Career Readiness

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College & Workforce Readiness We Asked Executives What Skills Young Workers Are Missing. Here's What They Said
Students need to learn how to solve problems, manage conflict, and be more curious.
Jennifer Vilcarino, December 5, 2025
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7 min read
Image of a silhouette, AI, and industry.
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College & Workforce Readiness Give Students Meaningful, Work-Oriented Learning, U.S. Executives Say
A mix of in-school and workplace learning will help students prepare for a fast-changing world.
Jennifer Vilcarino, December 5, 2025
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9 min read
Alina Kiselev,17, works on a wheatstone circuit bridge during a class on semiconductor manufacturing at Hamilton High School in Chandler, Ariz., on Nov. 5, 2025.
Alina Kiselev, 17, works on a Wheatstone bridge circuit during a class on semiconductor manufacturing at Hamilton High School in Chandler, Ariz., on Nov. 5, 2025. The school launched a two-year semiconductor program this academic year to help meet the demand for trained employees in sector.
Adriana Zehbrauskas for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness In 'Silicon Desert,' a School Prepares Students to Join the Semiconductor Boom
An Arizona school district is drawing on higher ed and industry to build a CTE program in a growing high-tech field.
Elizabeth Heubeck, December 4, 2025
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13 min read
Tue., December 02, 2025, 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. ET
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar How High Schools Can Prepare Students for College and Career
Explore how schools are reimagining high school with hands-on learning that prepares students for both college and career success.
Register
December 2, 2025
Students in Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program offer career-pathway training for juniors and seniors in the district.
Students in Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program, which offers career-pathway training, work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. As career and technical education evolves, new survey findings suggest many school counselors are still more focused on college.
Wesley Hitt for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness From Our Research Center Can School Counselors Support the Push Toward More Career Pathways?
More districts are emphasizing career readiness, but are counselors keeping up with the shift?
Lauraine Langreo, November 26, 2025
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3 min read
Students in Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program offer career-pathway training for juniors and seniors in the district.
Students in Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program offers career-pathway training for juniors and seniors in the district.
Wesley Hitt for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness How Schools' CTE Offerings Are Going High Tech
The use of new technologies is expanding across CTE programs.
Arianna Prothero, November 20, 2025
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1 min read
Carpenter training apprentice to use mechanized saw.
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College & Workforce Readiness From Our Research Center Why Schools Are Adding to Their CTE Offerings, and What Could Slow Them Down
Districts are increasing CTE offerings to meet student demand, but there are challenges.
Arianna Prothero, November 19, 2025
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3 min read
Students in the Bentonville school district's Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program—which integrates lessons about AI into the curriculum—offers career-pathway training for juniors and seniors.
Students in the Bentonville school district's Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program—which integrates lessons about AI into the curriculum—offers career-pathway training for juniors and seniors.
Wesley Hitt for Education Week
Special Report Career and Technical Education Meets AI. What Happens Next?
School districts are modernizing their Career and Technical Education programs to help students develop AI skills.
November 17, 2025
Students in Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program work on projects during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program offer career-pathway training for juniors and seniors in the district.
Students in the digital media pathway at Bentonville public schools’ Ignite program work on a group project during class on Nov. 5, 2025, in Bentonville, Ark. The program—which integrates lessons about AI into its curriculum—offers career-pathway training for juniors and seniors in the district.
Wesley Hitt for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Classroom View: How AI Is Influencing Teacher Approaches to Career and Technical Ed.
Teachers share examples of how the technology is playing a bigger role in their lessons.
Arianna Prothero, November 17, 2025
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8 min read
Students present their AI powered-projects designed to help boost agricultural gains in Calla Bartschi’s Introduction to AI class at Riverside High School in Greer, S.C., on Nov. 11, 2025.
Students do presentations about their AI-powered projects that are designed to help boost agricultural production during Calla Bartschi’s Introduction to AI class at Riverside High School in Greer, S.C., on Nov. 11, 2025. South Carolina is emphasizing the development of AI skills that are relevant for the careers students want to pursue in the future.
Thomas Hammond for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness From Our Research Center Businesses Want Employees With AI Skills. Are K-12 CTE Programs Keeping Up?
Most schools are still in the early stages of thinking about the role of AI in CTE programs.
Lauraine Langreo, November 17, 2025
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6 min read
PhD student and Physical Therapist Stephen Eaton, left, explains ultrasound imaging to RAMP students during a lab at the University of Maryland School of Medicine on Oct. 16, 2025, in Baltimore, Md. RAMP, which stands for Research and Mentoring Program, is a training program that targets high school juniors and seniors from Baltimore City to prepare them for careers in biomedical research.
Doctoral student and physical therapist Stephen Eaton, left, explains ultrasound imaging to students in the Research and Mentoring program during a lab at the University of Maryland School of Medicine on Oct. 16, 2025, in Baltimore. Men are heavily underrepresented in health fields, and more high schools are designing programs that, like RAMP, encourage boys to consider high-growth fields traditionally dominated by women.
KT Kanazawich for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Schools Are Working to Show Boys That the Helping Professions Aren't 'Girly'
Experts say boys don't get support to enter traditionally female careers.
Sarah D. Sparks, October 23, 2025
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11 min read
Lazaro Lopez, associate superintendent for teaching and learning at High School District 214, visits the manufacturing lab at Wheeling High School, where he talks with students and their instructor, in Wheeling, Ill., on Dec. 3, 2024.
Lazaro Lopez, the associate superintendent for teaching and learning at High School District 214, visits the manufacturing lab at Wheeling High School, where he talks with students and their instructor, in Wheeling, Ill., on Dec. 3, 2024. More districts are examining ways to create similarly aligned pathways of study that lead to strong work opportunities.
Jamie Kelter Davis for Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Superintendents Develop New Strategies to Meet Evolving Workforce Needs
The Public Education Promise aims to help districts align their work with the needs of their communities.
Evie Blad, October 21, 2025
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4 min read
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College & Workforce Readiness Whitepaper The Triple Promise of CTE: College, Career, and Life Preparation
CTE delivers on the triple promise of college, career, and life readiness—raising graduation rates to nearly 90% and preparing students w...
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A student works on a math problem during a 5th grade class at Lafargue Elementary School in Effie, Louisiana, on Friday, August 22. The state has implemented new professional development requirements for math teachers in grades 4-8 to help improve student achievement and address learning gaps.
A student works on a math problem during a 5th grade class at Lafargue Elementary School in Effie, Louisiana, on Friday, August 22. The state has implemented new professional development requirements for math teachers in grades 4-8 to help improve student achievement and address learning gaps. The Trump administration says it will prioritize grants that promote similar state-based math education efforts.
Kathleen Flynn for Education Week
Education Funding Math and Career Education Are Now Top Grant Priorities for Ed. Dept.
The announcement outlines what the administration plans to champion after canceling hundreds of grants in the past few weeks.
Sarah Schwartz, September 25, 2025
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5 min read
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