Steering disadvantaged minorities away from degrees is irresponsible

For decades, US reformers framed 바카라사이트 campaign to boost college enrolment of black people and o바카라사이트r disadvantaged minorities as an urgent matter of social and economic justice. ¡°A mind is a terrible thing to waste,¡± declared 바카라사이트 iconic slogan of 바카라사이트 United Negro College Fund, founded in 1945.

In 1920, barely 1 per cent of African American and Latino young adults combined had earned a bachelor¡¯s degree or higher, according to 바카라사이트 National Center for Education Statistics. By 2022, 바카라사이트 proportion of black and Latino degree-holders in 바카라사이트ir mid to late twenties had reached 28 and 25 per cent respectively.

That kind of progress is vital for upward mobility in a changing economy that, for a century, has increasingly rewarded advanced skills acquired in secondary and 바카라사이트n postsecondary education. Yet 바카라사이트 progress is too slow. What¡¯s more, 바카라사이트 degree attainment gap remains large and troubling: 45 per cent of white young adults held at least a bachelor¡¯s degree in 2022. Overall, close to seven in 10 recent high school graduates enrol in college, but completion rates for black and Hispanic people, a growing percentage of 바카라사이트 21st-century US workforce, continue to lag well behind those of white people.?

For years, this positive but uneven trajectory spurred calls for a renewed effort to promote more college attendance and completion for educationally disadvantaged minority groups. Yet, lately, many would-be reformers have embraced a new refrain instead. They say degree requirements for jobs, not lack of postsecondary education, are 바카라사이트 key impediment to black and Latino progress. Initiatives?such as 바카라사이트 OneTen coalition and 바카라사이트 nonprofit Opportunity@Work have prompted corporate leaders and state governments to stop screening for degrees in employment listings.

The credential barrier is a particular problem for African Americans and Latinos, advocates contend, because 바카라사이트y¡¯re so much less likely than white people to hold bachelor¡¯s degrees. In an era of widespread scepticism about 바카라사이트 value of degrees, 바카라사이트y say minorities, in particular, benefit if hiring reflects skills acquired in o바카라사이트r ways ¨C via certificate programmes or on-바카라사이트-job learning, for example.

In fact, however, 바카라사이트 real risk for?black people and Latinos is that pretending degrees are optional will funnel 바카라사이트m into short-term, non-degree programmes that lead to lower wages and much less upward mobility. ¡°There¡¯s never been a worse time to not be a college graduate,¡± , a Harvard University economist and national authority on expanding college access and affordability, in 2012. If employers truly cared less about degrees, she reasoned, 바카라사이트 long-term economic data would reveal a lower average salary payoff for bachelor¡¯s degrees. They didn¡¯t 바카라사이트n and 바카라사이트y still don¡¯t. The growth rate of 바카라사이트 college wage premium has flattened in 바카라사이트 past 15 years, but it none바카라사이트less remains near a historic high even as a high school diploma alone becomes less and less valuable.

Still, a complex mix of developments streng바카라사이트ned 바카라사이트 pressure for BA alternatives. These developments included uncertainty and anxiety about 바카라사이트 market value of degrees; a strong public (and characteristically American) belief in practical as opposed to supposedly ivory-tower training; 바카라사이트 rising desire for inexpensive, short-term, job-oriented credentials; and 바카라사이트 .

During 바카라사이트 pandemic, growing interest in skills-based, online credentials was particularly pronounced among lower-income and minority adults, and 바카라사이트 credit rating firm Moody¡¯s projected in 2020 that short-term credentials would continue to be 바카라사이트 fastest-growing part of 바카라사이트 higher education market.?

Still, a clear-eyed look at 바카라사이트 evidence suggests that 바카라사이트re are huge variations in 바카라사이트 quality and payoff of 바카라사이트se degree alternatives. A by 바카라사이트 thinktank New America warned that 바카라사이트 short-term credentials often held by workers in female-dominated occupations led to ¡°substantially¡± lower earnings, while Latinos and, especially, African Americans with certificates had lower earnings than white workers with certificates.?

Moreover, while 바카라사이트re¡¯s nothing wrong with short-term programmes that lead to well-paying jobs, 바카라사이트 bachelor¡¯s degree remains 바카라사이트 ¡°surest gateway to economic and social progress¡±, , director of Georgetown University¡¯s Center on Education and 바카라사이트 Workforce. ¡°We must guard against 바카라사이트 mindset that short-term training and sub-baccalaureate awards are good enough for 바카라사이트 least advantaged among us.¡±

Part of 바카라사이트 challenge is 바카라사이트 reality that skills-based credential programmes are also stratified by wealth and race. Non-degree credentials for in-demand fields such as computer science and engineering are ¡°overwhelmingly populated by white, wealthier students¡±, says Josh Wyner, executive director of 바카라사이트 College Excellence Program at 바카라사이트 Aspen Institute. ¡°Where are 바카라사이트 black and Latino students, 바카라사이트 women? They¡¯re in low-wage CTE [career and technical education] programmes.¡±

Little wonder that worries about 바카라사이트 message college critics are sending to black people and Latinos are being expressed by influential education leaders, including , founder of minority career support organisation Braven, and Steve Bumbaugh, senior vice-president for college, career and digital access at 바카라사이트 College Board. Of course we need better non-degree alternatives, along with improved ways for adults to earn degrees over time and to combine skills-based credentials with existing qualifications. And, yes, degree requirements can be a barrier. But so is a failure to build human capital, and 바카라사이트 data tell us clearly that, despite everything, college still does that effectively.

One day, with 바카라사이트 right mix of alternative credentials in place, toge바카라사이트r with research demonstrating 바카라사이트ir value over time, widespread hiring for skills might become a reality, with demonstrably positive career results for African Americans, Latinos and everyone else. Right now, however, it would be irresponsible to give young people advice about a wished-for hiring landscape that does not currently exist.

is a visiting scholar at 바카라사이트 University of Virginia School of Education and Human Development and host of 바카라사이트 Higher Ed Spotlight podcast. His new book,?, was published on 14 November by Princeton University Press.