The University of Melbourne has announced that it is using blockchain technology to issue recipient-owned credentials.

Earlier in April, the university announced that it has joined forces with Learning Machine, a US-based company associated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, to pilot a blockchain based micro-credentialing system.

For the trial, the university used the Learning Machine issuing system to issue its Melbourne Teaching Certificate. The system simplifies anchoring official records to the blockchain.

“The university is “very excited that its exploration of a new way of providing students with credentials was successful,” University of Melbourne Pro Vice-Chancellor (Teaching and Learning) Gregor Kennedy said. “While we are entirely committed to the existing degrees and awards that the University offers, we are also interested in exploring how we can build a more diverse credentialing ecosystem. Issuing credentials on the blockchain is a key component of this investigation.”

According to the official release, Learning Machine blockchain credentials use the Blockcerts open standard, which means they are learner owned, portable, and verifiable by third parties even if an issuing institution or vendor ceases to operate. Using Blockcerts also ensures that they are interoperable with any system that supports Blockcerts or Open Badges 2.0.

The system also allows recipients to have full discretion over how they store and share their credentials through their private Blockcerts Wallet, an open-source mobile app available for both iOS and Android.

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