Today, the outcomes of our education system are misaligned with the current and future job market. The demand for specialized skills—especially those in STEM—is growing, rapidly changing our country’s workforce.
As a result, this has rendered traditional college and career preparation models outdated, as conventional pathways often do not align with the ambitions of today’s students and the requirements of tomorrow’s workforce. This is evidenced by the 55% of high school graduates in 2023 who chose not to pursue a four-year college and the growing interest in alternative pathways like the skilled trades.
For instance, Universal Technical Institute, Inc., a skilled trade school that focuses on healthcare, robotics, automotive, welding and more, has seen significant increases in enrollment.
Additionally, skilled workforce shortages across all industries, including education, highlight the urgent need for every student to find a more efficient and meaningful path to a career that suits them, ensuring we create a sustainable future workforce.
District administrators can play an integral role by intentionally creating connections from the classroom to careers. This means that schools should help students map their skills and aptitudes to the demands of the workforce – which is commonly referred to as career-connected learning.
Career-connected learning forges a connection between classroom learning and the real world, providing students with personally meaningful career exploration and equipping them with the appropriate context for their studies. This can involve teaching essential work and life skills like adaptability, problem-solving, teamwork, planning, and specific career-focused coursework through career and technical education classes, group projects, and collaboration with local business community partners.
To prepare their students for the evolving workforce, there are four proven and effective ways district administrators can help:
1. Leveraging aptitude-based assessments
Aptitudes are inherent talents or abilities—according to research—solidified around the age of 14 and are scientifically proven to help predict an individual’s ability to excel in specific tasks without being influenced by knowledge, culture or education. Understanding aptitudes allows students to explore careers where they will naturally excel.
It doesn’t mean they can’t pursue other fields; it simply means those areas may require more effort and determination to succeed. They also indicate skills that align with specific educational and career pathways. These pathways can introduce students to opportunities that might have remained unexplored due to a lack of exposure.
2. Building relationships with community leaders and organizations
It is crucial for districts to effectively and directly promote community organizations and
extracurricular activities to students. This will significantly and positively impact their exposure to and interest in careers that align with their aptitudes, interests and skills.
It is also incredibly valuable to introduce students to local industry role models. This can help them build a career network, find personal mentors and establish other meaningful connections to guide them toward an appropriate career path and gather industry insights.
3. Fostering connections with local businesses
Schools can, and should, partner with local businesses to create work-based learning experiences like in-class projects, skills-based lessons, internships, apprenticeships and job-shadowing opportunities. Such initiatives give students practical skills and exposure to real-world work environments, bridging the gap between education and employment.
They also help students build critical career skills that employers want while strengthening connections to local industries. Ultimately, these partnerships benefit students and employers by preparing a skilled workforce and offering students hands-on experience in their chosen fields.
4. Introducing students to CTE programs
CTE programs allow students to enroll in courses directly aligned with their educational and career goals and acquire industry certifications that demonstrate their skills to future schools or employers. Alternatively, students can attend specialized career schools affiliated with their high school, providing another avenue to pursue industry training.
CTE has been proven to improve student outcomes post-graduation, with research showing that those who take CTE courses in secondary school are more likely to be employed after school.
Through these and other career-connected learning initiatives, districts can dramatically improve students’ lives and directly impact our future and economy. That’s why we will continue to see administrators advocate for career-connected learning—so they can help their educators and counselors connect students to in-demand careers, ensuring they have the skills, knowledge and hands-on experience needed to thrive in the modern workforce.
