Micro- Credentials.

Freelance cultural practitioners operate in a labour market defined by project-based work, informal career paths, and limited structures for documenting and validating competence. Within the cultural and creative sectors (CCS), skills are primarily assessed through portfolios, experience, reputation, and personal networks. While effective within the field, these forms of evaluation are often difficult to translate into institutional frameworks, creating barriers for emerging and underrepresented practitioners.

To explore whether micro-credentials could be a relevant tool in this context, STPLN initiated an exploratory project focused on the independent cultural sector. Rather than implementing a ready-made system, the project examined the conditions, limitations, and potential consequences of using micro-credentials for freelance cultural workers.

The study combines interviews with commissioners and producers, analysis of existing national and regional micro-credential initiatives, and a participatory development process within STPLN’s cultural incubator, The Lab. The findings show that competence in the cultural sector is assessed through a combination of portfolios, experience-based knowledge, and trust built through previous collaborations.

Existing micro-credential models work well for clearly defined and technical competences, but struggle to capture the contextual, relational, and tacit skills that are central to artistic practice. As a result, micro-credentials are best understood as a complement to portfolios, not a replacement.

The project concludes that STPLN’s most sustainable role is not as a credential issuer, but as an intermediary—connecting the independent cultural field with accredited institutions to support relevant, legitimate, and inclusive competence recognition.