Pongo Blog | Did School Teach You the Skills to Get the Job Done?

We spend many years in school with the belief that a good education will prepare us for the many more years we'll spend at work. But, what you learn in the classroom can take you only so far. It's the work experience that's most critical in helping you get where you want to go in your career.

Employers expect everyone to come out of school with a set of basic skills, notably math, writing, reading, and at least some computer proficiency. Rather than worry about how well employees can add, subtract, speak, or write and send an e-mail, employers would rather focus on the stuff that matters most: increasing revenue, keeping costs down, making processes more efficient, and making sure everyone's working to their full capabilities and getting along like a bunch of happy campers.

Yet, according to a recent survey by The Conference Board, about 34% of employers believe high school graduates are not prepared for the workforce, and about 17% say the same of four-year college grads. In fact, close to half of employers feel the need to provide some form of "workforce readiness training" to boost new employees' skills after they're hired. Most employers focus their programs on skills such as teamwork/collaboration, leadership, and technology skills. Some even offer programs on enhancing communications skills.

But there's a bright spot here: When The Conference Board conducted a similar survey in 2006, most employers found that new high school grads were "adequately" prepared in technology skills and teamwork/collaboration. (The fact that teenagers are more technically adept than their parents is a big help.) Maybe we can take that as a sign that school systems are expanding beyond the basic subjects and aligning what's being taught with the skills workplaces really need.

Allow me to pose two questions to launch a discussion:

Do you believe your classroom education prepared you well for the workforce?
Have your employers provided training in skills that matter in the workplace?

Let us know in a comment.

Hi Rick! A nice juicy topic.

When I went to school, we weren't at all prepared for the real professional work world. Even in college, the only mention of harsh reality came from a stage crafts professor who asked us to answer the question "Why should I hire you?" I fumbled something about being so lazy I'd have to create better, more efficient ways to do things. My professor grimaced and advised me NOT to say that, but come to think of it here I am many years later as a consultant - doing just that and making a great living! But I do digress...

I look back now and know I was little prepared for my first post-college job. But my cousin recently gradated college, and both in high school and college she was given lots of assignments that taught her team work, project management, and even how to do professional-looking presentations - plus all kinds of other stuff that prepared her well for her first job. I wish that were the case for all, but I do think there's been a paradigm shift in general.

Lisa, I completely agree with you that colleges need to require courses that teach basic job-hunting skills and work-preparedness. Just referring kids to the campus career center does not suffice. After earning my BA degree a few years ago, I had to self-teach myself how to compose a professional looking resume, how to write a cover letter that makes a strong first impression, and I wasn't expecting the repeated rejections I received from dozens of employers. I was entering a world that was entirely foreign to me, and it took me a while to learn how to apply my transferable college-acquired skills towards a totally new challenge and goal. There is a lot of shop talk in the HR profession, and this alone was confusing for me at first. Even as an English majore with a broad vocabulary, I had to familiarize myself with using words like "coordinate," "streamline," and "per diem."

I definitely experienced culture shock when I transitioned from the collegiate microcosm to the rat race, but my liberal arts education has mostly proved to be a sturdy foundation. I just think orienting kids better with the realities of the job search will help them transition more easily from a life of studying to a life of employment. Considering the cost of a college education these days, its amazing that more institutions of higher learning don't place enough emphasis on work-preparedness in their curriculum.

@ Ronnie Ann - I agree with you on the paradigm shift. When I read and hear about some of the things my kids are doing in school, I come to the conclusion: "This is not your father's school experience." (with apologies to the creators of the old Oldsmobile TV spots: "This is not your father's Oldsmobile.")

@ Lisa - It's true that some - probably most - of us believe school might take you only a small part of the way into the work world. As Ronnie Ann pointed out, schools may have refocused their efforts and are now leaning toward teaching more skills that can be applied more directly to the world of work. I know that colleges are investing more in their career centers and in lining up internships for their students. Yet there are certain things schools do not teach, such as how to navigate office politics and get along with the boss.

@ Tim - As I addressed with Lisa, colleges are investing more in career centers. But to extend that point: Are they investing enough? Should they institute, for example, a 1- or 3-credit course on job search skills when students reach their senior year?

@ Rocky - Hear! Hear! (It's tough to argue with a guy named "Rocky," but try as I might, I find it hard to disagree with you.)