2.5 Million New Mid-Level Skill Jobs are Predicted by 2016. 

 

Mid-Level means an AS or certificate level credential from Community College.  What are we doing in our schools to prepare for this?  What are Guidance Counselors, Administrators, Curriculum Supervisors, and Career and Technical Leaders doing to be prepared for this?

 

I have said for many years to my students, parents, and guidance personnel (when they would listen), that many more students need to be directed toward Community College AS programs.  Yet time and time again students with exceptional technical skills and potential are directed into AA programs.

An Associates of Arts degree is pointless unless the student goes on for their bachelor's degree.  These students quickly find an AA program is just high school grade years 13th and 14th for them,  as they take algebra, communications, humanities, and science general education course offerings.  The result is, many get discouraged with college and drop out - at about a 60% rate.

They long for the hands-on technical classes which were their favorite subjects in school.  Had they gone with the Associate of Science route in a program of study the following things would have probably happened in their lives:  ONE - they would have bypassed many of the general education requirements in college so they, TWO - would have not dropped out of college; THREE - not changed their major to psychology; FOUR - they would have gone on to train in college level technical content, and would have gained superior entry level skills that are in high demand so they could, FIVE - stop waiting tables at Olive Garden.

Yes, our waiter Friday night was a former student of mine that has an AA....



NPR's OnPoint Program with Tom Ashbrook discusses this trend in this week's program.  Listen to the podcast here:

 http://onpoint.wbur.org/2014/10/14/blue-collar-jobs-unemployment-rate




Research from the National Center for Education Statistics has revealed the following pertinent data on technical degrees that should have everyone sitting up and taking notice:

*Liberal Arts majors have a higher unemployment rate than Technical Degree majors (6% vs. 4.6%)

*Technical (STEM) majors earned on average $15,000 more per year in salary than non STEM Liberal Arts majors ($65K vs. $49.5K).

Source:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014141.pdf