Employers Raising Educational Requirements

03.23.2017
HR & Safety

According to a recent CareerBuilder survey, 38% of employers have raised their educational requirements over the last five years, compared to 32% last year.
Forty-one percent of employers are hiring college-educated workers for positions that had been primarily held by those with high school degrees, compared to 37% in 2016.
Thirty-three percent of employers are hiring more workers with master’s degrees for positions that had been primarily held by those with a four-year degree, compared to 27% of employers last year.
More than 2,300 hiring and human resource managers in the private sector across industries participated in the nationwide survey, conducted online by Harris Poll from Nov. 16 to Dec. 6, 2016.
When asked why they are hiring more workers with college degrees for positions that had been primarily held by those with only high school degrees, 61% said it was because skills for their positions have evolved, requiring higher-educated labor.
Fifty-six percent said they are able to get college-educated labor for these positions because of the tight job market.
“We’ve continued to see an increase in the number of employers raising the educational requirements needed for their workforce,” says Rosemary Haefner, chief human resources officer at CareerBuilder.
“Roles across the board, even entry level positions, are evolving and becoming more complex. Employers are looking for workers with a solid knowledge base and skill set that can make an impact on the business right away.”

Benefits of Increased Educational Requirements

Employers that have increased educational requirements for their workforce have seen a positive effect on:

  • Higher-quality work: 61%
  • Productivity: 51%
  • Communication: 45%
  • Innovation/idea generation: 41%
  • Employee retention: 33%
  • Revenue: 26%
  • Customer loyalty: 24%

Employee Training

About half of employers (51%) plan to provide more online, competency-based learning opportunities to employees in 2017.
Forty-one percent of employers are sending current workers back to school to get an advanced degree, with 14% fully funding the degree, and 22% funding it partially.

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