One of the tough yet important questions you get asked as a university graduate is “What can you do?”. For some, the answer is broad, “I can do anything.” This shows an individual doesn’t have specific core skills and competencies that they have developed in a particular subject.
The existence of short term online certificates that provide core practical skills could come in as the solution to this question. Google, one of the biggest tech giants we have in the world has come up with Google Career Certificates that will give you core skills as IT Support Specialist, Ux Designer, Data Analyst, and Project Manager. These are first-hand competitive skills in the time where we look at technology and data as the solution and driver to making decisions in many organizations. These courses will be offered online and hosted on Coursera. No skills will be required and grants/scholarships will be available for those interested.
Having core skills and competencies in a particular field will make you stand out among the many and you will be bold talking about it. Going to University on the other hand will introduce you to a lot of concepts and topics. You will know little about a lot and the rest will be up to you to take up. Adding certificates to our 4 or 3-year degrees to become competitive should be considered by students and graduates.