From HigherEd Watch’s Mary Alice McCarthy: “If today’s employers want well-rounded graduates who are also proficient in specific skills and have on-the-job experience, they need to be part of the education process, and not just on the receiving end. When it comes to building a flexible, intelligent, and well-trained workforce, its time for business and industry to assume their role in the process and become part of the solution.”
If you ask employers what they want, they will tell you they would like to hire well-qualified employees at little pay with no risk. Ideally, they’d like you to train three times as many as they need so they can pick the best ones, and have the employees bear the risk of their educational investment. That’s great for them, but a disaster for society. As this article points out, it’s time to stop giving businesses a free ride, and start seeing their obligations as a crucial part of the process.