Work-Based Learning & Career Coaching with Strada Education: Closing the Education Opportunity Gap

Описание: Higher education is under mounting pressure to demonstrate clear career outcomes as employers report persistent skills gaps, students question the return on investment of a degree, and states demand stronger alignment between education and workforce needs. Research shows that paid internships and structured work-based learning improve employment and earnings, yet access to these opportunities remains uneven, creating both an equity challenge and a systems challenge for colleges and universities.

In this episode of signals in higher ed, host Darin Francis is joined by Dr. Melissa Leavitt and Kevin Grubb of the Strada Education Foundation (‪@stradaeducationfoundation‬ ) to explore how career coaching and work-based learning can work together to transform the student experience. The conversation draws on research, policy insights, and institutional partnerships to examine what it takes to move from isolated programs to scalable, sustainable, and equitable systems.

Together, they discuss why high-quality, paid work-based learning is essential for long-term economic mobility, how career guidance strengthens student decision-making and access, and what roles states, systems, and employers must play in scaling career-connected education. This episode offers a practical look at how higher education can better connect learning to work and deliver outcomes that matter for students, institutions, and the workforce.