MicroMasters: An Online Pathway to Today’s Top Jobs
Tuesday, September 3, 2019
What’s
in it for students? New skills, lower
cost, and a stepping stone to a full-time master’s program!
MicroMasters
programs are a series of graduate-level courses from top universities designed
to advance your career. They provide deep learning in a specific career field
and are recognized by employers for their real job relevance. Students may
apply to the university offering credit for the MicroMasters program
certificate and, if accepted, can pursue an accelerated and, overall, less
expensive Master’s Degree.
Many
working professionals have the desire to pursue higher education but cannot
find the time or resources to be able to attend a full-time master’s degree program. It
is hard to become a full-time student again if there are bills to pay. Full-time
master’s programs also cost upwards of $40,000 to $60,000+ a year. A MicroMasters
certificate, often completed online in one year, costs between $1,300 to $2,000
for one year. That’s thousands of dollars of savings! Even if you decide to
proceed with a full-time master’s degree, you have already cut your spending by
more than half. You also reap the benefits of a MicroMasters certificate that
makes you more competitive in your field.
As of 2016, several top-rated universities now offer MicroMasters programs, intensive, online programs that focus on teaching students specific sets of skills that can be applied directly to prospective jobs. The courses are offered through edX, a massive open online course (MOOC) provider. These programs are designed as a bridge between bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees that allow employees to pursue higher education without affecting their employment and personal commitments. As of February 2019, 52 MicroMasters programs are being offered, with 48 in English, 3 in Spanish, and 1 in French.
In a 2017 NPR interview, Danaka Porter, a 31-year-old business consultant from Vancouver, British Columbia, shares some thoughts on the MicroMasters program in supply chain management that she completed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for only $1,350.