Stackable Credentials in New Jersey: Mapping the Current Landscape
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States are increasingly interested in the use of "stackable credentials" to meet both workforce demands, as well as the need for flexible on and off ramps between higher education and the labor market for today's adult population. Initial evidence suggests generally positive effects of "stacking," but identified equity gaps, variation in approaches, and heterogenous effects by state context leave much to be explored.
Using a range of quantitative methods and newly available data from the New Jersey Education to Employment Data System (NJEEDS), Dr. Wright-Kim and colleagues at the University of Michigan, Harvard University, and North Carolina State University are examining the landscape of stackable credentials in the state of New Jersey. Specifically, the team is asking: 1) What type of stacking takes place in New Jersey? 2) Who participates in stacking? and 3) What is the impact of stacking on labor market outcomes (i.e., wages)?
