| Abstract: Internationally, the systematic incorporation of micro-credentials to the academic provision of higher education institutions has been seen as a promising path to respond to current challenges and
contribute to the human and economic development of contemporary societies. However, questions still persist regarding what are micro-credentials?, what degree of recognition do they receive from the different stakeholders?, and what quality assurance processes support them? The aim of this project is to answer these questions at the national level and to develop a framework compatible with the European approach to establish general parameters in order to provide UNED with the mechanisms, instruments, infrastructure, processes, and specific regulations for the design, implementation and use of microcredentials
in the short, medium and long term. This framework will have a positive impact on different dimensions of the institutional and national reality, allowing the active participation of UNED in the global discussion on the latest trends in distance education, strengthening the digital transformation process, generating an innovative offer of services and products, promoting collaboration and mobility between UNED and the European Education Area, and providing the population with open and flexible opportunities for upskilling, reskilling, and lifelong learning at a point when the country is facing high unemployment and inequality rates, an urgent economic recovery, and the worst educational crisis in several decades |