Sep 24, 2026

Job Openings? Look Toward Community Colleges

Employers are painfully aware that they face a 21st-century skills shortage. Companies are bent on hiring a "new collar" workforce to keep up with advances in technologies like artificial intelligence and automation. Read through to learn about an untapped resource.

Community colleges could help with recruitment. These two-year degree programs help set students on a pathway suited to bridging the gap in career and technical education, plus they provide many other workplace competencies.

A growing gulf

Frustrations mount when businesses cannot find the required talent; either they compromise on quality or middle-skill positions go unfilled. At the same time, community college graduates cannot find satisfactory jobs that offer an acceptable wage. 

A 2020 survey from Harvard Business School and the American Association of Community Colleges nailed the dilemma. Those who teach and those who hire experience the gulf from different perspectives. The survey, which included a quarter of the country's community colleges, highlighted the need for better communication on both sides. Generally, community colleges appear to be more proactive and open to making efforts than industry leaders are. Only 36% of the latter thought community colleges produce "work-ready" candidates, while community colleges protest that employers are not paying their graduates enough.

Ultimately, the pool of available talent falls short. Employers demand courses and skills directly tied to their corporate needs. That may simply be unrealistic. They expect the educators to take the initiative in organizing the curricula, but the firms themselves have better insight into their own requirements. 

How could both sets of stakeholders reboot? Although they do try to establish partnerships, progress goes in fits and starts. Typically, community college representatives might attend advisory boards that meet only a few times a year, or they stop for ad hoc conversations at job fairs or CTE speakers' series. 

The value proposition

So much potential is being wasted. Community college campuses provide a fertile hunting ground for today's corporations. Their diverse student bodies represent a big tent in terms of race and age and have a notable representation from the military. Enrollees are often committed and motivated; 1 in 5 are first-generation college students. Community colleges also offer a destination for older students, some of whom dropped out of earlier courses of study, or others hoping to transfer later to a four-year course. The average age of community college students is 30. These more mature students may already be more experienced workers, accustomed to juggling the responsibilities of school, work and family.

Community colleges model their programs on several objectives, each geared toward serving their local communities. They know they must attract and retain students to justify their role. They must promote an educational environment that appeals to pupils. And they are also obligated to be responsive and accountable to local employers.

Forward-looking companies tend to recruit over a long horizon for their talent pipeline. For instance, they might start at a community college by searching for an industrial technician but come back on a later round searching for more white-collar positions in finance or administration. Community colleges are well equipped to cater to companies' needs, especially by students who are seeking qualifications for a new career.

An alternative route

Apprenticeships are another promising avenue for collaboration between community colleges and local employers. These partnerships, which deliver structured, paid worker training, offer popular benefits for both employers and students. The programs incorporate on-the-job training, classroom instruction, direct business participation and a national credential.

From the students' side, apprenticeship rewards are compelling. They receive a debt-free education, in contrast to those in four-year programs (who may not even complete their courses). Apprentices' immediate take-home paychecks are normally about half their eventual wages. Those who finish apprenticeship programs ultimately out earn their counterparts who lack apprenticeship training.

Employers gain too. According to the Department of Labor, 92% of people who complete their apprenticeships remain employed nine months later. The DOL reports other encouraging statistics from the past five years:

• 349,000 apprenticeships were completed.
• 13,500 new programs were created.
• 65% of former apprentices remain fully employed.

Community colleges should be key feeders for these programs. Employers need to forge relationships with those local institutions now, as a future conduit to middle-skill resources.

©2026