Augustana College in Illinois is piloting an effort that promises students they will earn at least the average income for their academic fields for the first five years they work in those fields after graduating. If they don't, they'll be paid the difference after five years.

College leaders hope the program signals their belief that Augustana graduates will do well after graduation. They also want to assure families who may be suspicious about the value of a liberal arts education but might be willing to consider different types of colleges in the coronavirus era.

Marketing competency-based education to students can be a challenge. Some programs have struggled with price points and business plans. And conflicting regulatory signals have helped slow the modality’s growth, particularly its more aggressive form—direct assessment—which is untethered from the credit-hour standard.

Even so, many who work on competency-based education think it may be poised to gain substantial ground—for real this time—due in part to the pandemic’s disruption to higher education and labor markets.