Career Pathways – Arnold Ventures

Report on Aligning Career Pathways with Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction: The Imperative for Sustainable Career Education

The development of diverse and accessible career pathways is a critical component in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. A significant challenge exists in bridging the gap between the skills of the workforce and the demands of emerging industries, particularly for high-paying jobs that do not require a traditional bachelor’s degree. Addressing this challenge directly supports several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by fostering economic mobility and creating inclusive opportunities for all learners.

Enhancing Quality Education (SDG 4) through Evidence-Based Training

Achieving SDG 4, which calls for inclusive and equitable quality education, requires a focus on the effectiveness of vocational and technical training programs. There is a pressing need to ensure that educational pathways provide relevant skills for employment and decent jobs (Target 4.4).

• Challenge: There is enormous variation in the effectiveness and value of existing career programs. Many programs that receive significant policy attention lack causal evidence of their impact on students’ economic outcomes.
• Solution: Policy and investment must prioritize programs with proven efficacy. This involves a commitment to rigorous research to identify and scale high-impact models.

Key Strategies for Quality Assurance:

1. Support high-quality high school career and technical education (CTE) programs.
2. Promote sectoral training programs that are developed in close partnership with employers to meet targeted industry needs.
3. Ensure all pathways provide on-ramps for students and workers to further their education and credentials, including college degrees.

Fostering Decent Work and Economic Growth (SDG 8)

The creation of robust career pathways is fundamental to achieving SDG 8, which promotes sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. By connecting education directly to labor market needs, these initiatives help reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education, or training (Target 8.6).

• Labor Market Alignment: Career-connected approaches address nationwide shortages of workers trained for high-demand technical roles.
• Economic Mobility: These pathways provide learners with access to fulfilling careers and upward economic mobility, contributing to a more resilient and prosperous economy.
• Systemic Integration: The goal is to create effective and cohesive education-to-workforce systems that can adapt to technological change and evolving industry demands.

Addressing Poverty, Inequality, and Partnerships (SDGs 1, 10, & 17)

The impact of effective career education extends across the SDG framework, addressing foundational issues of poverty, inequality, and the need for collaboration.

Core Objectives:

• SDG 1 (No Poverty): By connecting students to good jobs, high-quality career pathways serve as a direct mechanism for poverty reduction.
• SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities): A central aim is to ensure every learner can access these fulfilling paths, thereby reducing inequalities in economic and educational opportunities.
• SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals): Success depends on strong partnerships between educational institutions, employers, and government to build effective systems that shield students, taxpayers, and employers from low-value programs.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

1. SDG 4: Quality Education
   • The article directly addresses this goal by focusing on educational pathways outside of the traditional four-year degree. It emphasizes the need for “high-quality high school career and technical education programs” and ensuring that “career pathways offerings are high-quality.” The core theme is providing learners with effective and valuable educational options that lead to tangible career outcomes.
2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
   • This goal is central to the article’s purpose. The entire discussion on career pathways is framed around achieving “fulfilling careers and economic mobility.” The article highlights the demand for workers in “high-paying jobs” and the objective of connecting students to “good jobs,” which directly aligns with the principles of promoting sustained, inclusive economic growth and decent work for all.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. Target 4.3: By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university.
   • The article’s focus on “high school career and technical education programs” and “sectoral training programs” is a direct reflection of this target. It advocates for increasing student access to these specific forms of technical and vocational training as viable alternatives to a bachelor’s degree.
2. Target 4.4: By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship.
   • The article speaks to this target by highlighting the “shortage of workers trained for high-paying jobs” and the need to adapt as “technological change reshapes the labor market.” The goal of the supported programs is to equip students and workers with the specific skills needed to fill these roles.
3. Target 8.6: By 2030, substantially reduce the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training.
   • The article describes career-connected approaches as providing “on-ramps for students and workers to further their education and credentials.” By creating and promoting these effective “education-to-workforce systems,” the initiative aims to engage learners and provide them with clear pathways to employment, directly addressing the issue of youth disengagement from the workforce and education.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. Indicator (Implied): Impact on students’ economic outcomes.
   • The article explicitly states the importance of having “causal evidence to date for their impact on students’ economic outcomes.” This is a direct, measurable indicator for assessing the effectiveness of educational programs (relevant to Target 4.4) and their success in leading to decent work and economic mobility (relevant to SDG 8). This could be measured through graduate employment rates and wage levels.
2. Indicator (Implied): Access to and participation in high-quality career pathways.
   • The article’s aim to “ensure every learner can access fulfilling paths” and its observation that “students are eager for more access to these pathways” implies that a key metric for success is the number of students enrolling in and completing these high-quality vocational and technical programs. This would measure progress towards Target 4.3.
3. Indicator (Implied): Connection to “good jobs.”
   • The policy goal to “connect students to good jobs” suggests an indicator related to the job placement rate of program graduates into high-paying, in-demand fields. This measures the direct success of the “education-to-workforce systems” mentioned in the article and is relevant to Target 8.6.

Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: arnoldventures.org