Young people who attend schools today are likely to hold future jobs that don't yet exist. While generative artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually automate hundreds of millions of today's jobs, people who are able to effectively use AI tools to complement skills like leadership, imagination, and creativity will certainly have an advantage in…

This issue of "Research Library Issues" ("RLI") presents three articles by Stanley Wilder in which he explores a series of trends shaping the professional population of Association of Research Libraries (ARL) member institutions. Wilder's articles serve as a powerful illumination of the demographic shifts taking place in the…

A "crisis account" of shortages of well-qualified scientists, engineers, mathematicians and technologists has shaped education policy in the UK and the USA for decades. The apparent poor quality of school science education along with insufficient numbers of well-qualified teachers have been linked to skills shortages by government and…

This paper considers the influence of labor demand for new PhD recipients on time to the doctorate. I use student-level data on all doctorates awarded by U.S. universities in seven humanities and social science fields together with the annual number of job listings by field from 1975 to 2005. An increase in the number of job listings in a field…

STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) has been a powerful engine of prosperity in the US since World War II. Currently, American students' performances and enthusiasm in STEM education are inadequate for the US to maintain its leadership in STEM professions unless the government takes more actions to motivate a new generation of…

This report provides information on fields of bachelor's degrees in the United States using data from the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS). It includes estimates of fields of bachelor's degree by demographic characteristics including age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, nativity, and educational attainment. This report also looks at geographic and…

Going directly from high school to college is not possible for everyone. Many who go to college will not do so straight out of high school, and many more need to work to pay for college. Good jobs for people without college degrees certainly still exist, although they are on a steady decline as computers and related technology take over routine…

With the aging of the world's population comes the rising need for qualified direct long-term-care (DLTC) workers (i.e., those who provide personal care to frail and disabled older adults). Developed nations are increasingly turning to immigrant women to fill these needs. In this article, we examine the impact of three global trends--population…

During the past decade, many enterprises have been re-directing their resources into critical business areas to keep up with economic and market changes. They have adopted electronic business (EB) systems, such as supply chain management, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and enterprise application integration (EAI), to ensure seamless…

Complete College America and FutureWorks conducted an analysis of certificate production, the value of the certificate program, and the economic benefit it provides to the region and nation. The conclusion, based on labor market demand and both personal and economic returns, is that certificates count and the policy and trends around certificates…

The purpose of this article is to provide counselors, academic advisers, and career coaches with a basic understanding of the current state of the high-technology (high-tech) industry in the United States and the people who work in it. A profile of a high-tech worker is presented, several high-tech career developments are described, and selected…

For nearly a decade, ACT has measured student progress in the context of college readiness. "The Condition of College & Career Readiness" is ACT's annual report on the college readiness of the most recent high school graduating class. The data herein provide insights to catalyze and guide efforts to improve college and career…

Schools of Library and Information Science (LIS) have often promoted alternative careers as a marketing tool and some students enrol in LIS schools specifically to explore alternative careers. The literature on LIS career patterns continues to suggest that those non-traditional careers are desirable and viable alternatives. Yet the survey research…

Recent economic and technological developments have led to a growing international demand for highly skilled human resources. The increased competition for human capital has determined numerous OECD countries to take special measures for attracting and retaining human capital in such fields as: information technology, biotechnology,…

The "State-By-State Profile of Community Colleges," 7th edition, presents an overview of trends and statistics pertaining to community colleges. The charts in the first section of the book offer a national view of populations served, tuition and revenue data, popular degrees, and career fields. The state-by-state section provides…