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MCDS — MortarCAPS Higher Learning Data Standard

The Future

The Human Capability Record.

A consent-driven, portable record of what someone can actually do — verified by institutions, carried by learners, readable by AI agents. Built on the MCDS foundation.

The learner holds the record. The institution verifies it. The AI agent reasons over it.
— HCR Pilot Co-Design Forum, March 2026

01 What HCR adds

Five things a Human Capability Record makes possible.

Foundation

A unified capability record.

One record of a learner's verified capabilities — across institutions, providers, and informal learning — instead of a scattered trail of certificates and transcripts.

Consent

Learner-driven sharing.

Learners decide what they share, with whom, and for how long. HCR replaces opaque transcript requests with explicit, auditable consent.

AI-ready

Machine-readable from day one.

HCR is built on MCDS schemas, so AI assessment systems, recommenders, and verification agents can reason over it directly — no after-the-fact data plumbing required.

Mobility

Cross-border by design.

With MCDS V2.2 (PESC crosswalk, Sept 2026), an HCR issued in Sydney is verifiable in Toronto, Edinburgh, or Boston — with no bilateral data agreements between institutions.

Recognition

Continuous, granular, current.

Capability is no longer frozen at graduation. HCR carries credit for prior learning (CPL/PLAR), micro-credentials, and post-graduation development, all in one record.

Trust

Verified, not asserted.

Every capability claim in HCR carries an institutional verification trail. Employers and governments can validate without trusting a self-reported résumé.

02 Where we are

In pilot — co-designed with the sector.

HCR is not vapourware. It's in active pilot, co-designed with institutions, vendors, and learners. We are building it in the open with the sector that will use it.

HCR Pilot Co-Design Forum

Salesforce Tower, Sydney — 31 March 2026

In-person and online co-design forum bringing institutions, vendors, and HCR contributors together to shape the pilot specification.

V2.1 release

Capability Ontology — June 2026

The MCDS V2.1 release adds the HCR & Capability Ontology, the schema layer that the pilot is built on. Public draft window precedes adoption.

Want to be part of the HCR pilot?

Co-design participants come from institutions, vendors, and government. There's still room to join.