Learner Credential Wallet Pilot

What is the Learner Credential Wallet Pilot?

We’re at the beginning stages of helping learners manage and share academic credentials in contemporary ways. We still expect that learners will receive a paper diploma for completing a degree, or perhaps a PDF certificate for completing a program, but we’re working with institutions to award you digital versions of these credentials, known as verifiable credentials, that are cryptographically secure and trustworthy. You’ll be able to carry these verifiable credentials with you on your mobile phone and share them with prospective employers or other academic institutions.

With this pilot, we’re working with academic institutions to understand the systems and support they need to have in place by helping them issue verifiable credentials. And we’re testing the Learner Credential Wallet, a mobile app that allows you to keep and share your verifiable academic credentials.

What credentials work for the Learner Credential Wallet Pilot?

For the pilot, participating insitutions are providing links, with standards compliant verifiable credentials, to allow you to add the digital credential to the Learner Credential Wallet on your mobile phone. We're working to expand the institutional issuers that we support.

What is the Digital Credentials Consortium and why have they developed the Learner Credential Wallet?

The Digital Credentials Consortium (DCC) is a group of 12 universities from North America and Europe who are working together to build an ecosystem that supports the trustworthy storing, verifying, and sharing of digital academic credentials. We created the Learner Credential Wallet, a mobile app for iOS and Android, to provide a secure, transportable place for you to keep and share your learning credentials and academic accomplishments.

Are these credentials secure? And are these credentials safe on the phone?

The credentials participants receive in this pilot are “verifiable credentials”. They are cryptographically secure, tamper resistant and signed by the issuing institution. They’re stored on a mobile phone via a lockable app that requires access to view or share them.

What happens if I lose my mobile phone with Learner Credential Wallet?

The Learner Credential Wallet, when locked by a password, should be unavailable to anyone using a lost device. If you obtain a new mobile device, you can redownload the app and re-add your credentials or restore them within the app from a backup (if you performed one and saved it externally).

How can I assure employers or schools that these credentials are legitimate?

Administrators at some higher education institutions may already be familiar with digital credentials and may already be issuing them now. However, as with any modern innovation, like mobile banking, digital signatures, etc., trust and use among institutions and businesses will need to be established over time and support is not yet widely available.

The credentials issued into the wallet can be verified at VerifierPlus, a website to be run by the DCC. A verifiable credential can be uploaded to this website to verify the details of the credential (claims) issued by an institution. In the future we expect that many higher education institutions, as well as third parties, will run their own verification websites.

How can I use this on a job or school application?

We envision a future when sharing qualifications for a job or academic program will be as simple as flashing the Learner Credential Wallet to the hiring manager or administrator. However, we’re not there yet. Though institutions like MIT and others have been issuing digital diplomas to graduates for some time, the ability of employers and other institutions to recognize these credentials as legitimate and trustworthy is not yet widely available.

We have developed two features, "Create Public Link" and "Add to LinkedIn Profile", that are a first step to helping you make better use of these credentials. You will be able to share verified credentials (green check) with others. We encourage you to read the Frequently Asked Questions on Public Link.

Can I put my digital certificates from edX in the Learner Credential Wallet?

We recognize the great potential value of being able to share online course certificates, such as those from edX, and other certifications in particular skills and competencies. Currently few other institutions and providers, including edX, issue the verifiable credentials supported by the Learner Credential Wallet. We are working with institutions in North America and Europe to expand the adoption of verifiable credentials.

Can I add blockcert-based or Open Badge v2-based or earlier digital credentials to the Learner Credential Wallet?

No, the Learner Credential Wallet only supports digital credentials that conform to the W3C Verifiable Credentials Data Model. Blockcerts and Open Badges v2 digital credentials are not supported. We expect Open Badges v3 (not yet available) credentials to be verifiable credentials and supported in the Learner Credential Wallet in the near future.

Why can’t I just use my Apple Wallet or Google Wallet?

We wish you could! Right now, Apple Wallet and Google Wallet don’t support this type of verifiable credential.

How do I share my credential(s)?

The Learner Credential Wallet allows you to share their credentials by:

  • "Create Public Link": See the FAQ for more info.
  • "Add to LinkedIn Profile": See the FAQ for more info.
  • Via the built-in mechanisms provided by iOS and Android. You can share their credential as the contents of a text message, email it, save it as a file (in some cases), etc.

I get a warning when I email my credential, is this dangerous?

The Learner Credential Wallet shares a credential in a JSON file, a data format that’s text-based and is somewhat human readable. Some email systems might flag this text as potentially dangerous, however the JSON we’re sending isn’t dangerous. You can view the JSON within the Learner Credential Wallet by viewing a credential, selecting the 3-dot menu in the upper right hand corner of the screen, and then selecting Details.

Who do I contact if I have a question about the pilot or the Learner Credential Wallet?

  • For questions or issues related to the pilot, please contact the institution directly.
  • For questions about the Learner Credential Wallet please email lcw-support -at- mit -dot- edu.
  • To learn more about the DCC please visit us at digitalcredentials.mit.edu.

How do I install, setup and use the Learner Credential Wallet?

  • Visit lcw.app which has links to install the app from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
  • Setup the Learner Credential Wallet by selecting 'Quick Setup (Recommended)' and creating a passphrase to secure the wallet.
  • Add one or more credentials either from QR code or by following the instructions in the email from the institution that invited you to the pilot.
  • View and share your credentials!

Will the Learner Credential Wallet run on my tablet, laptop or other computing device?

The Learner Credential Wallet is an iOS and Android application designed to run on modern mobile phones. We have only tested the Learner Credential Wallet on a subset of modern iOS and Android phones. To the extent that one can run iOS and Android applications on other devices, Learner Credential Wallet may run elsewhere. The Learner Credential Wallet may run properly on iOS and Android tablets, Apple laptops running macOS 11.0 or greater, Chromebooks that can run Android applications, Windows devices capable of running Android applications and in all cases may be limited to recent versions of the respective operating systems.