Career Pathways

Career Pathways is a workforce development strategy used in the United States to support students' transition from education into the workforce. This strategy has been adopted at the federal, state and local levels in order to increase education, training and learning opportunities for America’s current and emerging workforce.

Career pathways are an integrated collection of programs and services intended to develop students’ core academic, technical and employability skills; provide them with continuous education, training; and place them in high-demand, high-opportunity jobs. Career pathways programs have to consider the diversity of adult learners, and Belzer and Dashew (2023) note that “there are no universal ways to be an adult learner, and educators have to show their willingness to meet adult learners where they are to help them develop their skills, content, and self-concept.”Belzer, Alisa, & Dashew, Brian, eds. Understanding the Adult Learner: Perspectives and Practices, Chapter 1, p. 3 (Routledge, 2023).

A career pathways initiative consists of a partnership among community colleges, workforce and economic development agencies, employers, labor groups, and social service providers, see The Evolution and Potential of Career Pathways U.S. Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE), April 2015.

Career pathways are increasingly viewed as comprehensive systems that connect education, training, and employment to promote lifelong learning and workforce readiness. According to Advance CTE, a shared national vision for career technical education emphasizes that every learner should have access to high-quality pathways leading to meaningful careers, regardless of their background, age, or location. This vision calls for more equitable systems that align secondary, postsecondary, and workforce partners to ensure that education is responsive to labor market needs and learner goals.