Reversing the trend will require stakeholders, from college administrators to state legislators, to act with urgency and pragmatism. The following four shifts are crucial for this to occur: 

First, high school college counselors and university admissions teams must frame college as a financial investment. Nationally, men cite college’s financial burden as a major factor for not enrolling, while women are overrepresented in the lowest-paying majors. This signals that it’s time to abandon the framing of college as an endeavor that is more social than academic. Despite growing angst about crushing student loan debt, college visits and marketing materials still often focus on factors like niche interest clubs, sorority rushes, sports teams and events, or a school’s geographical location. These non-academic factors drive college selection and spending and help to explain why twice as many American first-year students live on campus as their Canadian counterparts. 

College’s foremost value proposition lies in aligning advanced skills with marketplace demands, including forecasted trends. For instance, the demand for data scientists is from 2023 to 2033 — much faster than the average job growth rate. College advisers need to crunch the numbers with students and their families to ensure they are aware of the variety of professions, trades and the earning power of various college degrees.

Second, state legislators need to make it a central priority to expand opportunities for high schoolers to earn college credit. Entering college with some credits already in hand is like starting at first base instead of home plate. States can look to Ohio’s College program, which funds qualifying students’ costs to acquire college credits in high school.

Meanwhile, schools and districts can implement early college and dual-enrollment programs, Advanced Placement courses and the credit-by-testing College Level Examination Program are available for free or at a nominal cost. They can trim tuition expenses, bolster students’ self-perception as capable of succeeding in higher education, increase the odds of graduation and shorten the time to earn a degree by a semester, a year or more. In  England, for example, a standard university degree takes three years to complete and the graduation rate hovers around 80%; in the U.S., earning a degree takes four years — or more — the graduation rate is about 50%, and have some college education but no degree at all.

Third, college administrators and deans should take advantage of advances in artificial intelligence to increase graduation rates. In 2016, John Jay College used AI and predictive analytics to identify seniors at risk of not graduating. The initiative boosted completion rates by 34%, adding 600 graduates in the two-year pilot. AI predictive modeling is now in use at multiple City University of New York campuses and has increased graduation rates at state schools like Georgia State University by a significant percentage. Use of this technology to identify and follow up with vulnerable students is important, because everyone benefits when more seniors graduate from college on time. 

Fourth, education policymakers across the country need to embrace the fact that not everyone wants, or needs, to go to college. Bachelor’s degrees do confer significant advantages for those who earn them, but there are other postsecondary pathways to fulfilling, well-compensated vocations. For example, electricians, who gain entry to their trade through apprenticeships or technical schools, earn a median salary of $62,350 per year — more than $10,000 above the national average of all workers — while dental hygienists train in community college and have a median pay of $94,260 yearly. 

Intriguing coursework and exciting social escapades do make for memorable undergraduate experiences, but college is not summer camp; it is an investment in Americans’ individual and collective futures. In the face of declining enrollment, now is the time for policymakers, high school counselors and university administrators to respond to new realities by making these needed changes.

The rate of Indiana high school seniors who go directly on to college remains stagnant, according to the latest data released by state officials.

New numbers for the Class of 2022 announced Thursday by the Indiana Commission of Higher Education (CHE) indicated — for the — that just 53% of Hoosier graduates furthered their education with certificate training, a two-year program or enrollment at a four-year college.

It’s a 6% drop from the class of 2019, and 12% lower than in 2015.

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Still, because the data further shows that the total number of 2022 high school graduates increased by 3%, that translates to fewer students enrolled in postsecondary education directly after high school.

“Even though the college-going rate held steady at 53%, we actually lost a number of first-time students enrolling from our headcount perspective,” said Brooke Kile, associate commissioner for business intelligence.

CHE staff presented preliminary data during the commission’s bi-monthly meeting on Thursday. Official numbers for 2022 are expected to be released next week.

The rate — called “dismal” by numerous state lawmakers and education officials — continues the . The decline began several years prior, however.

More students going out of state

CHE defines the college-going rate as the percentage of students who enroll in a postsecondary institution within the year following high school graduation.

Per the 2022 data, 47% of students who completed Career and Technical Education (CTE) training while in high school went on to pursue additional postsecondary coursework.

But among those CTE students, Kile noted that Indiana continues to have access gaps among different demographic groups.

About 70% of Asian students and 48% of White students who took CTE classes went on to college, according to the commission’s numbers. Forty-four percent of Black students and 41% of Hispanic and Latino students continued education after graduation.

Kile said, too, that male students are “increasingly choosing” not to participate in postsecondary education.

Indiana’s 21st Century Scholars students are making the jump, though, and have “a very strong college-going rate,” Kile continued. The covers full tuition and fees at Indiana colleges and universities for low-income students, who enroll in the 8th grade.

Eighty-one percent of scholars in the 2022 cohort advanced to postsecondary education, according the the new data. That’s compared to 59% of non-scholar students who continued their studies.

CHE officials also identified a new trend with the Class of 2022 — of the students who are going to college, more are enrolling in out-of-state schools.

Around 27% of graduating seniors enrolled in one of Indiana’s public four-year institutions, followed by 10% who attend a public two-year school and 8% who enrolled at a private college or university.

Another 8% went to a school outside of Indiana, according to the data.

“This is the highest out-of-state percentage that we’ve seen in the last several years,” Kile explained. She said Indiana’s college-going rates only held steady the out-of-state enrollment went up.

“One year is not a trend, so we are not necessarily sounding the alarm,” she continued. “But we are definitely looking at what sort of early indicator data we can get from the 2023 and 2024 cohorts, looking at attendance patterns, to see if we need to do any sort of special initiatives to encourage students to stay in Indiana.”

CHE initiatives continue

Also previewed Thursday was a data update on the Class of 2021.

CHE officials said 51% of the 2021 cohort that enrolled in a postsecondary program within a year after high school graduation met all three early college success benchmarks: ​​they did not need remediation, they completed all courses they attempted during their first year of enrollment, and they persisted to their second year of schooling.

According to the latest numbers, 77% of the 2021 cohort that enrolled in a postsecondary program persisted to the second year, which Kile said is the highest persistence rate in more than a decade.

Still, Kile and other commission officials emphasized ongoing efforts to boost postsecondary enrollment.

Current initiatives include:

Additional support from the Frank O’Bannon grant — a 35% increase to awards took effect beginning with the 2023 cohort.“Pre-admissions letters,” , which indicated to Hoosier students at least three Indiana colleges and universities to which they qualified to attend.Automatic enrollment for eligible 21st Century Scholars — which in the 2027 graduating class from 20,000 to over 40,000.Adding incentives for Indiana campuses to prioritize low-income youth and adult enrollment.

Kile also noted CHE’s continued expansion of the Indiana College Core offerings, given that College Core completion “is the best indicator for college going.”

The curriculum consists of a 30-credit-hour block of general education courses that transfer between all of Indiana’s public institutions and some private colleges.

Adding to the effort, in March will require to be more accessible to high schoolers across the state, and compels Hoosier colleges and universities — minus Ivy Tech Community College and Vincennes University — to offer three-year degree programs by July 2025.

is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: info@indianacapitalchronicle.com. Follow Indiana Capital Chronicle on and .

Compared to other generations, few Gen Zers, born between 1997 to 2011, feel prepared for their future and less than half are thriving in their current lives — far fewer than millennials, according to a new report.

In stark terms, the report lays out Gen Z’s concerns — revealing what once was status quo no longer meets the needs of young people.

“This is a critical moment for youth and for the adults supporting them,” said Romy Drucker, director of the Education Program at the Walton Family Foundation, adding the survey’s findings will “generate insights and perspectives to help us all be better guides, better listeners, and better partners as the next generation rises.” (Drucker was co-founder of ����Ӱ�� and serves on its board of directors; she played no role in the reporting or editing of this article) 

More than 3,000 Gen Zers were polled by and the through a national survey that will follow the same group for three years — paving the way for tracking trends one-time studies can’t measure.

The survey, which includes more than 2,000 K-12 students and nearly 1,000 no longer in school, highlights Gen Z’s need for an education that matches the reality of the world they live in.

“Empowering Gen Z to achieve their goals and aspirations requires that schools provide students with relevant experiences and education that will help them navigate the workforce,” said Stephanie Marken, Gallup partner and executive director for education research in a press release.

Here are 15 key takeaways from the survey:

Disclosure: Walton Family Foundation provides financial support to ����Ӱ��.

A new found two in five Gen Z students agreed with the statement: “The pandemic has made me less interested in pursuing higher education.”

Middle school students, generally 11 to 13 years old, not only contribute to the trend but also lead the view that work experience is more valuable. 

That attitude has translated into an 8% decline in college enrollment from 2019 to 2022, showing how attending college is no longer a given for Gen Z.

“Seeing the way many Millennials are saddled with insurmountable debt from the higher ed system, and knowing from their online lives that other paths are possible, these high school and even middle school students are reconsidering if they even need college to be successful,” wrote in the report.

Gen Z advocates Brian Femminella, co-founder and chief executive officer of , Bella Santos, community leadership board president of , and Ian Gates, policy and program quality fellow of talked about key takeaways from the report:

1. The vast majority of Gen Z middle school students say they don’t see a future pursuing college.

YPulse found 80% of Gen Z middle school students and 85% of high school students plan to go to college compared to 100% pre-pandemic.

Gates, 22, said pandemic-era online learning showed younger Gen Z students how monotonous taking classes can be — whether they’re in middle school, high school, community college or a four-year institution.

“[Gen Z] is thinking about different options now,” Gates told ����Ӱ��. “A lot of us are thinking about non-college careers…like being a Youtuber, influencer and other alternate paths like that.”

Femminella, 23, said his own college education didn’t necessarily help him start his mental health company.

“When I see how a lot of younger kids would rather do something else, I applaud that,” Femminella told ����Ӱ��. “We need more folks that want to do different things and shouldn’t fall into the stigma of college being a must.”

2. Gen Z students are more likely to find Google and YouTube more helpful than a teacher.

YPulse found Gen Z students were more likely to choose Google and YouTube over a teacher when asked: “If you wanted to learn something new, what resources would you use?”

Santos, 20, wasn’t shocked.

“There is often not a ton of oversight when it comes to how choosy schools are with who gets to teach — especially in public schools,” Santos told ����Ӱ��. “Teachers and the system in which they teach aren’t always suited for success to begin with.”

Gates said disparaging parent attitudes towards teachers and school curriculum also had an effect on how Gen Z grows up to question the value of a college education.

“With the parental rights movement, certainly when you’re telling your kid ‘hey your teachers are trying to indoctrinate you and make you communist and make you gay’ it obviously gets to them,” Gates said.

Gates added how states such as Florida, which have banned and , contribute to Gen Z’s disinterest in pursuing higher education by not exposing them to diverse courses. 

3. Gen Z college students struggle to stay interested in their classes and believe they don’t teach practical skills.

YPulse found 55% of current Gen Z undergraduate students and 38% of Gen Z graduate students found their classes not relevant to their lives — in part because college doesn’t teach practical skills such as mental health skills, cooking and personal finance.

“Learning should be an enriching experience no matter what your interests are,” Santos said. “Yet school systems are often set up to just drill information into people’s brains.”

Femminella said mental health concerns should be the foundation on which professors shape their curriculum. 

“There are some moments when students in college need to have a mental health day because they’re overworked,” Femminella said. “There’s not a lot of outlets and resources until it’s too late…and you’re really in the midst of a mental health crisis when there’s ways to avoid that.”

Femminella also said colleges should require personal finance and cooking courses.

“A lot of colleges forget that when Gen Z students close their computer, they’re a human and have to go do other human things like pay bills, cook and clean,” Femminella said. “I think it’s something that should just be incorporated into the entire university structure.”

4. Gen Z students wish they learned about alternative career paths growing up.

YPulse found that 74% of Gen Z students wish they learned more about alternative career paths compared to a traditional college education.

Santos said the social stigma of not attending college is declining among Gen Z students.

“I don’t think it’s for everyone, I don’t think it’s necessary, so it makes sense that other people in my generation see that,” Santos said.

Gates added how this is especially true for students who come from immigrant families and used to feel “the pressure that college is just what’s next.”

“Gen Z knows people are graduating college with all these loans,” Gates said. “They’re taking that into account, especially those from lower income families, and asking themselves if college is really worth it.”

5. Gen Z students believe work experience is more important than a college education.

YPulse found that 57% of Gen Z middle school students and 49% of Gen Z high school students believe work experience is more important than a college education.

Femminella said work experience has been the most helpful tool to his success.

“When you’re in your field and you get to practice, you also get to fail,” Femminella said. “And by failing you learn the most, and that’s been invaluable to starting my company.”

But education today is in a time of disruption and transition. In many respects, it’s not meeting the needs of young people as they enter a changing workforce. 

Maybe it’s time to ask high school students what they need most. 

The “Question the Quo” nationally representative survey of high school students ages 14 to 18 does just that. It documents Gen Z high schoolers’ views and shifting priorities on education and work. It was conducted by the nonprofit ECMC Group in partnership with VICE Media, the seventh survey report since 2020.

It turns out that Gen Z high school students have new and sensible ideas about the relationship between their K-12 education, going to college and starting a career. They want K-12 to provide them with practical knowledge and skills that lead to more education, training and career options after graduation than they now have. Policymakers and educators can and should take these views into serious consideration as they map out new programs and reforms.

Here are four main questions Gen Z high schoolers have on their minds as they think about their futures.

Do we need a college degree?

Gen Z is skeptical about the value of a traditional four-year college degree. They question whether it delivers sufficient return on investment, having heard stories about student loans and debt. Around half (51%) are thinking about pursuing a college degree, down more than 10 percentage points since before the pandemic and 20 points since shortly after COVID began. Other of young people and adults find similar skepticism about the value of a four-year degree.

On the other hand, 65% of Gen Z high schoolers who responded to “Question the Quo” believe education after high school is necessary. But they want options such as online courses, boot camps and apprenticeships.

What skills should K-12 schools teach us?

The practical mindset concerning college also applies to what young people want from high school. Gen Z places a priority on learning life skills along with academics — things like financial literacy, communication, problem-solving and understanding their own and others’ emotions, which are overlooked in the traditional K-12 curriculum. They value good grades and practical, real-world skills. They also have an entrepreneurial spirit, with a third wanting to start their own business.

Nearly 8 in 10 (78%) believe it is important to develop these practical skills before they graduate from high school, so they are better prepared to decide on career paths. These views are consistent with other of the American public and young people on these issues. 

How can work and life coexist?

Gen Z high schoolers are not only interested in making money; they also want time for their personal lives. They see work-life balance as an important priority. In fact, two of the top factors that impact what they will decide to do after high school — long-term earning potential and physical and mental health — have remained consistent throughout ECMC’s seven surveys. In other words, young people yearn for meaningful work that leaves room for personal development and leisure. Their approach to careers echoes a holistic perspective on the need for a healthy balance between work and personal life, which was a key theme of the December 2021 report from the on youth mental health.

How do I achieve my dreams?

Gen Z high schoolers want to learn on the job and over their lifetime. More than two-thirds say their ideal post-high school learning should be on the job through internships or apprenticeships (65%) or through hands-on learning in a lab or classroom (67%). Only a third say their ideal learning would be only through coursework. More than half (53%) want more formalized learning throughout their life. And 8 in 10 believe government and employers should subsidize, pay full tuition or provide direct training for students. 

Gen Z high schoolers do not reject formal academic learning. Rather, they want a system that is more flexible and personalized in its approach to learning and work than what they have now. They are asking K-12 schools, colleges, employers and other stakeholders to think differently about how best to prepare them for jobs and careers. 

Disclosure: Walton Family Foundation provides financial support to ����Ӱ��.

Some of them are in the alley out back, cutting through tough plywood with circular saws, while others are inside using impact drivers to join pieces of framework. Other girls will be stationed next to a laser printer, creating decals and decorations.

“It is just a symphony of chaos, but it’s amazing,” said Kelli Best-Oliver, who oversees the work along with a group of volunteers. “They’re all doing it relatively independently and, you know, there’s music playing, and it’s just this diverse group of kids. The culture that we’re creating here is something special.” 

The project — building a structure for a hole of miniature golf — is just one of many happening at , a nonprofit that provides after-school and summer programming for girls and gender-expansive youth, ages 10 to 16.

LitShop offers book clubs and writing sessions along with workshops focused on building and construction — carpentry, printmaking, fiber arts or architecture.

Many of the resulting projects benefit the community. The miniature golf structure will go to a local arts association. The students also recently built a wheelchair ramp for a St. Louis resident.

“We will have kids who are attracted to us for one reason or another — they are either a bookworm or emerging writer, or they really want to get their hands dirty and make a lot of noise and learn how to use tools,” said Kelli Best-Oliver, LitShop’s founder. “It really opens kids’ eyes up to what they don’t even know because they’re not doing it at school.”

Best-Oliver, who worked as a literacy and language arts curriculum coordinator for St. Louis Public Schools for more than 15 years, said there are minimal opportunities in the city’s schools to take classes centered on construction and building. The push to pursue admission to college also discourages students from considering other options, like the trades industries, she said. 

“We need to validate and affirm that building trades are just as valuable to both our communities and society, but can also be a tool for economic mobility. (Students) just don’t know because we’re not even giving them that information,” she said. “They don’t even know it’s an option for them.”

Female students receive even less exposure to the construction trades than boys, she said. That’s why LitShop is geared toward girls — to give them a chance to break into male-dominated jobs. Only 11% of workers in the industry are female, according to by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.

Best-Oliver said it’s also crucial for LitShop to be open to gender-expansive youth, as LGBTQ+ people have an even smaller presence in the building trades.

“Especially in Missouri, it literally can save lives to validate a kid’s gender identity, in a safe and affirming place where they can be themselves,” she said.

Best-Oliver said she doesn’t want to inspire girls just to explore the trades industry, but also science, technology, engineering and mathematics. A lot of LitShop projects are STEM-based, such as a circuitry class the organization offered in early May. Students learned about wiring, batteries and circuits and how to make sculptures with LED-light fixtures.

According to the , only about 28% of STEM employees in the U.S. are female.

Even if the girls don’t pursue a STEM career, Best-Oliver, said they will be gaining important skills for any path they take in the future. It’s “valuable and rad for girls to know how to use a circular saw,” she said. “It’s just a very powerful and empowering thing.”

For sixth-grader Stella Andersen, LitShop has given her an outlet for not only learning to use tools, but for exploring her passion for writing.

Stella has been with LitShop for three years and said she was initially attracted to its literacy component. One of her first projects was to read a novel and create a “twinkle board” — a large wooden sign with lights that spell out a specific word related to the novel.

She contributes to the organization’s publication, called LitMag, which features writing and art from the students, but also enjoys participating in group building projects like the mini-golf hole.

“It’s fun when people are walking by and they just look through the door and it’s funny to see them trying to figure out what LitShop is and what’s happening,” Stella said.

LitShop is based on a similar organization in Berkeley, California, called , which Best-Oliver visited in 2019. At the time, she was disillusioned with her job in the 20,000-student St. Louis district and frustrated with how test-driven curriculum was, especially in underfunded urban areas.

“When I walked in, I was just like, ‘This is it. If I don’t do something like this in St. Louis, someone else is going to do it,’ ” Best-Oliver said. “I was going to be stuck in my current job shaking my fist because I didn’t have the courage to strike out on my own.”

Emily Pilloton-Lam founded the California organization in 2008. At first, it was open to all students, but Pilloton-Lam shifted to focus on girls and gender-expansive youth in 2013 and changed the name to match. 

When she created the organization, Pilloton-Lam said, she couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that even though the work was powerful, it was alienating the girls because they still felt like they didn’t fully belong working alongside the boys.

“It’s the thing that I have experienced as an educator, working with students, and I’m leading a build and I’m in charge and no one treats me like I’m in charge. I started to see some of those same feelings manifest with my female students,” Pilloton-Lam said. “I call it the social calculus of being a woman — you walk into a room or onto a construction site and you’re constantly having to calibrate, ‘How do I prove that I belong here?’ ”

Best-Oliver took her inspiration from Pilloton-Lam and created a pilot program of LitShop that started in St. Louis classrooms. She began by teaching students construction and writing skills in schools during the day, with the help of district staff. The pilot program was a success, and at the end of the school year, Best-Oliver quit her job to make LitShop its own organization.

The pandemic forced her to switch from in-person to virtual programming. The organization finally transitioned from being school-based to standing on its own after Best-Oliver purchased the building that now houses the storefront workshop.

LitShop currently has about 100 students enrolled, and Best-Oliver hopes to increase that number if the organization can secure more grant funding. All programs and workshops are free to students.

The nonprofit is gearing up to offer its summer programs: a print shop for making merchandise, like T-shirts; a woodworking and writer’s workshop; architectural model making; a furniture project; a book club; and a paper mache workshop.

“What we’re doing on paper can sound cool, but it can also sound confusing, like, ‘I don’t get how these things fit together.’ But if you come to our shop, and you see what we’re doing, nobody comes here and says, ‘This is lame,’ ” Best-Oliver said. “Everybody leaves here being like, ‘This is awesome. How can I get involved?’ We are doing something that nobody is doing. And it is really cool to walk into a place and see a 12-year-old on power tools.”

It can feel overwhelming to process all the demands and challenges that young people face in addition to their schoolwork. But what gives us hope and has inspired our careers as high school leaders is the belief in the potential of a high-quality education to help students overcome obstacles and pursue lives of opportunity and choice. 

We believe students need rigor and purpose to meet their goals. Rigor challenges students to think critically and search for answers to tough questions. Purpose gives them relevant learning experiences that they can connect with their lives. With support and funding from the education nonprofit and Barr Foundation’s “” initiative, our three schools have created programming that is designed to help students meet the high expectations set for them — particularly students of color, those from low-income families, English learners and those with special needs. Our schools were designed specifically for students who had not been well served educationally, and as a result, many are not on track to graduate from high school when they enroll.

We have seen firsthand how our belief in the importance of maintaining high expectations translates into meaningful and challenging academic experiences and in students’ increased confidence in what they can accomplish.

At the Capitol Region Education Council’s in Hartford, students took their educational experience outside the classroom to apply their learning in real and relevant ways. An example of this is through the “Students and the Law” course. Impact Academy students collaborated with students from the University of Connecticut School of Law, culminating in a Moot Court exercise in which they took on the roles of petitioners, respondents and justices. This was new territory for many of them. They had to be prepared to present complicated arguments in a formal setting at the law school. They researched, practiced and worked together. The school’s combination of high expectations and relevant learning opportunities has given them a purpose and created for the students a new postsecondary vision for themselves. Over two-thirds of the current graduating class plan to continue their education.

At in Massachusetts’s Fall River Public Schools, a Portrait of a Graduate was created that defines the essential skills and mindsets that students are expected to have when they leave. They are expected to develop the ability to argue, investigate, discern, collaborate, communicate and self-direct. For example, students participated in a project-based unit called “My Point of View,” in which they used storytelling to create a powerful and compelling personal statement that expressed their values. One student, Anthony Jacobs, wrote about how expressing himself through art helped him cope after a tragic accident and has inspired him to pursue it as a career. Some 70% of students at Evolve report that they would have dropped out if they had gone to another school; now every 2023 graduate has a postsecondary plan in place.

At in Providence, educators work with students to set weekly academic goals. Pushing the students helps them build confidence that they can accomplish ambitious and worthy learning, while completing tasks that require them to create and produce solutions and arguments raises their expectations for what they can accomplish. For example, in the math unit “You Auto Know,” freshmen learn and demonstrate the mathematics of buying a car. Student Yosalin Alvarado compared investing in a 2022 Honda Accord and a 2022 Honda Civic, analyzing the differences in base price, depreciation and gas mileage and the similarities of multi-year loan financing costs, insurance payments and brand. Then, she made final recommendations, as if presenting them to a client, about which vehicle to purchase. Such expectation-raising work has helped foster a college-going culture and boosted student engagement. One telling metric: 100% of Nowell seniors completed the federal financial aid form this year, while just a few years ago the FAFSA completion rate was 30%.

Learning at our three schools is not just about meeting graduation requirements, but rather about building skills and networks, providing opportunities to help students see what is possible and supporting them so they can excel. We expect students to be challenged, to apply their learning and to strengthen their own identities.

Even in difficult times like these, high expectations are not only possible, but necessary — for all students in all schools. Teachers must ask young people to do hard things. School leaders need to create rigorous and purposeful learning experiences that allow all students to meet and exceed the high expectations set for them.

Disclosure: XQ and Carnegie Corporation of New York partner with Springpoint Schools and provide financial support to ����Ӱ��.

Students back then didn’t have the opportunity to earn an industry-recognized credential in construction or any other field. Today, these certifications, conferred by businesses, industry groups or states, attest to a student’s knowledge and skills in a particular domain. High school students earn credentials most often through career and technical education.

While it’s encouraging that of states now include attainment of these certifications in their school accountability systems, there’s more they could do to help these programs live up to their potential. A authored by the University of Texas’s Matt Giani and commissioned by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute points out some areas for improvement.

One key problem the study found is that many students who earn industry-recognized credentials don’t end up employed in the industry most closely aligned to them (if they enter the workforce) or major in related fields (if they attend college). 

It’s discouraging, and more than a little baffling. Why would students go to the trouble of earning an industry credential that they don’t plan to use, at least not immediately? 

Student focus groups provided some surprising answers. It seems that high schoolers value career and technical education in ways that policymakers aren’t recognizing. Some said they took CTE courses solely to explore new interests, not necessarily to attain a credential — but also because they found their other classes dull. This tracks that shows high schoolers are out of their minds — but consider more interesting than other courses. One survey reports that students find CTE particularly attractive, since they get to “spend half of the day away from high school.” An analysis of a popular reveals that taking CTE courses in the sciences is linked to increased engagement at school, particularly for low-income students. 

On the flip side, some in the focus groups said taking CTE classes helped them decide what they weren’t interested in — like the cosmetology student who enjoyed the program’s collaborative nature but discovered she hated cutting hair. 

Still others enrolled in credentialing programs with a practical interest in a field that already appealed to them, or wanted to acquire loosely related workplace or general life skills. A student in the automotive technology program, for instance, planned to become a veterinarian but, hailing from a family of mechanics, didn’t want to pay someone else to fix her car. Another, who planned to go into real estate, thought enrolling in a construction program could help him flip houses on the side. A third, who signed up for culinary arts, simply wanted to learn how to cook.

Given this variety of motivations, schools could use a more flexible system that acknowledges student intent. One sensible solution is to offer exploratory courses, followed by a of credentials that among the type and purpose of each. 

Exploratory courses would not count toward a credential, but simply give curious students a taste of what a field is all about and a chance to roll up their sleeves. Starting these courses in would allow older students to maximize their high school years. 

Level 1 of the hierarchy would accommodate students who have a practical interest in obtaining an entry-level credential but aren’t necessarily looking to build upon it. This category would include job safety and general work readiness, including basic first aid, word processing and financial literacy, and could encompass certifications from the , Microsoft and the American Red Cross. 

Level 2 would appeal to students who have at least some interest in a specific field and might want to augment it. These certifications would be stackable, meaning that initial skills in, say,  computer science, health care and manufacturing could be expanded via subsequent certifications. For instance, relevant certifications in manufacturing technology might begin with electrical maintenance, then progress to industrial electronics, then to mechatronics. Likewise, manufacturing production might begin with certification in basic welding, then welding fabrication, then metal fabrication.

Level 3 would meet the needs of students who’ve decided on an occupation. It would comprise capstone credentials that demonstrate mastery and truly advance careers. In radiology, for instance, that would mean a radiologic science management bachelor’s degree, potentially earned after attaining a limited medical radiologic technologist certificate and a radiologic technology associate degree.This type of hierarchy would better reflect how students think about and approach CTE courses and credentials. It would also help point the way to occupations, which often sound good in theory but lack pathways to take students there.