Industry and education partnerships key to targeting skills gap in tech

By Shalina Chatlani (Education Dive)

  • According to some estimates, there are over 500,000 IT jobs left vacant each year; an recent IBM survey showed 57% of tech and academic stakeholders agree business and university partnerships are critical to giving students the workforce skills they need.
  • Existing examples of this collaboration include an Arizona State University program that partners with a Silicon Valley institution, Draper University, to help students design startups. And, Georgia Institute of Technology has also created labs where students can develop products, but also learn how to pitch them in the business world, reports EdTech Magazine.
  • Partnerships can also take form in the development of a career pipeline through the K-12 level as well, with states such as Rhode Island investing in programs like Pathways in Technology Early College High School Initiative (P-TECH), where community colleges work with high schoolers to build workforce and entrepreneurial skills in students before they get to college.