In my last post, I discussed and asked for student feedback on President Barron’s comments on student engagement and how the College of Health and Human Development could improve its effort for students. Today, I want to continue to highlight President Barron’s six topics by focusing on “Student Career Success and Economic Development”. If you haven’t read President Barron’s full comments on the topic, check those out at the link.
President Barron begins by focusing on the national conversation on whether college prepares students well for employment in their field. This conversation is filled with conflicting and confusing information. Some argue that a huge “skills gap” exists, that students simply don’t have the abilities that employers need. Others argue that the problem is quite different, noting the large drop in on-the-job training that employers used to provide to workers. Some cite high unemployment and underemployment rates among recent college graduates as evidence that the tuition students pay is not worth the return in salary. Other note that the economic returns to college education have remained very high.
Students in Health and Human Development face diverse challenges in this area. Our majors are clearly employment oriented. Our internships, clinicals, and other courses provide a mix of classroom and experiential education to prepare students for their careers. We have an active alumni base who provide mentoring and other professional development opportunities for students. The services sector, where many HHD students seek jobs, is growing rapidly and represents an estimated 90 percent of all jobs that will be created in the United States over the next decade.
Some of our fields, however, are quite cyclical. Job opportunities can shrink rapidly in recessionary periods in hospitality, recreation, and tourism, as families trim their entertainment budgets. Jobs in the service sector generally pay less than jobs in manufacturing, energy, and financial fields. The opportunity to find jobs here on campus through Career Services is limited, as employers who come to campus seem to focus on STEM fields. Overall, while HHD has strengths in employment, we still have much room for improvement in helping students find career success.
What do you think? How can the College of Health and Human Development improve in how it helps students find career success? How should our classes, internships, student services, advising and other activities change to help our students?