS Student Mobility SIG’s activities. Read more here.
The SIG Mobility and Digital Credentials has started recently. First outputs, expected near summer 2024, will be featured here.
Read more on the earlier outputs of the Student Mobility SIG here.
Join the Mobility & Digital Credentials Special Interest Group
Founding members:
Lluis Alfonso Arino (University of Rovira & Virgili, Spain)
Peter Leijnse (SURF, the Netherlands)
Jan-Joost Norder (DUO, the Netherlands)
Geir Vangen (SIKT, Norway)
Carmen Diaz (SIGMA, Spain)
To join the group just email the group leader
Carmen Diaz: carmen.diaz@eunis.org