In an era of rapid technological advancement and evolving labor market demands, higher education faces the pressing challenge of equipping graduates with the skills required for professional success. Authentic assessment has emerged as a transformative pedagogical approach, enabling students to bridge academic knowledge with practical applications. This paper synthesizes insights from a systematic review of 94 studies on authentic assessment, emphasizing its role in fostering critical thinking, enhancing employability, and promoting self-regulation among students.

The study identifies emerging trends and best practices in authentic assessment, focusing on four innovative methodologies that highlight its diversity and potential. The first methodology, patchwork assignments, involves a series of interconnected reflective tasks completed throughout a course, culminating in an integrated narrative. This approach fosters continuous learning and the synthesis of knowledge across topics. The second, AI-enhanced real-world tasks, leverages artificial intelligence tools to create immersive, context-rich scenarios that simulate workplace challenges, encouraging critical thinking and adaptability in digital environments. The third methodology, game-based role play, engages students in gamified scenarios where they assume professional roles, collaboratively solve problems, and develop interpersonal and decision-making skills. Finally, e-portfolios are explored as digital compilations of student work that showcase competencies and track learning progress, providing tangible evidence of skills for academic and professional purposes.

These methodologies underscore the flexibility of authentic assessment across face-to-face and online learning environments, effectively bridging theoretical knowledge with practical, real-world applications. Despite challenges such as resource limitations and the need to enhance educators’ assessment literacy, findings suggest that authentic assessment not only boosts student engagement but also aligns closely with the goals of 21st-century education.

The paper concludes with practical recommendations for embedding authentic assessment into curricula, emphasizing the critical role of professional development for educators, ensuring alignment with learning outcomes, and harnessing technology to scale innovative practices effectively.

This study was funded by the Community for Learning & Innovation (CLI) of Erasmus University Rotterdam as part of the CLI Fellowship program, which supports innovative approaches to enhancing learning and teaching in higher education

Keywords: Authentic assessment, e-portfolios, patchwork assignment, game-based learning, AI, skills development.