Unlocking the Future of Education: Coreum’s Soulbound Certificates for Universities and Students
The Coreum Development Foundation launched a new University Program designed to equip students with the skills they need to thrive in the blockchain industry. This program offers a comprehensive curriculum featuring workshops, hands-on experiences, and mentorship from Coreum engineers. Upon successful completion, students will receive both a physical certificate and a digital credential stored on the blockchain, using Soulbound Tokens.
The Problem
Traditional methods of verifying academic credentials are facing unprecedented challenges. Diplomas have been altered, people lie about their educational background and It can be time-consuming and expensive to verify the authenticity of documents. Blockchain technology can help to solve these challenges.
The Solution
The Coreum blockchain is a secure and tamper-proof public ledger that can be used to store and verify academic credentials. This allows for quick, easy, and affordable verification of a student’s educational background. As part of the University program, Coreum will issue verifiable credentials, in the form of soulbound tokens, to students who complete workshops hosted at UC Irvine, University of Calgary, and University of Texas at Austin.
What are Soulbound Tokens?
Soulbound tokens (SBTs) were proposed in 2022 as an evolution of non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Unlike NFTs, SBTs are non-transferable and permanently linked to a user’s digital identity (wallet). This ensures the authenticity and tamper-proof nature of the credential.
Coreum’s Smart Soulbound Tokens
Coreum leverages its Smart Token technology, which integrates programmable tokens with smart contracts, to address a key challenge with SBTs: Know Your Customer (KYC). This Smart Token feature allows educational institutions to verify the student’s wallet address using Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs). Universities issuing the credentials also have their own DIDs. These tokens are securely stored and locked in the student’s digital wallet, providing unparalleled trust and verification. Each token is linked to the recipient’s unique DID, ensuring only the rightful owner can access and present their credentials.
Benefits of Soulbound Tokens
By embracing this innovative approach to credentialing, universities and educational institutions can streamline their administrative processes, reduce costs, and enhance the value of their academic offerings. Students, on the other hand, gain greater control over their credentials, enabling them to share their achievements with confidence and ease.
Imagine a scenario where a prospective employer wants to verify the educational credentials of a job applicant. Instead of relying on potentially fraudulent paper certificates or spending valuable time and resources contacting universities for verification, they can simply request access to the applicant’s soulbound tokens. With just a few clicks, they can verify the authenticity of the credentials, thanks to the immutable records stored on the Coreum Blockchain.
Beyond Education: Widespread Applications
While Coreum’s Soulbound Tokens offer a secure method for issuing and verifying educational credentials, their potential extends beyond education. Here are some additional use cases:
- Financial Services: Streamlining KYC processes and bolstering fraud prevention, soulbound tokens DIDs enable customers to verify their identity with a bank without compromising sensitive information.
- Healthcare: Facilitating secure and efficient sharing of medical records, soulbound tokens DIDs empower patients to share critical health information with new healthcare providers.
- The Future of Work: Soulbound tokens DIDs enable the issuance and verification of work experiences and skills, allowing workers to showcase their professional history.
- Government: Soulbound tokens DIDs provide secure and convenient access to government services, allowing citizens to engage in activities such as voting or filing taxes without physical visits to government offices.
Conclusion
The Soulbound features represent a paradigm shift in how educational credentials are issued, validated, and maintained. By leveraging the capabilities of Coreum Blockchain and digital verifiable credentials, universities, and educational institutions can pave the way for a more secure, efficient, and transparent credentialing ecosystem.
