In 2016, Credential Engine set out to tally all the badges, degrees, certificates, licenses and diplomas available to denote educational attainment.
They’re still counting.
So far, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit has found 738,428 unique credentials in the U.S., according to a new report published Wednesday. Almost half are offered by non-academic organizations.
What may sound like a meditative exercise in patience does have a practical purpose. Credential Engine hopes its database will eventually help people discern which credentials offer the most value for personal learning and employment opportunities.
Yet the nonprofit is not in the business of measuring the quality of credentials, says Scott Cheney, executive director of Credential Engine. For that sort of judgment, students, workers and policymakers will have to turn elsewhere for now.