The U.S. Is Facing a Credentials Shortage: Report
Credit: MoMo Productions / DigitalVision / Getty Images- A report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce found a shortfall in credentials and associate degrees.
- Credential providers in the U.S. would need to grant an additional 712,000 yearly through 2032 to avoid projected shortages.
- Researchers say earning credentials can serve as pathways to higher-paying middle-skill jobs.
Associate degrees and short-term credentials can help workers land higher earnings, but the U.S. isn’t granting enough to keep up with demand.
Credentials can be a cost-effective way to upskill and land a better job, BestColleges previously found, but a new report from the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) found that credential providers in the U.S. need to majorly ramp up production.
Providers would need to grant an additional 712,000 credentials yearly through 2032 to avoid projected shortages, according to the report.
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The CEW report focuses on credentials that can serve as pathways to what it calls “high-paying middle-skills jobs,” or jobs with median earnings of more than $55,000 for early career workers between the ages of 18 and 35 who have only a credential or associate degree.
“There is a wide gap in America’s middle-skills economy,” the report reads.
“On one side are people searching for economic opportunity, striving to make a good living with hard work, on-the-job experience, and a few years of formal postsecondary education or training. On the other side are employers, who are willing to pay high wages for skilled workers who can fill jobs in high-demand middle-skills occupations.”
Credentialing programs can bridge that gap, the report reads, but there just aren’t enough credentials awarded yearly to meet employer demand in several high-demand occupations.
Four occupational groups in particular stood out in terms of both shortfalls and opportunities:
- Blue-collar jobs like mechanics and trades
- Management and professional office roles, like construction managers and project management specialists
- Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) jobs like computer network architects and information security analysts
- Protective services jobs, like police and firefighters
Healthcare is the only industry not facing a shortage, but that’s partly because healthcare employers tend to fill open positions with bachelor’s degree graduates.
“Credential shortages are troubling because the U.S. is in dire need of qualified workers to keep our infrastructure intact, our communities safe, and our industries at the forefront of innovation,” Emma Nyhof McLeod, lead author and senior policy analyst at CEW, said in a press release.
“We must do more to improve access to and boost the attainment of credentials that align with high-paying middle-skills occupations and to smooth the transition from school to employment.”
Boosting credentialing opportunities can also help broaden the talent pool and increase opportunities for people currently underrepresented in those occupations, including women and people of color, according to the report.
“Credential shortages present an opportunity to diversify high-paying middle-skills occupations and strengthen the American economy by drawing qualified workers from the widest talent pool possible,” Jeff Strohl, CEW director and report co-author, said in the release.
“But first, we need to address long-standing disparities in credential attainment and the labor market.”
Will Earning a Short-Term Credential Get You a Better Job?
Earning a credential isn’t a guarantee that you’ll get a higher-paying job, and prospects vary by industry.
Workers with relevant middle-skills credentials generally had the best shot of getting a high-paying job in the STEM field. The CEW found that 73% of those with STEM credentials landed a job.
Those numbers were lower for protective services occupations, where 58% had high-paying jobs, and management occupations, where 47% landed those jobs.
Broad blue-collar roles had the lowest percentage of credential holders landing high-paying jobs at 37%.
But even those who don’t end up with a higher-paying job still tend to be better off, Nyhof McLeod said.
“Although earning an aligned credential doesn’t guarantee a job in a high-paying occupation, workers with these credentials who find work in aligned lower-paying occupations still earn more than workers in lower-paying occupations that don’t align with these credentials.”