A case mounts for vocational education

Education DIVE.

Dive Brief:

• The Atlantic asks “is college really necessary” for a generation of high school graduates who will face crushing student loan debt, low job prospects and growing opportunities in vocational training.
• Students can obtain skills and professional insight around jobs and trades that most fit their interests, a notion that aligns with a recent Gallup poll revealing that just 14% of Americans believe that college makes graduates workforce ready.
• In fields like agriculture, manufacturing and certain service professions, there is little need for a credential or professional pathway beyond working in the actual marketplace and learning from working professionals.

Dive Insight:

Most data indicates that people fare better financially and emotionally with higher education, and new research suggests that more working adults will return to college in the near future to learn new skills to keep up with technology and changing industrial trends. With this in mind, there is still quite a case to be made for higher education.

But for campus leaders, the question of meeting the needs of an increasingly diverse student body and elevating the need for financial support of these students revolves around how college can develop a better prepared workforce. And that effort will be centered around helping students to find their passions, inspiring them to make sound choices about employment and learning opportunities, and aiding them in determining the most cost-effective approaches to job entry.