The sub-baccalaureate labor market--the labor market for those with less than a baccalaureate degree but at least a high school diploma--constitutes about three-fifths of employment. It has been growing steadily in the past two decades, and the relative earnings of those with "some college" have also been increasing, suggesting increasing demand. This is also the labor market for which high schools as well as community colleges and technical institutes (the fastest-growing segments of postsecondary education) prepare their occupational students.
Despite the importance of the sub-baccalaureate labor market, we know relatively little about the way it works. A relatively small body of statistical analysis indicates that the economic returns to community colleges and technical institutes are quite varied and that the many individuals who begin postsecondary education but fail to complete credentials are unlikely to benefit much. However, the process by which individuals with sub-baccalaureate education make their way into the labor force has not been carefully examined.
To add to our information, this report presents the results of interviews with employers and education providers in four local labor markets. The four labor markets were chosen to provide some variety: one, which we call Frankton, has concentrated on agriculture and agricultural processing; a second (Palmdale) has emphasized high-tech development and manufacturing; a third (Rosefield) has a highly diversified economy with considerable government and service employment as well as some high-tech manufacturing; and a fourth (Cotooli) is a center for the manufacture of machinery and machine tools. To enable our interviews to be more precise, we concentrated on six occupations/occupational areas typical of those in sub-baccalaureate labor markets and widely represented within high school and postsecondary vocational programs: electronics technician, machinist, drafter, accountant, business occupations, and computer-related occupations.