Newly released data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) shows that the majority of high schools across the nation offer CTE, work-based learning and career preparation experiences to students.
The data comes from the High School and Beyond Longitudinal Study of 2022, a nationally representative study that examines the academic, postsecondary and career opportunities for ninth grade students in the 2022-23 school year. Students, parents, counselors, teachers and administrators were surveyed for the study. ACTE analyzed the new data through DataLab and found the following CTE-related data points:
- 89% of counselors reported that their school offers CTE, and 79% that their school offers career pathways, clusters or programs of study.
- 26% of counselors said that their school offers on-site CTE courses only, 14% off-site only and 50% on- and off-site.
- 87% of counselors said that their school allows students to earn dual credits in CTE courses.
- Among administrators who reported that ninth graders in their school can enroll in CTE programs, the average ninth grade participation rate was 41%.
- 69% of counselors said that their school provides students with community service and work-based learning experiences, most frequently community service (59%), cooperative education (56%) and job shadows (50%). Mentoring (29%), school-based enterprises (37%) and internships (44%) are less common.
- Counselors reported that their school offers students numerous resources for career preparation, most frequently job fairs/career nights (90%) and career aptitude information (89%) and less frequently job seeking/interview training (58%) and connections with local employers (52%).
- Additionally, 62% of counselors stated that they often or very often assist students with career choices and planning, while only 27% said the same for job placement and employability skills.
- 67% of counselors said that their school requires students to have an education or career plan.
A follow-up data collection that was planned for spring 2026 was terminated following staffing cuts and contract cancellations at the NCES. Readers with any questions can reach out to ACTE’s Research and Policy Coordinator Jesus Galvan (jgalvan@acteonline.org) or analyze the data themselves on DataLab.
