Designing Programs for the Millennial Workforce Study

This study examines the opportunities and challenges COE units face in designing programs for three specific student populations: Millennial career advancers, early encore careerists, and tomorrow's business owners.

This study examines three types of non-degree programs that serve three distinct types of Millennials.

After experiencing a half decade of un- and underemployment, Millennials are turning to continuing education units to secure employable skills through affordable, fast-paced programs. Millennial enrollments are especially high at professional and education units in urban areas, where leaders report the average continuing education is 25 or 26 years old—down from an average age of mid-30s just a few years ago.

Expected to have 20 jobs over the course of a lifetime and more burdened with student loan debt than any other generation, Millennials are finding it both financially and professionally impractical to invest in lengthy, costly master's degrees. Instead, many are choosing short-format certificates that give them the most critical skills they need to advance in a faster timeframe and at a lower cost.

Although many adult education units include certificates among the programs in their portfolios, many continuing education leaders struggle to position their programs effectively to prospective students and employers. This study examines three types of non-degree programs that serve three distinct types of Millennials.

The challenge: Designing programs for the Millennial workforce

For many COE units, Millennials are becoming a top of-mind student segment. In exploring how the Recession continues to affect young college graduates, a few concerning facts came to light. First, upwards of 30% of some graduating classes are either unemployed or underemployed; second, the effects of the recession are worst for students who graduated at its height. A student who graduated in 2009 is less likely to have a lucrative job than their younger…