This National Skills Coalition report identifies the role of non-degree credentials as a means to expand economic and educational opportunities for underserved workers. The report offers a proposed set of quality assurance systems for these non-…

This Committee for Economic Development report reviews three tools that address increasing pathways for employment for individuals who do not earn a bachelor’s degree. These tools include models for career navigation and improved career counseling,…

This American Enterprise Institute report looks at noncredit skills training as a potential approach for addressing the skills gap in various occupations and how industry-based certification from noncredit training can address the demand for…

This Jobs for the Future report profiles the Opportunity Works program, a national effort to create postsecondary education and career pathways for over 2,000 out-of-school and out-of-work youth. The research in this report identifies four…

This Annie E. Casey Foundation-supported study, authored by Brookings and Child Trends, identifies three factors that contribute to future economic progress among low-income youth: a post-secondary education (potentially equalizes young adults…

This Jobs for the Future research report describes how short-term apprenticeship programs can be integrated into a full career ladder. It identifies how shorter apprenticeships (18 months or less) might represent stackable rungs on the career ladder…

This report evaluates the early impacts of the Year Up program. Year Up is a national training program for youth between 18-24 years of age. It provides individuals with 6 months of full-time training in IT and financial service sectors, followed by…

This paper from MDRC highlights the work of YouthForce NOLA, which works to prepare New Orleans public high school students for post-secondary education and careers in three in-demand local industries: health sciences, creative media and technology…

This brief from the Urban Institute analyzes young adults who progressed through initial career pathway programs to eventually secure middle-skill jobs in their industries. Though Career Pathway programs are a promising model, there is less data…

This working paper from the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research examines the effects of receipt of the federal Pell Grant on future earnings of low-income students and a cost-benefit analysis for the program. Researchers found that Pell Grant…