The Pathsmith Framework

10 skill domains. 74 individual skills. 4 proficiency levels.

The Pathsmith Durable Skills Framework defines the durable skills employers value across every industry — with rubrics, standards and occupation-specific manifestations grounded in O*NET data and proprietary chunker records.

💬 Communication

How a worker conveys, listens to and adapts information to people, contexts and audiences.

Manifestations
  • Explaining procedures
  • Active listening
  • Audience adaptation
  • Written clarity
🧠 Critical Thinking

How a worker analyzes, decides and solves problems under real-world constraints and pressure.

Manifestations
  • Evaluating symptoms
  • Risk assessment
  • Hypothesis testing
  • Decision under uncertainty
🌿 Mindfulness

How a worker maintains focus, awareness and presence — to themselves, their work, and the people they serve.

Manifestations
  • Monitor patient condition
  • Situational awareness
  • Stress regulation
  • Continuous attention
⚖ Character

How a worker shows up — integrity, accountability, empathy, work ethic — across the people and roles they touch.

Manifestations
  • Patient empathy
  • Ethical decision-making
  • Reliability
  • Team accountability
Technical skills change with technology. Durable skills travel with the worker for a lifetime — and employers value them across every industry, role and economic cycle. — Pathsmith Durable Skills Framework · America Succeeds
Two Assessment Types

Context-aware. Simulation. Both verifiable.

The subscription includes two complementary assessment modes — both issuing verifiable OBv3 credentials directly into the learner's LER wallet.

CA

Context-aware Assessments

Evaluate demonstrated durable skills inside real workflows — work-based learning placements, apprenticeships, internships, on-the-job tasks. The system observes evidence in context and assesses against the Pathsmith rubric.

  • Embedded in real work contexts
  • Rubric-aligned scoring
  • Issues OBv3 verifiable credentials
  • Continuous, not one-shot
SI

Simulation Assessments

Place learners in scenario-based exercises — virtual or in-person — that elicit demonstrations of specific durable skills under controlled conditions. Designed against Pathsmith rubrics, scorable, repeatable, defensible.

  • Scenario-based exercises
  • Virtual or in-person delivery
  • Issues OBv3 verifiable credentials
  • Tailored options via professional services
What's in the Subscription

One subscription. The whole framework + the assessment & credentialing engines.

LER.me is the exclusive home of the Pathsmith Durable Skills Framework. The subscription bundles licensed access, the assessment engines, and the credentialing pipeline into one offering.

Add-on

Custom Professional Services

Need a simulation assessment for a specific role, industry or program? Our professional services team designs and builds tailored simulation assessments to spec — fully aligned to the Pathsmith rubric.

  • Tailored scenario design
  • Industry-specific simulation builds
  • Role-specific assessment libraries
  • Cohort-scale validity studies
  • Aligned to Pathsmith rubrics & standards

Learn more about implementations on EBSCOed Solutions Durable Skills Marketplace.

Why Durable Skills

The underpinning of the LER.me skills ontology.

Every credential, every recommendation, every match in the LER Talent Marketplace is grounded in skills. Durable skills are the bedrock layer — what employers actually value across roles, industries and decades.

The ticket to sustained career success.

Technical skills age out as fast as the technology underneath them. Durable skills — communication, critical thinking, mindfulness, character — travel with the worker for an entire career.

  • Recognized by employers across every industry
  • Predictive of long-term career mobility
  • Resilient to technology and economic change
  • Foundational to every LER.me skills match
LER.me Skills Ontology
Foundation: Durable Skills
Pathsmith framework · 10 skill domains
Layer 2: Occupational Skills
O*NET · SOC-aligned task manifestations
Layer 3: Technical & Industry Skills
Tools, languages, certifications · time-bound

Durable skills are the bedrock — every layer above stands on them.

By the numbers

A framework. An exclusive home. A skills ontology.

10
Skill domains

incl. Communication · Critical Thinking · Mindfulness · Character

74
Individual skills

Granular, occupation-specific manifestations

4
Proficiency levels

Beginner → mastery, scored against rubrics

1,016
Occupations

O*NET-mapped with Pathsmith manifestations

Where it fits

The bedrock of the LER Talent Marketplace.

The Durable Skills Marketplace is one of the foundational layers of the LER.me ecosystem. Every credential issued, every recommendation generated, every match made — they all rest on a durable-skills foundation.

Umbrella

LER Talent Marketplace

The ecosystem hub.

Visit LER Talent Marketplace
Catalog

Credential Registries

Programs · Occupations · Opportunities · Services.

Visit Credential Registries
Wallet

My LER Wallet

Where every durable-skills credential lands.

Visit Learning & Employment Records
Recommendations

Hyper-personalized Recommendations

Hyper-personalized — durable-skills-aware.

Visit Hyper-personalized Recommendations
Subscribe today

Bring durable skills into your workforce stack.

Subscribe to the Pathsmith Durable Skills Framework, get the assessment engines, issue verifiable credentials. Need custom simulations? Our professional services team builds them to spec.