Sometimes, a totally new path, like a second career, is the right fit for a person or family. While the traditional university system has churned out tons of quality employees, there are organizations that work to ensure talented people who, for one reason or another, opted to take avenues outside of traditional education are still able to land quality jobs. One such organization is Grads of Life.
Matching Skills with Demand
Responsibilities like caring for children or a sibling and lack of a professional network are a few of the reasons some youth don’t have the same course as other professionals, according to Grads of Life, which provides tools like mentoring and internships as well as other services for people who may have fallen through the cracks of education.
"Employers recognize the competitive advantage of a reliable pipeline of entry-level employees with skills that match their needs. Employment pathways create these pipelines, helping businesses build a better workforce from a historically overlooked talent pool of motivated and loyal young adults known as opportunity youth," according to the organization’s website.
Those not participating in the traditional hiring process, which includes resumes, interviews and higher-education requirements, may be overlooked by some companies even though many are qualified. Ironically, even at a time when unemployment is relatively high and “two-thirds of employers can’t find qualified workers to fill open non-managerial roles,” there is nearly 6 million young adults who are not in school looking for work, according to Grads of Life.
"The Grads of Life campaign seeks to change perceptions employers have of young people with atypical resumes. The GradsofLife.org website offers the tools to connect leading employers to employment pathways, including mentoring, school-to-work, internships, and hiring."
GlobalMindED Conference Hosts Speaker on Non-College Tech Job Paths
During the GlobalMindEd Conference coming up this summer in Denver, Kate Edwards, the executive director of the International Game Developers Association, will discuss workplace options for those who did not attend college, according to a recent Huffington Post article.
The article also features the story of Paulina Raguimov, who landed an internship and job at JumpStart. She hopes to develop games on her own one day, despite having dropped out of school. It notes that Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, dropped out of high school at age 15, yet has started more than 300 companies.
"I am returning [to the job fair I was hired from] this year as well as attending a conference for young girls where I am going to talk about my experiences and being a female in a primarily male industry," Raguimov says. "I think it's great to motivate and inspire students to pursue their passions. When I was in high school, I thought my grades were going to stop me from achieving any success in life, and I want others in that situation to know that that is not true."
The Second Career Tune-up
A US NEWS feature offered some tips for those jumping to an entirely new career later in life. Not everyone making the jump has the full set of skills and education to take on the new work, though, and they offer a series of tips to help ease the transition.
According to the piece, which cites Encore.org: "About 4.5 million workers between ages 50 and 70 have second careers and another 21 million are expected to join them within the next five years.” according to Encore.org. It is not uncommon for those seeking a second career to take classes or have an internship to “fine-tune” and update their technology skills. A four-year degree plan is not always needed, though. “If you need to go back to school, consider all your options and don’t rule out nontraditional ways of earning a degree."