The Strada Education Foundation has published a report that highlights key findings from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s 2023 National Survey of College Internships. In a previous report on student’s internship expectations and experiences, researchers described how, despite 70% of students planning to complete an internship during college, less than half go on to find and complete one and less than a quarter secure a paid opportunity.

The following are major findings about the internship experiences of students attending two-year postsecondary institutions:

• Only 13% of community college learners had participated in an internship during the prior 12 months compared to 41% of four-year institution seniors and 22% of four-year juniors.

• Most two-year learners participated in internships in the social service profession (19%), followed by physical sciences, mathematics, and computer science (18%) and communications, media and public relations (15%).

• 79% of two-year students completed an in-person opportunity and 18% online. The median internship duration was 16 weeks. In comparison, 75% of four-year students completed an in-person internship and 19% online, working a median of 13 weeks.

• Only 46% of two-year students completed high-skill tasks with supervision or autonomous work compared to 65% of four-year learners.

• Skills gains were similar across the board with two-year and four-year students reporting developments in communication, problem-solving, teamwork and leadership.

• 74% of four-year students and 72% of two-year students reported being very or extremely satisfied with their experiences.

• 71% of two-year students reported being provided with written learning goals and activities prior to their internship experiences, compared to 63% of four-year students.

The report also included recommendations and calls to action for educational institutions, employers and researchers to work together to ensure better internship experiences for all learners. Action steps include the following, among others:

• Using internships intentionally to support structured learning plans and objectives for learners.

• Forming employer-university partnerships to design and scale industry-specific learning opportunities for students.

• Increasing documentation to better understand employer perspectives and the value of internships and other work-based learning models.

Addressing the Mismatch Between Future Workers and the Supply of Postsecondary Awards: A recently published report by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce analyzed the misalignment between credential supply and labor market demand at the subbaccalaureate level. Researchers determined that the U.S. economy is expected to create an average of 18.5 million job openings annually through 2031, with approximately 31% of these openings for workers with an associate degree, certificate or some postsecondary credit but no degree. However, the report also uncovered substantial misalignment between the current supply and projected demand for these credentials across multiple local labor markets throughout the nation.

The supply-demand relationship for subbaccalaureate credentials differs widely across career fields. For instance, jobs in sales and office support will account for 27% of openings, but only 4% of certificates and associate degrees are awarded in these fields. Relatedly, skilled trades jobs will account for 23% of openings, with only 12% of subbaccalaureate credentials awarded in these programs.  On the other hand, 10% of subbaccalaureate credentials are awarded in education but only 3% of job openings are projected in education occupations that require less than a bachelor’s degree.

More findings below:

• Rural areas experienced the highest levels of misalignment with the most alignment found in or near large cities.
• American Indian/Alaska Native adults were the most likely (5.3%) to live in communities with no local subbaccalaureate credential provider in comparison to white (1.6%), Hispanic/Latino (0.7%), Black/African American (0.6%) and Asian American adults (0.3%).

Noncredit Workforce Training, Industry Credentials and Labor Market Outcomes: The Annenberg Institute at Brown University has released a research paper that examines the labor market returns of industry-recognized credentials connected to community college noncredit programs. The analysis is based on data of around 24,000 working-age adults enrolled in FastForward noncredit workforce training programs at the Virginia community college system. Results indicated that earning industry-recognized credentials, on average, increased quarterly earnings by $1,000 as well as the likelihood of gaining employment by 2.4%.

Top findings below:

• Among the six career fields examined, transportation produced the most earnings gains from attaining an industry credential, with earnings increasing by more than $1,800 (a 21% increase from before FastForward participation).
• A major factor in earnings increases from FastForward is mobility from lower-paying to higher-paying occupations and industries like transportation and construction.
• Findings suggest that variations in return on investment across race/ethnicity, gender identity and age are primarily associated with students choosing higher-earning or lower-earning career fields.

Spring 2024 Community College Enrollment: The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center has published its spring 2024 enrollment estimates. Top findings for two-year institutions and comparisons between 2024 and 2023 enrollment levels below:

• Community college enrollment gains again led growth across the higher education sector, with an increase of 4.7% or more than 200,000 students.
• The following CTE program areas saw enrollment increases at two-year institutions: mechanic and repair technologies (+14.2%), precision production (+10.2%), construction trades (+8.1%), and personal and culinary services (+7.7%). In addition, the general health services major at community colleges increased by 27.5% as part of an overall growth in enrollment in health care fields.

Congress was busy this week, with both chambers working on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a bill that must be passed each year. There was also activity on WIOA reauthorization and discussion of ways to implement short-term Pell Grant expansion. While there isn’t much news with appropriations, we still expect to see the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education markup in two weeks on June 27. Keep reading for more information and be sure to check out this week’s CTE Policy Watch Blog posts for more in-depth updates. 

• HELP Committee Holds Hearing on WIOA Reauthorization: On Wednesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing about reauthorizing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Check the CTE Policy Watch Blog for more information on the hearing and WIOA reauthorization! 
• Short-term Pell Expansion Comes Up in House and Senate: Sponsors of the Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act, which would expand the Pell Grant to include short-term workforce training programs, attempted to attach the bill to the NDAA as an amendment in the House. Unfortunately, it was not made in order, but over in the Senate, a potential committee markup of the JOBS Act, the short-term Pell bell bill that we have primarily endorsed, was discussed for later this summer.  
• IES Announces Availability of CTE Research Grants: In late May, the National Center for Education Research within the national Institute of Education Sciences (IES) released a funding announcement for Fiscal Year 2025 research grant competitions. For more information, see the CTE Policy Watch Blog. 
• NCES Highlights CTE in 2024 Condition of Education Report: The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has published its Condition of Education report, which presents key indicators on the status of education at all levels throughout the country. This year the report includes a special highlight section about CTE. Read more about the report on the CTE Policy Watch Blog.  
• Department of Education’s Recent Dear Colleague Letter on Correctional Education: The Office for Career, Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) at the U.S. Department of Education circulated a Dear Colleague Letter advocating for strong investments in correctional education to promote safer communities and help reintegrate incarcerated individuals into the workforce through allocations of funds designated for CTE and adult education. Read more on the CTE Policy Watch Blog. 
• Department of Labor Shares Resources on Registered Apprenticeship in Healthcare and Social Assistance: The Department of Labor has published new resources and materials on how to initiate new healthcare or social assistance registered apprenticeship programs. 
• Department of Labor Announces Focus Calls to Inform New Registered Apprenticeship Opportunities: The Department of Labor announced a new series of Industry Focus Calls to provide information to state apprenticeship expansion grantees seeking to launch or expand Registered Apprenticeship Programs in education, green/clean energy, public sector and mental and behavioral science. 
• Department of Labor Shares New Resource to support Registered Apprenticeship: The Department of Labor shared a new interactive resource to help promote to expansion of Registered Apprenticeship, “Setting the Stage for Sustainability Through Data Storytelling.” 

On Wednesday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing about reauthorizing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). 

In his opening statement, Chair Bernie Sanders (I-VT) noted that in the 10 years since Congress passed WIOA, the country has experienced “monumental changes.” He added that “advancements in technology have displaced workers with one estimate showing the current shifts toward automation could put up to 39 million Americans out of work by 2030.” 

In their testimonies, the witnesses called for increased funding for training programs. Monty Sullivan, president of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System, said that both WIOA and Pell Grant funding are not keeping pace with the needs of employers, workers and communities.  

Additionally, David Bradley, senior director for workforce policy at Jobs for the Future, noted that in Fiscal Year (FY) 2023, programs and activities for adults, dislocated workers and youth under WIOA’s formula grants to state and local workforce areas were funded at $3.2 billion. He added that this funding level is not “adequate to meet all the promises in WIOA system, nor is the system currently designed to meet today’s extensive career navigation, skills development, and worker transition needs as a stand-alone program.” 

Short-term Pell was another major theme of the hearing with witnesses and members of the committee calling for the expansion of the Pell Grant. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) used his time to talk about the importance of short-term Pell. In his opening, he noted, “Not everybody can access a four-year degree or even a two-year degree, but we also know that by 2031, more than 70 percent of jobs will require some form of postsecondary education or training beyond high school.” 

He later announced that the HELP Committee will have a mark-up of the JOBS Act this summer, which has a bipartisan group of 49 co-sponsors in the Senate. ACTE has been a long-time supporter of the JOBS Act and will continue to advocate for its passage. 

In late May, the National Center for Education Research within the national Institute of Education Sciences (IES) released a funding announcement for Fiscal Year 2025 research grant competitions.

Education Research Grants through IES are designed to “expand the understanding of what works for whom, in what context, and why to provide reliable information about how to improve education outcomes for learners at all levels, including early childhood, elementary, secondary, postsecondary, and adult education.” Grants of up to $4 million are available to researchers in 11 different topic areas, including CTE. The CTE topic area is designed to support research on the implementation and effects of CTE programs and policies on students’ education and workforce outcomes. Specific topics mentioned in the research description include work-based learning, middle school CTE programs, and CTE teacher recruitment and retention and the impact on learner outcomes. Research looking at longer-term outcomes, such as college completion and earnings is also a priority. Applications for these grants are due September 12, 2024.  

Those interested in applying for these research grants can access virtual office hours hosted by the National Center for Education Research. To learn more, visit https://ies.ed.gov/funding/technicalassistance.asp or reach out to the CTE program officer, Dr. Corinne Alfeld, at Corinne.Alfeld@ed.gov. More information about IES grants overall can be found at https://ies.ed.gov/funding/.

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has published its annually mandated Condition of Education report, which presents key indicators on the status of education at all levels throughout the country. This year the report includes a special highlight section about CTE. Findings and insights are below.

Staffing challenges and qualifications of CTE teachers

Data from academic year 2020-21 demonstrates challenges in hiring for open CTE teaching positions across the United States. During the first full school year of the COVID-19 pandemic, 31% of public schools with open teaching positions in CTE reported having difficulties with or being unable to fill CTE instructor roles. This percentage was higher than for many other subject areas.

• CTE teachers were the most likely of all grades 9-12 public school instructors to be newer to the profession, with 10% having less than three years of teaching experience. In addition, 29% had three to nine years of experience, 36% had 10 to 20 years of experience and 25% had over 20 years of experience.

• 13% of CTE teachers had less than a bachelor’s degree as their highest degree (compared to 2% of teachers overall), 44% had a master’s degree as their highest degree (vs. 54% overall) and 6% of CTE teachers had an education specialist degree as their highest degree (vs. 8% overall). The percentage of CTE teachers with a bachelor’s degree as their highest degree (35%) was similar to the percentage of public school teachers overall.

Participation in CTE during school

This next set of data points looked at CTE course participation and completion among 2019 high school graduates.

• 85% of high school graduates earned at least one Carnegie credit, with information technology (29%), human services (28%) and business and marketing (21%) having the highest participation.

• Participation in CTE was higher among young men, with 87% having earned at least one Carnegie credit in comparison to 82% of young women.

• CTE participation was highest among students from rural areas (92%) and towns (91%) in comparison to students from suburban areas (83%) and cities (80%).

• Asian American learners had the lowest participation rate (77%), with American Indian/Alaska Native (87%), Black (86%) and white (86%) students participating at the highest rates.

Trends in CTE degree and certificate completion

This section of the report looked at the completion levels of subbaccalaureate CTE programs at the certificate or associate degree levels in school year 2021-22.

Subbaccalaureate certificates:

• More than 888,000 CTE-focused subbaccalaureate certificates were conferred, with health sciences (30%) and manufacturing, construction, repair and transportation (21%) being the top fields.

• Four CTE fields of study — agriculture and natural resources, computer and information sciences, education, and business and marketing — saw increases of more than 50% in certificates awarded between 2011-12 and 2021-22. In contrast, there was a 35% decrease in health science certificates awarded during this time frame. Health sciences remained the most common program area for CTE certificates awarded despite this drop.

Associate degrees:

• More than 499,000 CTE-focused associate degrees were conferred, with health sciences (36%) and business and marketing (21%) being the most prevalent fields of study.

• Public, legal and social services; protective services; engineering, architecture and science technologies; and consumer services all experienced decreases of more than 20% in certificates awarded between 2011-12 and 2021-22. In contrast, agriculture and natural resources; communications and communications technologies; and manufacturing, construction, repair and transportation saw increases in the same time range.

Postsecondary pathways of public school CTE concentrators

This section provided insights about the postsecondary and workforce outcomes of CTE concentrators — defined as individuals who earned two or more credits in the same CTE area during high school — who graduated high school in 2013. By June 2021, eight years after high school graduation, 80% of secondary CTE concentrator graduates had ever enrolled in postsecondary education.

• CTE concentrators and non-concentrators enrolled in postsecondary education had similar rates of credential attainment. However, more CTE concentrators (14%) than non-concentrators (9%) received an associate degree as their highest postsecondary award, while non-concentrators (54%) were more likely to earn a bachelor’s degree as their highest credential than CTE concentrators (48%).

• More CTE concentrators (74%) than non-concentrators (64%) who earned any postsecondary degree or certificate earned their highest award in a CTE field of study. About 27% of these CTE concentrators earned their award in the same field as their high school concentration, most prevalently with public services (54%) and health care (44%).

Over the last year, Advance CTE, the organization representing CTE state leaders, has been working on a process to modernize their National Career Clusters® Framework. After a year of input, research and development, and testing with business and industry leaders and CTE professionals, a draft modernized National Career Clusters® Framework was released by Advance CTE last week. The draft Framework is now public for validation from leaders, educators, industry professionals, and connected partners in the CTE community. Your voice is needed!

The National Validation Survey — open now through July 7 — is your opportunity to weigh in on the draft modernized Framework. It is the last opportunity before a final Framework is released later this year to ensure the design reflects the changes that have taken place in the world of work and across industry sectors and meets students’ needs. You also can share evidence to support any further suggested changes you make. We encourage as many CTE educators and leaders as possible to participate in the survey.

Visit the survey to view the draft Framework and watch an introductory video and webinar prior to responding. More information can be found on Advance CTE’s Advancing the Framework webpage.