4-year degree not required to achieve American dream

*First appeared in the Oct. 17, 2013, edition of the Laurel Chronicle.

A few years ago, I noticed a banner hanging from a fence at the high school near my house. It read something along the lines of, “University or bust.” Its purpose, I suppose, was to encourage high schoolers to attend college in pursuit of a bachelor’s degree.

It reminded me of my own high school experience, where the refrain from counselors and other authority figures was essentially the same: A four-year degree is your key to success.

And, well, maybe that is true for some students. But this belief – one that I think is misguided – has been too broadly applied, resulting in parents, teachers, counselors, and eventually students believing that their only chance for success is to attain a four-year degree.

In today’s economy, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

I keep thinking about my own experience. While I chose the maybe-not-so-practical path of getting a French and political science bachelor’s degree, my brother decided a four-year university wasn’t in the cards. He got an associates degree from Jones County Junior College and, quite frankly, is the picture of the American dream.

Seriously, you guys – my brother has a fantastic house that’s almost paid for, a lovely wife, a few cats and a Great Dane, and he recently bought his second boat. A facility technician at AT&T (where he’s worked for nine years, though it was still BellSouth when he first began the job), Jonathan receives a competitive wage, full healthcare and pension benefits, and opportunities for regular and double overtime (cha-ching!).

Importantly, he did all this without having the so-called “key” to success (a bachelor’s degree). I will also point out that not only did he skip the four-year college track, he also avoided the excessive student loan debt that often accompanies higher educational pursuits.

So what led him to this role, you ask? For starters, you need to know my brother is the guy you want with you if you’re stranded on a desert island. He can wire anything; he can build anything; he can troubleshoot anything…which is probably why he scored the highest in his grade on that military exam they give you in high school. Jonathan has been able to translate his natural aptitude for doing and building into an electronics career where he troubleshoots and maintains electrical circuits.

That’s what America – and Mississippi – needs more of: People like my brother who recognize their natural skillsets and turn them into meaningful careers.

Of course, I’m not the only one who thinks like this. I’ve spoken to countless company reps from across industry sectors – from energy to manufacturing, construction to telecommunications – and they share a common goal: They need more skilled workers, not necessarily those with four-year degrees.

This is particularly relevant with the onset of “onshoring,” or the trend of manufacturers locating plants in the U.S. due to changing dynamics within global markets. Rising labor costs in developing countries, affordable domestic energy, access to low-cost American capital, American productivity, and supply chain complexity has been the recipe leading to the influx of manufacturing jobs stateside.

Some economists estimate that onshoring has created between 250,000 and 500,000 jobs in America over the last three years, and the trend is expected to continue. Major companies like Caterpillar, Ford, and Apple are making heavy investments in U.S. facilities. GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt told the Harvard Business Review that outsourcing “is quickly becoming outdated as a business model for GE Appliances.”

Because it’s becoming more economically viable to manufacture in America, our workforce capacity must gear up to supply the needed labor for the new demand. States in the southeast, which typically enjoy lower costs of living, competitive tax environments, and a Right-to-Work policy, are especially attractive to companies looking to bring back jobs to domestic markets.

That means Mississippi is poised to benefit from the manufacturing renaissance, as long as we ensure that we have the skilled labor necessary to do the jobs coming back onshore.

We must change our thinking on education, with a dedicated effort to de-stigmatize workforce training. Not every student needs to go to a four-year university, and that’s okay. Some students have a strong aptitude for technical learning and will thrive in the workforce with a technical degree or certificate.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has previously estimated that in the ten year span leading up to 2014, more than 40 million jobs (roughly three-fourths of total openings) would be filled by workers without bachelor’s degrees.

In Mississippi alone, individuals who lack a bachelor’s degree but have some type of skills training – whether it’s welding, electronics, plumbing, or even healthcare – can get high-paying jobs with good benefits. This is especially true in Southeast Mississippi, which accounts for the most industrial employment in the state with some 58,347 industrial jobs according to Manufacturer News.

We’re at a critical juncture. The global dynamics have shifted and favor a return of job-creating companies to the U.S., particularly the Southeast. But will Mississippi’s workforce culture change with it, or will we continue pushing the misguided idea that all students need a four-year degree to succeed?