CAREER: The Aligning Learners' Intentions with Goals and Needs (ALIGN) Model: Connecting Learners to STEM Careers Through STEM Microcredentials

CAREER: The Aligning Learners' Intentions with Goals and Needs (ALIGN) Model: Connecting Learners to STEM Careers Through STEM Micro-credentials The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) program is a National Science Foundation-wide initiative that supports early-career faculty in advancing research and education. The U.S. STEM workforce plays a critical role in driving innovation and economic growth, yet many individuals seeking careers in STEM face challenges due to unclear pathways between education and employment. STEM micro-credentials provide targeted, competency-driven training that offers flexible, efficient alternatives to traditional degrees, making them a powerful tool for strengthening the STEM talent pipeline. However, broader adoption is hindered by unclear quality standards, inconsistent alignment with workforce needs, and limited transparency in credential-to-career connections. This CAREER project lays the foundation for improving the alignment between STEM micro-credentials and career pathways, helping learners make more informed decisions about their education and professional development. By advancing research-based strategies to enhance the credibility, usability, and transparency of STEM micro-credentials, this project will contribute to stronger connections between education, industry, and workforce needs. This research employs a four-phase approach to examine how learners make career-related decisions and engage with STEM micro-credentials. The project will validate an instrument to assess hurdles, enablers, and motivators influencing learners, generating insights that contribute to lifelong learning and workforce integration. Findings will inform the development of learner personas—data-driven archetypes designed to connect learners’ decisions and needs with career pathways—providing a structured approach to understanding how micro-credentials better support workforce transitions. Additionally, the project will establish an open-access repository that maps micro-credential pathways to STEM careers, fostering higher education-industry collaboration and improving credential transparency. These efforts will provide a research-backed foundation for enhancing the role of STEM micro-credentials in workforce development. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.