Argument Essay Outline. Closing the Gap between College and Career

Closing the Gap between College and Career
La Tunya Mahadeo
CSU Global
Closing the Gap between College and Career
Universities and Colleges have always had challenges in meeting the needs of the ever-changing employment culture. This arises due to the changes in the nature of jobs and the ever-changing world through technology and innovation. Over the past four decades, the number of jobs requiring postsecondary education have increased form 28% to 59%. This trend is also expected to increase up to 65% in 2020. The reason as to why this gap is continuing to broaden is because the expectations of employers from graduates are very complex due to these changes. Additionally, technical and professional skills are not enough in the current job world. Most of the hiring managers require employees with strong creativity, communication, innovation, and collaborative attributes. This gap should be closed because fresh graduates should be in a position to apply these abilities in both soft and hard skills in their job positions. To close the gap between colleges and career expectations, there is a need for partnership. This partnership should focus on addressing current market demands so that colleges can equip students with the knowledge and skills that they deserve. Ultimately, students will not only possess skills but also the ability to apply these skills across different industries and job roles. Although internships have not been effective in closing this gap, it is very important for the concerned stakeholders to come up with ways in which colleges can partner with employers to offer effective training that is in line with the current career expectations.
The gap between the college and career can only be addressed if colleges are capable of stepping up their training based on the employer's expectations. Most employers are of the idea that graduates lack the adequate skills to be fully effective in the job. Claims are that universities continuously dwell on the theoretical aspect of learning at the expense of practical which is not appropriate especially for the result drive industries (Wilson, 1977). For instance, students will low-efficacy normally dwell on their perceived inadequacy and difficulties in their situations. Students are therefore optimistic about getting employment. Adding to the high competition among companies, employers are becoming more reluctant in providing training to their employees due to high costs. Colleges, therefore, need to work towards meeting the expectations of the employer.
One of the ways to achieve this is through college career services. Colleges should employ career services professionals so that they can update them on the current requirements in the job market (Henry & Stahl, 2017). College faculties will then take appropriate actions and include these requirements in their faculties where possible. Furthermore, college career experts will be responsible for conducting workshops to equip students with the required skills (Bastedo et.al, 2016). Career services will help colleges equip students with the necessary skills that are needed by employers (Henry & Stahl, 2017). This approach will help bridge the gap between colleges and careers in many job sectors and industries.
Additionally, since job markets are changing every day, there is a need to equip learners with innovative minds that will cultivate them into innovators and not just job seekers. As a result of this, there is a need to improve their talent investment in various faculties. This has therefore created the aspect of the death of a resume whereby employers are becoming more analytical to spot talent. With the increased competition among companies, entrepreneurs and colleges need to create education programs that are more relevant to the employer to compete with real-time labor market intelligence (Bastedo et.al, 2016). Therefore, instead of companies spending more money on training their employees and less on assessments, more focus is shifting towards creating tools to access job seekers.
The partnership, therefore, means that careers in specific companies should be targeted which would be to the advantage of the student. In this case, corporations and local businesses provide sponsorships for higher education. As a result, transitioning from college makes much more sense economically because the companies that employ the highly qualified applicants know that they have sponsored their education to pursue careers that are much needed in that particular corporation or business. Different companies are therefore unique and focus on different industries, hence may play a part in sponsoring various college majors which they may need a workforce in the future. Some of the companies have managed to sponsor such programs that expose students to their current job expectations (Chan, 2016). For example, Bentley funded many colleges when there were changes in the accounting curriculum. Their Ernst & Young LLP managers started teaching alongside college tutors and judging some of their presentations. This approach allowed students to connect what they learned in class to Bentley's culture and expectations. Investing in student's talents will go a long way in shaping their innovative minds (Chan, 2016). Arguably, most companies require innovative employees for them to compete with other companies favorably. Partnerships between these companies and colleges will benefit the companies in achieving their growth opportunities.
Furthermore, colleges should use career communities that will help their students to apply their skills when they get employed. Community colleges provide opportunities to many courses, yet they are unclear about the opportunities they offer. Being overwhelmed in such a way may be controlled if clear guidance was offered. There are so many career opportunities and hence guidance is needed for students to understand the implications of their choices which include which course goes hand in hand with their passion as well as program duration. A career community involves groups of students who come together with alumni and corporate partners to learn more about the job market. They focus on the requirements in specific industries that look upon them as their future employers (Lane et.al, 2019). Furthermore, the career community focuses on hosting meetings with different professionals such as entrepreneurs, financial ex...