In the past, we’ve often thought about formal education as the acquisition of broad skills at a fixed point in time, with training ending at about age 18, 22 or later for those who need advanced degrees.

In order to succeed in the jobs of the future, the workers of tomorrow will need to become lifelong learners. The brain you graduate from college with at age 22 isn’t the one you’re stuck with for the rest of your life. And lifelong learning is the education that never ends: An ever-evolving mastery and proof of abilities.

The good news about lifelong learning for employers is that it means more workers will tailor their skills directly to their job functions. Employers who build cultures to support these future opportunities will attract the best talent.

That’s why employers and prospective employees will need to get more comfortable with alternative credentialing like specialized certifications, micro degrees and digital badges. Employers will also need to facilitate these new models.

For a lot of companies, the safest way to venture into this new world of lifelong learning and micro credentialing has been to modernize their own internal training programs and to invest in learning opportunities that expand the skills of existing employees.

Read the full article about the path to lifelong learning by Mark Dorman at The Hechinger Report.