We are tagging version v0.2.0 of the bio spec today!
100% more descriptions
Okay, okay, it doesn’t actually have 100% more descriptions. Mathematically it has infinite percent more, because v0.1.0 had 0 descriptions, and most computer environments will barf some kind of error at you for trying to divide by zero. Whatever man, math is hard.
My innumeracy aside, I also don’t know what the best practice is for description tense, punctuation, tone, et cetera, but as George S. Patton is famously quoted:
A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.
In that spirit, most objects now include an explicit description:
"name": {
"description": "Your full legal name",
"type": "string"
},
The big change in v0.2.0, and the reason for bumping the minor version number, is the inclusion of the new top-level credentials key. This is intended to cover things like appointments, awards, certifications, clearanaces, licenses, and memberships (and a catch-all “other”). The full addition looks like this:
"credentials": {
"description": "A list of supplemental bona fides",
"type": "array",
"items": [
{
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"name": {
"description": "Title of the credential",
"type": "string"
},
"kind": {
"description": "The type of credential",
"type": "string",
"enum": [
"appointment",
"award",
"certification",
"clearance",
"license",
"membership",
"other"
]
},
"span": {
"description": "The time span over which this credential is held",
"type": "object",
"properties": {
"start": {
"description": "The time this credential was first valid",
"type": "string"
},
"end": {
"description": "The time this credential expried/s",
"type": "string"
}
}
},
"issuer": {
"description": "Organization which certifies the credential",
"type": "string"
},
"identifier": {
"description": "The unique ID number assigned to this credential",
"type": "string"
},
"summary": {
"description": "A brief overview of this credential",
"type": "string"
},
"details": {
"description": "A list of accomplishments, projects, achievements, or other relevant specifics",
"type": "array",
"items": [
{
"type": "string"
}
]
}
}
}
]
}
Examples
Suppose a US Armed Services member wanted to capture her security clearance using the credential section:
{
"credentials": [
{
"name": "CAC",
"kind": "clearance",
"span": {
"start": "2021-05-01",
"end": "2025-05-01"
},
"identifier": "132-95156A",
"summary": "Secret Clearance",
"details": [
"GS-5",
"SSGT"
]
}
]
}
Or let’s suppose a seasoned Software Architect wanted to share that they have belonged to the ACM for three decades:
{
"credentials": [
{
"name": "ACM (Professional Membership)",
"kind": "association",
"span": {
"start": "1985-07-12"
},
"identifier": "318651p"
}
]
}
And one final example, the Registered Nurse and Prescirptive Authority licenses granted by Harrisburg to an Advanced Practice Provider:
{
"credentials": [
{
"name": "Registered Nurse",
"kind": "license",
"span": {
"start": "2010-07-21",
"end": "2019-11-30"
},
"issuer": "Pennsylvania",
"identifier": "RN834658"
},
{
"name": "Prescriptive Authority",
"kind": "license",
"span": {
"start": "2014-11-18",
"end": "2019-09-30"
},
"issuer": "Pennsylvania",
"identifier": "641581"
},
]
}
Combined with personal, education, and experience, the new credentials section rounds out the rough structure of where I wanted to take the bio schema. It’s not very complex, but it really doesn’t need to be.