Microcredentials are short, focused learning experiences that allow students to develop in-demand skills, earn shareable credentials, and connect coursework to career readiness. At UT Arlington, students and faculty have access to high-quality microcredentials through Coursera (UT System Career Academy), LinkedIn Learning, and Adobe Express. These platforms provide flexible, self-paced learning that strengthens technical, professional, and creative competencies.
Coursera (UT System Career Academy)
Log in using your UTA email through the UT System Coursera portal.
Student-facing link:
Faculty/staff-facing link:
Access professional certificates from IBM, Google, Meta, Salesforce, and more.
Why it matters: Students gain industry-recognized skills aligned with workforce expectations.
Teaching ideas:
- Assign individual modules as weekly learning tasks.
- Use Coursera quizzes as low-stakes knowledge checks.
- Integrate certificate modules as part of project-based learning.
- Have students reflect on how the credential connects to course outcomes.
LinkedIn Learning
Faculty and students authenticate through UTA Single Sign-On.
Browse thousands of microcourses in business, technology, communication, creative design, and more.
Why it matters: Students earn verifiable badges and gain job-ready soft and technical skills.
Teaching ideas:
- Replace or supplement lecture content with short LinkedIn Learning videos.
- Use certificates as artifacts in ePortfolios, résumés, or LinkedIn profiles.
- Embed videos or playlists into Canvas modules.
- Host in-class discussions around skills demonstrated in assigned modules.
Adobe Express Microcredentials
Access through Adobe Education Exchange using UTA-provided Adobe credentials:
Courses include digital storytelling, graphic design, and multimodal communication.
Why it matters: Students develop creativity and media skills essential for modern communication tasks.
Teaching ideas:
- Assign students to create visual summaries, infographics, or digital posters.
- Use microcredential lessons to scaffold multimodal projects.
- Feature student creations in class showcases or discussion boards.
- Encourage students to use Adobe badges in their professional portfolios.
For faculty/staff (starter list)
Explore and complete (on your own time in a self-paced format) the free UT System course on microcredentials: Microcredentials within the University System
Canvas-Based AI Essentials Course
Instructional designer Jess Kahlow shared UTA’s AI Essentials for Instructors and AI Essentials for Students self-paced modules, which provide:
- Practical strategies for ethical and effective AI use
- Examples of integrating AI into assessment, course design, and classroom policies
- A UTA-specific context including privacy concerns and syllabus statements
- A built-in badge and H5P activities for Canvas integration
Faculty Impact: 100+ instructors enrolled so far, and most report plans to adjust their teaching to reflect AI realities.
The student course is here (no microcredential but you could create your own badge for completion):
ACUE: Badges and microcredentials for faculty: https://portal.acue.org/pages/ut-arlington and through the ACUE Commons ACUE Commons | Professional Development for Faculty Growth (need to create an account to login to access).
To register for ACUE Commons, please scan the QR code below.
Academic Impressions (certificate-based):