Career Schools on Path To Create 5 Million Career Professionals

​The nation’s postsecondary career education colleges and universities prepared 556,635 career professionals in 2018 according to research published today. This brings the total number to 1,783,764 career professionals produced during the first three years of the sector’s “Campaign to Create 5 Million Career Professionals” within 10 years.

“Our sector is on pace to meet its goal to train 5 million of the next generation of career professionals,” said Steve Gunderson, president and CEO of Career Education Colleges and Universities (CECU). “However, these numbers also reveal the underlying issue of insufficient skilled workers to meet the demands of the US economy. In almost every category, we are producing fewer skilled professionals than are needed to meet the demands of both growth and retirements. This underscores why career schools are so important in providing skilled workers for the American economy.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics most recent projections (2018 – 2028) show 8.4 million new jobs being created during this time. In 2016, the sector announced the campaign as its commitment to produce no less than 5 million mid-level career professionals. Three years into the campaign, career colleges are on target to meet this pledge.

The sector’s focus on enrolling and graduating a diverse student population from historically underrepresented backgrounds results in career schools contributing a higher percentage of women and minority students to the workforce when compared to public and private nonprofit institutions. Career schools graduate 13% more women than public institutions (fig. 1).  Black and Hispanic students comprise 45% of graduates (fig. 2), compared to only 20% in private non-profit schools; and 27% in public institutions.

In 2018, the sector produced:

• 49,456 Medical/Clinical Assistants;
• 44,445 Cosmetology Professionals;
• 43,821 Business and Management Administrators;
• 39,272 Registered Nurses;
• 18,889 Skin Care Specialists;
• 12,499 Massage Therapists;
• 11,777 Dental Assistants;
• 10,461 Licensed Practical Nurses; and
• 9,801 Automotive Technicians.

Almost no state met their individual demand for skilled workers in 2018 (fig. 3).  As the number of career schools decline, states’ labor force will be unable to meet the job demands within their economies. This provides a jarring example of the importance of career education (fig. 4).
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“Our goal is to meet the demands of the job market,” Gunderson explained. “Career colleges strive to produce skilled workers to meet the demands of today’s technical jobs.” 
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Fig. 1 – Proprietary schools have a far higher number of women graduates than other schools

​Fig. 2 – The sector provides greater service and greater success to the nation’s minority populations

​Fig. 3 – States are failing to produce enough skilled workers to meet demand

​Fig. 4 – The sector performed strongly but school closures meant that annual demand was not met.