Catalog Rights refers to an institutional policy that allows students to complete an academic program under the degree requirements that were in effect when they entered the institution, declared a major, or otherwise became subject to a particular academic catalog, provided they meet the institution’s requirements for maintaining those rights (such as continuous enrollment).
Catalog Year refers to the specific edition or academic year of a college or university catalog that governs a student’s academic requirements. A student’s catalog year establishes the curriculum, degree requirements, and academic policies that generally remain in effect throughout the student’s program unless the student chooses or is required to adopt a newer catalog.
Catalog rights are intended to provide academic continuity and fairness by protecting students from changes to graduation requirements after they begin a program. Catalog rights generally do not apply to tuition, fees, or other institutional charges, which colleges and universities may change according to institutional policy unless they offer a guaranteed tuition program or similar pricing policy.
For example, a student who begins a bachelor’s degree under the 2026–2027 catalog may be allowed to graduate under those degree requirements even if the institution later changes its curriculum or general education requirements. However, unless the institution guarantees tuition, the student’s tuition and fees may increase during enrollment.
These terms are most commonly used in the United States. However, many higher education systems globally have comparable policies that allow students to complete programs under the academic requirements in effect when they began their studies.
In Canada, institutions commonly refer to the academic calendar.
In the United Kingdom, students typically follow the program regulations or student handbook that apply when they enter a program.
Universities in Australia and New Zealand often use the terms course handbook or handbook year.
Across much of Europe, institutions generally provide transition arrangements that allow students to complete their programs under earlier curriculum requirements when major changes are introduced.
Although the terminology and legal framework vary, the underlying principle of providing continuity and fairness for students is widely recognized globally.
A diagram that shows the relationships among ideas to help users understand how ideas are connected. Concept maps are generally composed of two elements: concepts (usually represented by circles, ovals, or boxes and are called nodes); and relationships (usually represented by arrows that connect the concepts; the arrows often include a connecting word or verb and these arrows are called cross-links. There are four types of common concept maps: (1) spider maps, (2) flowcharts, (2) hierarchy maps, and (3) system maps.
See Relational Mapping (used at Learn & Work Ecosystem Library)
A globally interoperable micro-credential is a digital credential designed to be issued, stored, shared, and verified across different technical platforms and regional (including cross-national) credentialing systems. Interoperability is achieved by aligning credential data models and cryptographic verification methods (codes that keep information secret) with multiple recognized standards so that credentials are not locked into a single proprietary ecosystem.
These micro-credentials address a persistent challenge in the ecosystem: credentials that cannot travel across institutions, digital platforms, or national systems. Emerging implementations such as the Velocert Globally Interoperable Micro-credentials illustrate how technical and regulatory standards can be combined to improve portability, trust, and long-term verifiability of learning achievements. The Velocert micro-credential supports simultaneous issuance in Open Badges v3 and European Digital Credentials for Learning (EDC) formats. This approach enables a single credential to remain verifiable in both global badge-based systems and in European digital credential and wallet infrastructures.
Characteristics of these micro-credentials:
Standards-aligned — Support multiple credential standards to enable cross-platform portability
Machine-readable and verifiable — Use cryptographic methopds to ensure authenticity and detect tampering
Learner-controlled — Designed for storage in digital credential wallets where individuals manage sharing
Cross-border recognition — Align with European and international credential frameworks
Metadata-rich — Can include learning outcomes, workload, assessment criteria, and skill taxonomies
Partnerships between higher education institutions and employers are increasingly useful in addressing talent development in key job categories. Partnership agreements are especially prevalent in areas such as data science, digital technologies, nursing, programming, and renewable energy.
Employers partner with higher education institutions often as a strategy for recruiting talent in different geographic areas of the country, and recruiting talent to diversify their workforce, especially focused on race/ethnicity, gender, age, and disability diversity.
Agreements are typically struck between higher education institutions and employers through a formal partnership. Employers may commit to hiring a certain percentage of graduates in one or more disciplines while institutions commit to increasing their number of graduates in various disciplines.
Workforce Planning. The partnership forecast talent baselines —the number of expected graduates in various disciplines and the number employers expect to hire in those disciplines. The partnership identify and prioritize the “hard and soft skills” that these graduates need.
Academic Program Design. The partnership codesigns the curriculum and jointly appoint faculty for programs of interest. They also determine the number and purpose of employer-sponsored internships and applied training programs; the facilities, labs, faculty, and support services needed to accommodate increasing numbers of students; and joint research and innovation hubs that involve students.
Student Recruitment. The partnership outlines the steps needed to increase the number of graduates; e.g., conducting market research on targeted student populations, securing funding for student financial assistance, and recruiting students.
According to the UN Refugee Agency, an IDP is a person who has been forced to flee their home but never cross an international border. IDPs include people displaced by internal strife and natural disasters. These individuals seek safety wherever they can—in nearby towns, schools, settlements, internal camps, forests and fields. Unlike refugees, IDPs are not protected by international law or eligible to receive many types of aid because they are legally under the protection of their own government.
Related terms: Refugee, stateless person, asylum seeker
A tuition policy that allows students from states geographically adjacent (i.e., contiguous or bordering) to a college or university to pay reduced tuition rates—often equivalent to in-state or near in-state levels. These programs are designed to increase regional access to higher education, improve enrollment, and support cross-border collaboration. The specific eligibility criteria and tuition discounts vary by institution and state policy.
Examples of states and institutions offering neighboring state rates:
Kansas — Many Kansas public institutions offer the Resident Tuition for Missouri Residents rate.
For example, Pittsburg State University and Fort Hays State University extend in-state rates to students from bordering states like Missouri, Nebraska, and Oklahoma.
West Virginia — The Metro Rate offered by institutions like Marshall University and West Virginia University provides discounted tuition to residents of neighboring states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Maryland.
Arkansas — The Border State Waiver Program allows students from contiguous states (like Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Oklahoma) to pay in-state tuition at several public colleges and universities.
South Dakota — South Dakota State University and others offer in-state or discounted rates to students from neighboring states like North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, and Minnesota through Reciprocity Agreements and Reduced Tuition Programs.
Nevada — The Good Neighbor Policy at some institutions, like College of Southern Nevada, provides in-state tuition to students from neighboring counties in California and Arizona.
Neighboring State Rates are often distinct from regional reciprocity programs like the Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) or Academic Common Market, though institutions may participate in both.
Refers to an education model that integrates high school, college, and career preparation within a seamless program. P-TECH is designed to bridge the gap between secondary education and the workforce. P-TECH schools enable students to earn both a high school diploma and an associate degree (focused on STEM fields) in six years or less—at no cost to families. The model combines rigorous academics, industry-aligned career pathways, and robust partnerships with employers and postsecondary institutions.
Launched in 2011 in Brooklyn, New York, through a collaboration between IBM, the City University of New York (CUNY), and the New York City Department of Education, the P-TECH program has since scaled nationally and globally. As of 2025, there were more than 300 P-TECH schools in more than 28 U.S. states, including: New York (initial pilot site), Texas, Maryland, Colorado, Illinois, and California. Internationally, P-TECH operates in Australia, India, Morocco, and Mexico, among other countries.
P-TECH’s success is often credited to its public-private partnerships that focus on:
High schools aligning curriculum with postsecondary and workforce needs.
Colleges providing associate degree pathways and faculty support.
Employers offering mentorships, internships, and work-based learning opportunities.
Together these partnerships enable real-world learning experiences that connect classroom concepts to practical applications; foster diversity in STEM fields by targeting underserved communities; and serve as a model for scaling work-based learning systems that integrate industry input at every stage.
A relational map visually presents connections among entities within an ecosystem, such as organizations and initiatives. Relational maps help users understand the overall structure or domain of an area of interest.
In 2024, the Learn-& Work Ecosystem Library initiated relational maps to complement narrative descriptions of key searchable artifacts. See examples in prototype maps. Maps are developed by integrating manual data tagging with inferred AI-driven relations. This work includes a unique collaboration with ChatGPT’s API under an open licensing agreement that allows the Library to train and continuously refine the AI model.
Related Terms:
Concept Map: Diagram that shows the relationships among ideas to help users understand how ideas are connected. Concept maps are generally composed of two elements: concepts (usually represented by circles, ovals, or boxes and are called nodes); and relationships (usually represented by arrows that connect the concepts; the arrows often include a connecting word or verb and these arrows are called cross-links. There are four types of common concept maps: (1) spider maps, (2) flowcharts, (2) hierarchy maps, and (3) system maps.
Mind Map: Diagram that shows the relationships among ideas to help users better understand, remember, and communicate information. Mind maps generally organize information into a hierarchy, showing relationships among pieces of the whole. A central concept or idea is usually placed in the middle of a spider diagram, with associated concepts/ideas that are connected branching out from the center (key words are called nodes).
A formal statement issued by a state, education agency, institution, or governing authority that outlines the rights and protections students are entitled to within an educational system. These rights commonly address access to quality instruction, safety, non-discrimination, due process, transparency, and, in some cases, preparation for further education or employment. Student Bills of Rights may be codified in statute or regulation (and legally enforceable) or may function as institutional policy commitments.
