The manufacturing workforce has been shaped by decades of industry transformation. Modern manufacturing requires workers with a diverse set of skills to perform functions such as research and development (R&D), product and production design, marketing and sales, and customer support. While workers with a high school diploma or less dominated…

In partnership with the Postsecondary Value Commission, we conducted a thought experiment on the costs of inequality in the US education system. Our simulation found that the US economy misses out on $956 billion dollars per year, along with numerous nonmonetary benefits, as a result of postsecondary attainment gaps by economic status and…

In this report, we present the results of a thought experiment in which we estimated the potential costs and benefits to society of achieving equality in educational attainment and related workforce outcomes by race/ethnicity, class, and gender. We conducted this thought experiment to clarify the role that education can play in reducing…

"College Is Just the Beginning: The Employer Role in $1.1 Trillion Postsecondary Education and Training System" focuses on employer investment in formal training for workers in the context of the broader postsecondary education and training system and the primary institutions involved in skill development in the United States. Along with…

There are 29 million "middle jobs" in the United States that pay $35,000 or more on average and don't require a Bachelor's degree. There are five Career and Technical Education (CTE) pathways that educate and train Americans for these jobs: employer-based training, industry-based certifications, apprenticeships, postsecondary certificates, and…

The rising cost of college education and high unemployment levels among recent college graduates are raising the question "Is college worth its cost?" in the minds of many Americans. A recent study published by the Associated Press found that one out of every two recent college graduates is jobless or underemployed, suggesting maybe college isn't…

America is slowly coming out of the Recession of 2007--only to find itself on a collision course with the future: not enough Americans are completing college. The Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce shows that by 2018, the nation will need 22 million new college degrees--but will fall short of that number by at least 3…

The United States has been underproducing college-going workers since 1980. Supply has failed to keep pace with growing demand, and as a result, income inequality has grown precipitously. From 1915 to 1980, supply grew in tandem with demand. But, starting in 1990, the share of college-educated young people in the workforce rose very slowly. If the…

This executive summary highlights several findings about healthcare. These are: (1) Healthcare is 18 percent of the U.S. economy, twice as high as in other countries; (2) There are two labor markets in healthcare: high-skill, high-wage professional and technical jobs and low-skill, low-wage support jobs; (3) Demand for postsecondary education in…

This report projects education requirements linked to forecasted job growth in healthcare by state and the District of Columbia from 2010 through 2020. It complements a larger national report which projects educational demand for healthcare for the same time period. The national report shows that with or without Obamacare, the United States will…

This report, provides detailed analyses and projections of occupations in healthcare fields, and wages earned. In addition, the important skills and work values associated with workers in those fields of healthcare are discussed. Finally, the authors analyze the implications of research findings for the racial, ethnic, and class diversity of the…

This report is the successor to "Help Wanted: Projections of Jobs and Education Demand through 2018," in which researchers examined the connections between educational attainment and educational demand in the labor market. In this report, the authors update the jobs projected to be available through 2020, using a macro-micro modeling…

For recent high school graduates, life is tough. In the past year, one in four young high school graduates was unemployed and over half were underemployed. In the past decade, recent high school graduates' wages have fallen by 12 percent to just $19,400 annually in 2011, below the poverty threshold for a family of four. The downward plight of high…

The recession that began in December of 2007 is already 30 months old, but the U.S. economy will not recover its pre-recession employment levels for at least another two years. From there, it will take an additional three years to make up for lost growth and create a job market strong enough to employ both the casualties of the recession and the…

By the time today's eighth graders reach age 28-29, approximately 66% will have had some kind of postsecondary education or training. There has been a dramatic upward shift in the education and skill requirements for all occupations. Access to higher education has become the threshold for career success. Elite managerial and professional jobs,…