Aligning Degree Production and In-Demand Middle Skill Occupations: National and Regional Insights

• In Event: Lightning Session: Crime, Justice, and Drugs & Employment and Training Programs

Abstract

The proposed session will report on new original research examining the regional alignment between subbaccalaureate degrees conferred and occupational demand amid the evolving landscape of middle-skill jobs. The transition to renewable energy, upgrades to energy infrastructure, and investments in energy efficiency are predicted to create millions of high-quality jobs requiring less than a bachelor’s degree, yet many public officials and employers report that they do not have sufficient numbers of workers trained in these fields in their local communities. Estimates suggest that as many as 9 million high-quality jobs could be created to implement new energy infrastructure and help communities adapt to and mitigate new climate patterns. Notably, these job estimates will include both entirely new roles (e.g., in wind turbine manufacturing) and existing positions that will evolve to incorporate new skills or will increase in number (e.g., automotive technician and HVAC installer). Middle-skill jobs, typically requiring less than a bachelor’s degree, are predicted to be critical to this transition, particularly in sectors such as electricity, construction, manufacturing, and natural resource management. Many regions are already experiencing significant shortages of workers in these occupations. 

This study is the first of its kind to provide national-level statistics to answer critical questions such as: How many college students earn credentials in fields with energy-related occupations? How have degree completions in these programs evolved over time? And how do these outcomes vary across demographic, regional, and economic characteristics? Analysis uses a novel analytic file that merges 3 sources: the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) student completions data file, county-level job posting data from Lightcast, and “Greening the World of Work” occupational classification from O*NET. This classification method aggregates occupations into three categories - Green Increased Demand, Green Enhanced Skills, and Green New & Emerging. Findings suggest there is wide variation in the number and share of “green degrees” awarded across community and technical colleges in the nation. For example, our findings show that green completions account for over half to seventy-five percent of total completions among some rural-serving community and technical colleges in a given year. We also observe preliminary evidence that green completions correlate with corresponding labor market demand.    These findings will allow policymakers to identify local occupational needs and opportunities for community colleges to scale up their workforce programs to address gaps.

Authors

• WEI WANG, University of Tennessee (Knoxville)
  Presenting Author

• Maria Cormier, Community College Research Center
  Non-Presenting Co-Author

• Susan Bickerstaff, Community College Research Center
  Non-Presenting Co-Author