Ditch 4-year Degree Requirements

“Job applicants without a college degree have a much harder time getting hired—particularly in jobs with upward mobility. Opportunity@Work is trying to change that.”

“A new PSA campaign aims to create a cultural shift, demonstrating to employers that a lack of a bachelor’s degree doesn’t mean applicants aren’t qualified; that these individuals can be trained through other routes and that it makes business sense to hire them. The efforts are already seeing traction: 15 companies have signed on to make a commitment to ease pathways for candidates without a four-year degree.

Individuals “skilled through alternative routes,” dubbed STARs, are those 25 years and older in the labor force without a bachelor’s degree, but who instead have an associate’s degree, some community college courses, on-the-job training, certificate programs, or military service. The term was coined in 2019 by the organization Opportunity@Work to “emphasize their skills and pivot away from pedigree and credentials,” says Will Villota, vice president of marketing and communications. It’s not a negligible number: there are 70 million STARs, the group says, who account for half the U.S. workforce.

Despite these workers’ alternative qualifications, in the past 40 years there has been a drop in their workforce participation because employers have been increasingly less eager to hire workers without degrees, in what the Harvard Business Review called “degree inflation.” Starting in the 1980s, increasing globalization and automation sent more jobs abroad and replaced middle-skill workers with machines, reducing the number of jobs available for manual and routine office work. Employers became pickier for the positions left, and the Great Recession further thinned opportunities, compounding the problem.”

https://www.fastcompany.com/90793959/tear-the-paper-ceiling-a-new-campaign-wants-companies-to-ditch-4-year-degree-requirements

 

I agree that the requirements are often ridiculous. I was told by a government official recently that the state is struggling to find case managers for the courts. I suggested that this was a combination of a few issues:

1) The job was not even on the state jobs website and was instead on the court jobs website... where most people do not think to look for jobs
2) The job requires a bachelors degree in a state where most people do not have one and the work could be done by peer support workers instead
3) The pay for the positions was not competitive

I straight told the person they either needed to drop the degree requirement or increase the pay which was not competitive. I was told people needed to be encouraged to go back to school. Going back to school is great, I love to learn, but it seems to me that I see more employers complaining about not being able to lure in workers right now than people complaining about not being able to find work. Seems to me that is a sign the employer needs to change. Personally, I could sit at home in a work-from-home position and make nearly twice what that job pays. Employers need to start incentivizing more... even the government. Actually, especially the government.

 

See, in my humble opinion, what you told them could help them find people to fill those positions. Perhaps telling a state elected official what you told them might get them to try what you stated? It won’t hurt to give your suggestions a trial run; my humble opinion.

“Employers need to start incentivizing more... even the government. Actually, especially the government.”
THEY SURE THE HECK DO.
And in some instances, the government, like yesterday already.

 

I remember an interview with CEO of top company that made the following statement:
"We have time to train people, but we don't have time to educate people"

In many universities the first year or two provide important education, such as critical thinking, and other GE Science etc.

"Employers have a strong gut feeling that the graduate or postgraduate candidates are likely to be more skilled in terms of Teamwork skills, Problem-solving skills, and Strong Work Ethic attitude than non-graduate candidates."

https://hrexecutive.com/most-employers-still-require-college-degrees-but-for-how-much-longer/

The new Employability Report released by Cengage Group shows that 62% of all employers surveyed still believe a degree is a must-have for their candidates, despite the fact that less than 40% of all adults in the U.S. have a bachelor’s degree and many have the skills to do the required work via other credentials.