1. The Challenge
High school completion is no longer sufficient for entry into a family-sustaining career.
SOURCES: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Current Population Survey. Data are for persons age 25 and over. Earnings are for full-time wage and salary workers. *BLS, Employment Projections: Summary.

2. BEST BET What is a best bet? What is a Best Bet?
A college or job training program that:
Is compressed and leads to a credential (less than a bachelor's degree), often stackable
Is accessible to your students (or at least a subset of them)
Has strong retention (75%+) and completion (65%+ for certificate program; 55%+ for associate’s degree program) rates
Has evidence of high job placement – at least 75% of program graduates are able to gain jobs in the industry
. . . and that prepares students for an entry-level job that:
Is grounded in student career interest and accessible to applicants with little or no industry experience
Requires less than a bachelor's degree
Is projected to grow and has openings in the region
Has a median wage that is at least 80% of the region’s median wage
Offers career advancement potential
BEST BET

3. IDENTIFYING BEST BETS
There are several key steps to navigate on the path towards identifying best bet postsecondary programs in your region.
Learn the labor market
What entry-level jobs are in demand and offer a good starting wage?
What are employers seeking?
How can students get a foot in the door?
Investigate postsecondary programs
What programs are offered in in-demand fields, and who offers them?
Does the program enroll students like yours, and are they persisting?
What supports do students receive?
Are graduates employed in the field for which they trained?
Strengthen employer relationships
What education/training, skills, and experiences are needed for ‘in demand’ jobs with regional employers?
Which entry-level jobs offer the best career advancement opportunities?
How can training program curricula better meet employer needs?
Determine best bets
Review findings from the labor market, postsecondary programs, and employers against a set of best bet criteria
Even if a program is a best bet, it will not be the right fit for every student – consider what kind of students may or may not be well suited for each best bet

4. Localized Labor Market Analysis
Postsecondary Program Analysis
Analysis of Employer Interviews

5. Each profile: Captures important occupational information
Summarizes what employers are looking for (requirements and preferences)
Provides an overview of an associated postsecondary program
Identifies career trajectory opportunities, including wage growth

6. The Best Bets Process: Engaging with the Framework

7. Education and/or Work Experience
The LMI data important for uncovering Best Bets
Wages
Particularly the occupation’s 10th percentile wage in your metropolitan statistical area (MSA) – often a good indicator of an entry-level wage for those with little or no industry experience (or, sometimes between the 10th and 25th percentiles)
Median wage in your MSA – often a helpful indicator of what one could earn after working in the occupation for several years – also a key benchmark to look at relative to the MSA’s median wage for all occupations
Growth
Percent change (also referred to as growth or growth rate) projected for your state over the most recent 10-year period
High growth doesn’t necessarily mean great opportunity, and low (or even negative) growth doesn’t necessarily mean poor opportunity
Job Openings
Job openings projected for your state over the most recent 10-year period
See if job openings are reported annually or in total over a 10-year period – that has significant implications about potential demand
Education and/or Work Experience
Typical education needed for entry (in U.S.)
National % of workers in the occupation with a bachelor’s degree or higher – sometimes, in some regions, jobs that typically require an associate’s degree are − in reality − inaccessible without a bachelor’s and/or significant experience
Typical work experience needed

8. VALIDATING THE DATA
While labor market data are helpful, they have limitations – employers and workforce development organizations can help to fill in the blanks.
For a given occupation, you should know:
However…
Wages
Find out about benefits (e.g., health insurance, tuition remission, retirement plans, long-term disability insurance) – students need to know about the value of these incentives
Wage gains associated with career advancement
Growth
Growth does not always mean job opportunity, and projected declines may still yield high numbers of quality jobs
Occupations with projected declines may still have numerous job openings due to people leaving jobs for various reasons (replacement jobs)
Job Openings
Contact employers and workforce development organizations to find out if occupations really have job openings in your region
Education, and/or Work Experience
The level of education required for entry into a given occupation may differ by region and employer
Major economic events (e.g., a recession) can affect the education/training/work experience employers require/prefer when hiring

9. What is a best bet occupation?
BEST BET OCCUPATION CRITERIA
What is a best bet occupation?
An entry-level occupation that:
Is grounded in student career interest and accessible to new/recent graduates with little or no industry experience
Requires less than a bachelor’s degree
Is projected to grow and has openings in the state
Has a median wage that is at least 80% of the region’s median wage
Offers opportunities for advancement
IMAGE SOURCE: © Blend Images / Fotolia

10. THE CHALLENGE
Choosing a program of study as soon as possible upon entry is key to student success.
Research suggests that it is critical for a student to enter a program of study as quickly as possible. Students who do not enter a program of study within a year of enrollment are far less likely to ever enter a program or complete a credential.*
Finding the right program from the start is also important because most students don’t understand the costs of changing majors in terms of time and money.
Each time a student changes a major, he/she loses $45,000 on average, between lost tuition credits and lost wages from entering the workforce later than expected. In addition, he/she will also incur more student debt over time.**
For these reasons, students must understand programs of interest from a labor market, postsecondary, and employer perspective.
SOURCES: *Community College Research Center, Get With the Program: Accelerating Community College Students’ Entry into and Completion of Programs of Study, 2012; **College Factual

11. Using the Postsecondary Interview Protocol:
GATHERING THE RIGHT INFORMATION ON PSE PROGRAMS
Using the Postsecondary Interview Protocol:
How much information can we get about a postsecondary program online?
Look up a local community college in your region
Find a one year technical program/certificate that is being offered
Answer the questions on your postsecondary interview protocol
For Example:
Austin Community College – check out “quick careers”
Community College of Vermont – check out Certified Production Technician

12. Program Design and Structure
GATHERING THE RIGHT INFORMATION ON PSE PROGRAMS
Program Design and Structure
What will students learn as a result of completing the program?
What is the program’s instructional approach (e.g., hands-on learning vs. lecture-based)?
What is the cost of the program? Median student debt upon finishing the program?
Entering and Succeeding in the Program
Are there minimum scores required on entry-level tests?
Is there a waitlist and, if so, what can students do in the interim?
What supports exist to ensure that students are successful?
Alignment with Employers
What job(s) does the program prepare graduates for?
How does the program involve employers (e.g., design, internships, etc.)?
Can ex-offenders work in the occupation/field?
Program Outcomes
What are rates of persistence and completion in the program?
What percentage of graduates get hired? Where do they typically go, and how much can they expect to earn?

13. What is a best bet postsecondary training program?
BEST BET PROGRAM CRITERIA
What is a best bet postsecondary training program?
BEST BET PROGRAM
A program that:
Is compressed and leads to a credential (less than a bachelor’s degree) that is often stackable
Is accessible to your students (or at least a subset of them)
Has strong retention and completion rates. Retention should be 75%+ from one semester/cycle to the next. Completion should be at least 65% for a certificate program and at least 55% for an associate’s degree program.
Has evidence of high job placement – at least 75% of program graduates are able to gain jobs in the industry
Since there is no best bet program for everyone, it's critical that you think about what kinds of students would be a good match for each one you identify.

14. GETTING EMPLOYERS ON BOARD
A number of people and resources can help you identify and connect with employers.
Postsecondary program coordinators and staff of non-credit workforce divisions (ask about employers who have hired program graduates, employers serving on college advisory committees, etc.)
Your local Workforce Investment Board, One-
Stop Career Center, and Chamber of Commerce
Labor market research – Identify employers tied to in-demand occupations (e.g., your state LMI office may have a ‘major employer’ database for your region). Search Career Infonet’s Employer Locator tool.
Local news reporters who write about trends in the local economy, including growing and declining occupations/industries, employers who are hiring, etc.

15. VALIDATING BEST BET OCCUPATION CRITERIA WITH EMPLOYERS
Think back to our best bet occupation criteria. They help us to formulate key questions for employers:
Is the occupation really accessible to new/recent graduates with little or no industry experience?
Does it really require less than a bachelor’s degree?
Is it expected to grow and does it have openings in the state/region?
Does it pay a median wage that is close to the region’s median wage?
Does it offer career advancement?
IMAGE SOURCE: © Blend Images / Fotolia