Last week I attended some sessions at the ASU+GSV Summit about the state of education, especially when it comes to educating people in the workforce. There was one word that was common in many of the sessions: skills. And the increasing trend in employees needing skills-based training, not degrees.
68% of adults considering enrolling in education prefer nondegree pathways, up from 50% one year ago, according to a public viewpoint survey from Strada Education. And people are looking to their employer to bring them new skills, especially now that people's roles are changing and employees are hesitant to leave their job for a new company that they're not sure is secure.
Here are 3 programs that are helping to educate young adults and working professionals with skills-based training:
Teaching Business Skills to Incoming Freshmen Taking a Gap Semester
It's estimated that 40% of incoming freshmen were considering not attending a 4-year college as they approached the fall semester. For students taking a gap semester, a team of ex-Google employees launched Xoogler School, where students learn business skills from experienced professionals, receive mentoring from former Google employees, and build relationships with young adults around the world in an 8-week program.
Providing Career Readiness Training to Prepare for a First Job
McDonald's recently expanded its Passport to Success program which has a global goal of reducing barriers to employment for two million young people by 2025. This program partners with universities and cities to train young adults on soft skills, like self-awareness and conflict management, and career readiness training to prepare young adults around the world for their first job at McDonald's or at other companies. 850,000 youth have been part of this program since it started two years ago.
Uniting Employers with Skills-Based Education Resources
Last month, the Open Skills Network launched to help employers and educational institutions teach skills-based education. The network houses open skills libraries and skills data in an effort to develop common standards to serve as an infrastructure for widespread skills-based education and hiring practice adoption. More than 40 employers, educational organizations, and technology providers are partners in this new network, including Walmart, Amazon Web Services, Southern New Hampshire University, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
